Bit chilly in the garage...

[richT]

... and the full barrel of Wherry I have been maturing in there since November is having some trouble.

According to the thermometer in there the temperature has been as low as -2.5 C and no higher than about 11 while it has been out there. I had another barrel of Cooper's IPA but finished that off before it got really cold just after christmas so can't compare.

What the problem is, is that there appears to be no C02 in the barrel - if I squeeze the safety release valve you can hear a little hiss, but when trying to actually get the damn beer out you don't get anything, or air goes back into the barrel via the tap which is not good.

I have basically left this alone since I brewed it so don't know if it ever had any pressure but, could it be that the beer has got so cold that the gas has all gone into solution? I plan to bring it into the warm and try again, failing that I'll have to look at C02 injection.

Any other ideas? 40 pints at stake here...

rich

[stevezx7r]

It does sound like it's too cold.

Did you ferment it and prime it in the warm (20 ish C)? If so then the c02 may have gone into suspension and bringing it indoors should sort that out.

Otherwise the yeast has probably either become dormant or killed. Bring it indoors and don't let it drop below 20C for a week or two then once it's carbed up (if the yeast is still alive) you can mature it if need be in the garage.

If it doesn't carb up on it's own and tastes sweet, you could try repitching some yeast which should use up the remaining sugars.

Don't let it glug through the tap or it will oxidise the beer.

[farmhousekeg]

... and the full barrel of Wherry I have been maturing in there since November is having some trouble.

According to the thermometer in there the temperature has been as low as -2.5 C and no higher than about 11 while it has been out there. I had another barrel of Cooper's IPA but finished that off before it got really cold just after christmas so can't compare.

What the problem is, is that there appears to be no C02 in the barrel - if I squeeze the safety release valve you can hear a little hiss, but when trying to actually get the damn beer out you don't get anything, or air goes back into the barrel via the tap which is not good.

I have basically left this alone since I brewed it so don't know if it ever had any pressure but, could it be that the beer has got so cold that the gas has all gone into solution? I plan to bring it into the warm and try again, failing that I'll have to look at C02 injection.

Any other ideas? 40 pints at stake here...

rich

Hi richT

I had EXACTLY this problem with my Coopers Stout and All Grain Bitter which were in kegs in my shed during the real cold weather over the Christmas period. It was certainly sub zero from time to time and not much above zero for days on end. I also found there was no pressure in the barrrels and even injecting some CO2 I found that a day later the pressure had virtually gone. I actually thought one of my kegs had a leak and went out and bought a replacement!! However suspecting the cold might be the problem I brought them indoors to a coolish spot in the house (12 - 15C). Within a day they were fully pressurised and the beer has been very nice - no ill effects to the beer or to me after drinking it!!

Remembering some school physics I think what is happening is that as the temperature drops, the pressure created by the same volume of CO2 in the keg also drops. This means that a keg which had loads of pressure while conditioning at 20C loses a hell of a lot of that pressure when it is put out in the cold at zero Degrees C. Coupled to this is the fact that at lower temperature more CO2 will dissolve in the beer (and therefore the CO2 which has now dissolved no longer creates any pressure in the keg). This is (I think) what was happening when I added CO2 in my cold shed. At first it created pressure but within 24 hours it was dissolved in the beer and when I opened the tap all I got was a "glug" as some air went up the spout into the keg!!

As soon as my kegs were a little warmer in the house, the temperature/pressure equation meant that the same CO2 sitting above the beer was creating much more pressure than in the cold shed. Also some of the dissolved CO2 would be released from solution and pressurise the keg. Its also possible I suppose that the yeasties will waken up and start to produce some more themselves if there are any fermentables left.

[richT]

Well, I've brought it in from the cold. I'll wait for it to get warm (20C is a bit optimistic given the state of my heating) and let you know what happens.

Thanks for the help

Rich

[richT]

Hooray! It worked. My cup runneth over (literally, it's quite lively in there now).

Rich

[Trough Lolly]

The garage in winter is an excellent place to ferment lagers....and it was this very issue with CO2 absorption that had me duped into thinking that my lagers weren't fermenting when it got really cold for several days. It turned out that it was fermenting but the wort wasn't giving up much CO2 as it got so bloody cold. A few days of more milder weather and sure enough, the airlock would kick into gear and push out the escaping CO2...

[farmhousekeg]

Hooray! It worked. My cup runneth over (literally, it's quite lively in there now).

Rich

Congratulations RT - glad the diagnosis was correct - hope it tastes great too