Hi all,
I'm a bit of an amateur. I've done about 5 kits in the past, although i've not brewed for 18 months now.
I've just started on a Woodfords Admiral's Reserve kit tonight. So now I have to decide whether to bottle it or keg it. I've got bottles and a crown capper, and also a pressure keg.
Bottling I find extremely tedious. But i've not had good results with the pressure keg before. Once when i used it the beer went flat straight away, and you couldn't get any out without loosening the cap. But more problematic was another couple of times when the beer has been so fizzy that opening the tap to take a pint out just gives you a pint of froth, and it stirs up all the sediment too making it fairly undrinkable.
What am I doing wrong? Is there a surefire success way of getting the pressure keg approach to work? cos i'd like to use it if i can, because it's a whole lot less effort. Plus taking beer out of a keg, you don't know how much you've had so therefore can't feel guilty!!!
thanks for any tips
slippy
Pressure barrel problems
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micromaniac
Re: Pressure barrel problems
every one has exactly the same probs,the trick with the over fizz is to open tap VERY slowly and you will get a decent amount out . dosent seem to matter if you put less sugar in.dont uderstand what you mean by opening the cap! i might be getting it wrong here but you should have a pressure cylinder to put co2 in if the pressure is low 
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Barm
Re: Pressure barrel problems
I wouldn't say there's a 'surefire' answer, slippy!! but:
"Over-fizzy" is usually caused by -
- brew not completely fermented when kegged (ie used guesswork instead of a hydrometer.....
)
- too much priming sugar
- keg too warm
So the solutions follow directly from these.
"Flat" is usually caused by -
- too little priming sugar (or completely forgot to add any at all)
- keg kept too cold after sealing up, such that yeast falls dormant and does not carbonate the brew
- keg temperature very cold:
- (most common, I suspect) the keg is not leak-tight. Conditioning CO2 is produced ok - but leaks away to atmosphere instead of carbonating the brew and pressurising the keg.
I'd suggest a pressure/leak test is in order to verify the condition of the keg and it's fittings/seals etc. Fill it quite full with water, cap, then apply a good squirt of CO2. Then watch/listen for leaks. Some people use a weak washing-up liquid solution sprayed on the potential leak areas - it'll bubble up to reveal even very slow leaks that are too small to detect otherwise. Once all leaks are rectified you can be a lot more confident about committing your precious brew to the keg! A good smear of vaseline is recommended on all sealing faces ie tap body/washer and mating face of keg, and especially the lid seal ring - a major cause of leaks.
"Over-fizzy" is usually caused by -
- brew not completely fermented when kegged (ie used guesswork instead of a hydrometer.....
)- too much priming sugar
- keg too warm
So the solutions follow directly from these.
"Flat" is usually caused by -
- too little priming sugar (or completely forgot to add any at all)
- keg kept too cold after sealing up, such that yeast falls dormant and does not carbonate the brew
- keg temperature very cold:
- (most common, I suspect) the keg is not leak-tight. Conditioning CO2 is produced ok - but leaks away to atmosphere instead of carbonating the brew and pressurising the keg.
I'd suggest a pressure/leak test is in order to verify the condition of the keg and it's fittings/seals etc. Fill it quite full with water, cap, then apply a good squirt of CO2. Then watch/listen for leaks. Some people use a weak washing-up liquid solution sprayed on the potential leak areas - it'll bubble up to reveal even very slow leaks that are too small to detect otherwise. Once all leaks are rectified you can be a lot more confident about committing your precious brew to the keg! A good smear of vaseline is recommended on all sealing faces ie tap body/washer and mating face of keg, and especially the lid seal ring - a major cause of leaks.