Beer Lines

[sav]

I am just wondering how long my beer lines should be,they where about a few feet and my dispencing pressure was really low,so i bought more beer line its about 6 to 8 feet long now and it didnt really hasent changed that much,I am thinking of going a size up on my line,that is standard size about 6mm i think,my dispencing pressure at the moment is 5 to 10 psi ,I would like a bit more knowing that my seal is good and a bit more leway on pressure.

 

[sah]

Hi Sav, This AHB article might help? http://www.aussiehomebrewer.com/forum/inde...;showarticle=24

Scott

 

[paul]

Beer has to be kept at 80-100kpa to maintain correct carbonation.
and
5mm line has 33kpa resistance per metre so youll need 3 metres of it.

To adjust the pour change the length of the line and not the gas reg.

 

[davelovesbeer]

How come some posts say that for 5mm line you need 3m, but when using the calculation (i saw somewhere) below, it calculates out to about 1.5m. I assume 3/16 resistance would be similar to 5mm. I tried to balance my keg system using the formula, but it pours foam.

Length = (pressure - (height x 0.5) - 1 ) / resistance

where length/height is in feet, pressure in psi and resistance pounds/ft

Therefore for 100kPa (~14 psi), for a tap 2 ft above the keg, beer line should be about 4.5 ft, which is about what i have, which gives alot of initial foam, and is about half as long as other people are using.

How come there is such a difference between the calculation, and what everyone else uses?

 

[oldbugman]

the initial foam will be from co2 breaking out of the solution and going up the line to the tap while you are not pouring.

things that reduce this.

flooded font
less lift
running a slightly higher pressure than is required.(also ends up with over carbonated beers)

 

[Cortez The Killer]

You need to adjust the template for 5mm line

If you go to the Resistance table and find

"3/16" I.D. plastic beer line"

In the "Resistance / foot (psi/ft)" column change 2.7 to 1.46

This will give you a "Resistance / m (Kpa/m)" of 33.00

Which will be closer to 5mm line resistance

Cheers

 

[oldbugman]

one tip i forgot to mention

I get a similar thing happening and i run 3.5m of 4mm beer line.

The easiest way to reduce the effects is to make sure you have your excess beer lines coiled up in a way to allow any co2 that breaks out to rise up the line all the way to the tap. that way it is a minimal excess froth.

if it pockets up in the line and doesn't make it all the way to the tap you will get more turbulence in the line as these pockets of co2 race towards the tap. which will break out more co2.

 

[KGB]

........The easiest way to reduce the effects is to make sure you have your excess beer lines coiled up in a way to allow any co2 that breaks out to rise up the line all the way to the tap. that way it is a minimal excess froth.

if it pockets up in the line and doesn't make it all the way to the tap you will get more turbulence in the line as these pockets of co2 race towards the tap. which will break out more co2.

Good tip, I never thought of that!

It also makes a difference what level of carbonation you have/want in your beer. I have about 4m of beer line at the moment and its running well.

 

[davelovesbeer]

Cool, that makes the calculation work.

Just wondering, what are the effects of having the beer line too long?

 

[tangent]

just a slow pour. better off having too much line and trimming later.

 

[paul]

If your line is too long it will pour too slow at 12-15psi. You can increase your pressure to make it pour at the right speed but your beer will be overcarbed by the time you get to the end of the keg.