Co2 Leaking - Had Enough

[DarrenTheDrunk]

Hello Fellow Brewers

As the title implies…no… it is in fact explicit… I have almost had enough of leaking Co2 in my Kegerator X purchased from my local HBS. Please allow me to cut to the chase simply because I am so pissed off. I now have lost the gas 4 times in a 6kg C02 bottle having re “plumbed” completely every time the gas fricken leaks out…and on bottle 5 just now…. “very bad language”

It is my opinion that it is those quick connect “T” and joiners as I go through a fair few kegs and there is a fair bit of “keg movement” so it is possible these joins leak as being “stressed” during keg moving. Now there is a very very dear “brewing Consultant” who I will raise this with but having seen his set up, it would have cost more than my humble home.

Question/comment – Unless advised otherwise, I want to go back to the old “heat the tube and push like “F” at every join” fittings. I will feel like 10 rounds with Mike Tyson but I have no doubt that ******* wont leak. Can anyone offer any support/disagreement/suggestions…but no insults please…I got a bit carried away last time this happened!!

TIA…” there has to be a better way”

DTD

 

[golfandbrew]

Have you found the leak? If not you're just speculating and going to make yourself more upset if it happens again.
Same cylinder or exchanged for a different one each time? Maybe it's the cylinder and not the connections after all.
If you are set on changing your lines and connections, I've used both 4mm and 5mm evafresh line. The 4mm won't go on without some effort but the 5mm are pretty easy. Let them warm in hot tap water.

 

[DarrenTheDrunk]

Fair question GaB. No I have sprayed the best soapy water I know everywhere and can not find it but having said that, I did the last time, in a desperate attempt, install a 4 way gas valve which was pretty hard to test as such. I could say this is the problem but there is only so far my pension and blood pressure will allow. Whilst it may be the issue THIS TIME...who knows what the next time. Thanks for your heads up on the 4/5 mm line(that is ID I think). The physical effort is insignificant compared to the emotional distress...

I am hopeful for some other opinions for therapeutic reasons
Cheers

DTD

 

[Skillz]

I havent and won't use those push ins, don't trust them at all, in saying that I don't trust anything to do with leaks so I turn my gas off after every session lol

 

[DarrenTheDrunk]

Thanks Skillz...You can tell just how quick I reply to yours and the previous comment that I am desperate for solutions. My local HBS said the same but it concerns me that if , while waiting 6 weeks for the beer s gas and "mature", if there is a very very small leak in 1 of the kegs, the beer would be buggered by not maintaining the right amount of Co2. I do not disagree with you at all but my "philosophy is to prefer to fix the problem (leak) and not deal with the symptom (turn off gas)...but then again...One is getting a tiddle bit pissed off with my bloody philosophy

 

[Dorz]

I've lost a couple of cylinders recently and found out it was one of my kegs which mustn't be sealing properly on either the lid seal or gas post seal... I Lubricate posts each time, use genuine CMB disconnects and on the gas side, barbs and crimps. Could it be a keg?

I always prefer barbs on the gas side, and usually John guest fittings on the beer side but have thought about going back to barbs on that too.

 

[S.E]

while waiting 6 weeks for the beer s gas and "mature",

Darren, if you are waiting 6 weeks for the beer to mature with bottled co2 perhaps you should try priming and naturally conditioning your beer and only use your bottled gas to dispense it at low pressure?

 

[DU99]

my gas is barbed and has hose clips... have a lost gas before,also checked your disconnects seals

 

[Outback]

for the same reason as you I won't usr push in fittings. I got some good quality 4m id for beer line to shorten them up, and used the clips. Never will I forget the pain and anguish of shoving a Mack truck up a drink straw, but I have no leaks, whereas before, it was a matter of which push in was leaking.

 

[Nullnvoid]

I usesd to use push fittings, now only use them for liquid. Will not use for gas as I couldn't find any leaks but I had leaks as I lost 2 gas bottles. Put in SS MFL connections and hey presto, no more leaks.

As others have said, you need to assess the whole system. Kegs (lid, posts, ball/pin locks). Line (any fitting, t-pieces, joins, anywhere it goes from tube, to connection). Regulator (from the line to the connecting device)

As long as there is still gas in the keg, you won't ruin the beer by turning the gas off at the bottle. However I agree with you, that it's better to solve the problem of leaking gas in the first place and not creating a bandaid solution.

 

[razz]

Good morning Darren, it looks like you have most of it covered in terms of leak detection. You haven't talked about the regulator in your system. It may be worth trying a borrowed reg and see if that resolves the problem.

 

[Grmblz]

Hi Darren, for gas: stainless barbs and clamps (not hose clamps but the round things that you squeeze to seal) for liquid it doesn't matter what you use as you will see the leak.
Painless way to fit the line to the barbs: put line in boiling water to soften then jam a pair of needle nosed pliers into it, and "open" the pliers to stretch the line.
I don't trust those little gas manifolds, just use "T's"
Always spray soapy water onto the keg lid after gassing it up, it will sit in the groove and any leak past that big "O" ring will be obvious, replace post "O" rings and always lube them when connecting stainless disconnects (ditch any plastic ones)
Finally, get a second gas bottle and use it to condition any newly filled keg, that way if there's a leak on your dispensing system it will be obvious, just turn off the gas at the end of a session and if the gauge drops over night then you have a leak, this wont work if you have "conditioning/maturing" beer connected as the beer will be absorbing gas, you only need to do this after you have connected or disconnected a keg.

 

[fw00r]

Just chiming in to say that I was surprised to find a leak from the top of my ball lock post disconnect. It was resolved by tightening the thing down.
Have since switched to stainless and barbed but might be worth checking.

 

[Jez]

I’ve lost tanks of gas due to leaking keg posts also

 

[Grmblz]

The ultimate answer is to go commercial, the consensus is A-type couplers (German sliders) are the best as there's no hole in the keg for stuff to collect in.
I decided to switch late last year, prices are not too different, and there's a ready market for cornies.
Cleaning can be done by simply unscrewing the spear, or you can fabricate something similar to the commercial cleaners (for me that's a work in progress) Meddo built a cleaning station I believe.
If you have really had enough of bloody ball lock disconnects and cornie "O" rings have a look.
Just a thought, there are "adapters" available that screw onto commercial couplers enabling ball lock disconnects to connect to them, handy whilst you transition from one system to the other but my advice is bite the bullet and do the job in one hit, the adapters are just another point of potential failure, and the whole object of the exercise is to get rid of the disconnects/posts and "O" rings, also use barbs on the couplers not push in fittings.

 

[Uncle Ed]

I have found that the new pressure release valves do not seal on older lids. luckily I had some older vales and they worked,

 

[Klosey]

Gidday Darren,

I have posted on this forum my frustration with leaking gas and in my situation using a commercial keg with an A coupler. Have gone through 3 x 6 kg gas bottles in very quick time. I have used all the soapy water tricks with nothing to show. I even bought another A coupler to try and solve the problem. Went back to basics and retighten all the connections, even though the soapy spray bottles yielded no clues. I am thinking there might be a problem with the actual spear in the commercial keg. Not sure how to tell or fix it.

appreciate your frustration

 

[philrob]

You have my sympathy, empathy, and condolences.
Your problem is one of the reasons I stick to bottling. Unfortunately, your problem seems to afflict too many brewers from time to time.
I'm retired, so time is not an issue for me in bottling.
Having said that, son-in-law is a happy kegger.

 

[Grmblz]

Hi Klosey, have you replaced the seals in the keg? No seal lasts forever.
I used these things for years back in my Landlord days and never had a problem, it's one of the reasons I've switched from ball locks.

 

[Klosey]

Hi Klosey, have you replaced the seals in the keg? No seal lasts forever.
I used these things for years back in my Landlord days and never had a problem, it's one of the reasons I've switched from ball locks.

Have checked out sites on U tube but can’t find much information on how to disassemble an A Type keg spear to replace seals