CO2 usage

[Mall]

Hi all, I am interested in what you guys consider acceptable in CO2 usage. My current 2.6kg bottle just emptied itself after 5 months, to the day.

Once my kegs are carbonated I tend to disconnect the gas line allowing serving under internal pressure only, don't know if this serves as a benefit or CO2 saver cause I guess it has to equalise itself next time the gas is connected.

So is 5 months (3 x Keg Kegerator) acceptable or have I a small leak somewhere?

 

[n87]

since i started, ive emptied 2 kegs, and carbonated one more... along with all the setup stuffing around
used around 100-200g

If you only have gone through 3 kegs... i would say there may be a leak somewhere.

 

[real_beer]

Yes you definitely have a leak somewhere Mall. I think you can carbonate & push through 3 corny kegs with a small Sodatream softdrink maker bottle, about 300gm of gas from what I remember.

 

[roller997]

I would expect you have a leak somewhere.
I know that force carbonation takes more CO2 than to dispense, however from a previous thread here it appears that you need between 32 and 48 grams to push out 18 liters of beer. So for 3 kegs that is a maximum of 150 grams.
http://aussiehomebrewer.com/topic/39299-how-much-beer-will-a-16g-co2-bulb-serve/

The force carbonation should vary depending on what pressure you have but as the other guys mentioned it appears you definately have a leak.
Have you tried soapy water around your disconnects, keg outlets and the connectors along the way?

Regards

Roller

 

[Mall]

Made a quick edit of initial post, I have a 3 Keg system, but have not counted how many kegs I have gone through, moderate usage.

 

[real_beer]

It' s very hard to estimate other peoples usage these days as they may be using their gas for pushing cleaning solution though kegs & lines, purging fermenters, bottling, sealing empty kegs after cleaning blah, blah blah. The best way to monitor how your going is by weighing your bottle on a regular basis or every time you empty a keg and hook up a new one. :icon_cheers:

 

[Grott]

Sorry Mall but no one can answer your question with out knowing how many kegs you carbonated and dispensed. For future reference a full 2.6kg bottle should carb and dispense 21 kegs, take 1 off for purging etc so 20 would give you a reasonable idea.
Cheers

 

[roller997]

Without knowing how many kegs you went or what your carbonation levels were, it is a bit difficult to provide an estimate of what you should have consumed.

I found a reference that indicated 75 grams per CO2 for force carbonation at 2 Volumes of CO2.
If you were doing Wheat beers, you might have used as much as 2.7 Volumes which translates to 101 grams of CO2.

If you used 10 kegs during the period (1 per fortnight) and assuming that they were carbonated at Wheat beer levels then you would be looking at 1.5KG of CO2. If you consume 1 keg per week then your cylinder would have not lasted for the full 5 months.

Grott is right on with the amount of kegs you can dispense at 2 Volumes of CO2.

I also use my CO2 to clean the kegs but then my natural carbonation more than makes up for that.

Given the split of CO2 used for carbonation is higher than for dispensing, one way to preserve gas is to naturally carbonate your beer in the kegs and to cut your beer pickup tube a bit to pickup less sediment.
I naturally carbonate and I haven't modified my pickup tube. The first pint or two are a bit cloudy and then it is pretty good if the kegs don't get moved.

 

[Tex N Oz]

1kg of CO2 has a volume of 546L @1 atm and 20°C. These are the numbers they use to determine "volumes" in a beer.

If I had 50L of beer at 2.5 volumes then I'd need 125 cubic litres of CO2. Because the liquid to gas volume ratio is so low, a lot of CO2 can be used to purge, carbonate and pressure dispense beer.

If you had a 2 meter cube it would require ~14.6kg of CO2 just to fill at atmospheric pressure and 20°C. It seems volumetrically inefficient, but that's why our CO2 seems to run out quickly.

 

[pcmfisher]

From a 2.6kg bottle theoretically you could get around 20 kegs carbonate and dispense.

In the real world you can expect 12 - 15 depending on carbonation levels and wastage.

I like to work on 5 kegs per kg.

You start filling up a keg with gas just to push some cleaner and sanitiser around you will soon chew through a lot of gas.

 

[SJW]

I use a spare gas disconnect with a thread on the end and use my bike floor pump to pressurise the keg to run cleaning solution through the system. Just be sure to pop the disconnect off as soon as you pull the pump away so the air does not escape. Its easier than putting back in the freezer, disconnecting all the other kegs just to put a squirt of co2 in for cleaning.

 

[pist]

From a 2.6kg bottle theoretically you could get around 20 kegs carbonate and dispense.

In the real world you can expect 12 - 15 depending on carbonation levels and wastage.

I like to work on 5 kegs per kg.

You start filling up a keg with gas just to push some cleaner and sanitiser around you will soon chew through a lot of gas.

This is why i will fill the keg with cleaner or sanitiser rather than just putting 5 litres in. Takes much less co2 to fill the headspace than if its near empty. A few extra grams or fluid ounces of cleaning chemicals are cheaper and go further than co2

 

[Eagleburger]

I only got one keg out of a 6kg. My toddler son left the tap on. Emptied half a keg on the floor and a full co2 bottle into the atmosphere. Kids are cruel.

 

[GalBrew]

I only got one keg out of a 6kg. My toddler son left the tap on. Emptied half a keg on the floor and a full co2 bottle into the atmosphere. Kids are cruel.

Don't let them anywhere near the beer taps. Disaster soon follows. I thought I'd be clever and let the little guy pour me a beer. Pulled the adjacent tap that was still plugged. Sprayed beer all over the garage.

 

[TheWiggman]

Then they become teens and the beer just disappears without a mess.
QldKev mentioned he got about 18-20 kegs out of a 2.6kg bottle. I think mine last (on it's last legs) has probably got me 10-12 with a known leak at some stage.

 

[Mr B]

Ahh, very timely.

My bottle has just run out for the first time, a very sad occasion, however as inevitable as taxes etc.

One keg that was carbing up was a bit full, and beer went up the line as far as the manifold, but no further. Perhaps it does have one way valves, I have been wondering about that.

Anyhow, looks like a fill is due for Monday.

 

[Grott]

Purging, carbonating and dispensing using a 2.6kg bottle achieved 5 x 12l and 28 x 9.5 litre kegs plus some for cleaning purposes. Really pleased with that.
Cheers