Foam from two of four Taps/Keg

[walzo]

Hi all,

Quick question. I've search the forum and google in general but couldn't find an answer.

I have a kegerator setup, Keg King gas bottle, micromatic reg, 4-way distributor inside the fridge (are these all the same or are there better brands of distribution blocks?), from there I've got minimal gas line to korny brand disconnects then a mix of 4 different kegs (First possible point of failure), then beer lines (all roughly 4m in line with beer line calculation spreadsheets) to two different taps - 2 Intertap taps and 2 Andale Floryte taps (2nd point of failure).

So, the issue, finally. I get good head, good carbonation from the intertaps but from the florytes I get massive head and seem to lose a bit of carbonation. I assume they're somehow affecting the poor so it forces co2 out, somehow. It seems to be the only explanation, almost everything, except for the kegs, is uniform.

Any one had the same issue or can point me in the direction of another possible cause?

 

[bradsbrew]

Have you swapped the beer lines around by taking a disconnect off, from the keg, of a intertap tap and connect it to the floryte tap?

 

[walzo]

Hmmm. No. Good idea. I was going to try swapping the two florytes over as one is worse than the other. Will give it a go.

 

[TwoCrows]

I hear even beer taps get excited and foam a bit before use!!

 

[n87]

I have Florytes and (Lancer) Brumbies, I find they require slightly different setups.
Mine get switched around quite often (snaplocks), and none of my lines are the same length with the same disconnect (added lines one at a time as money permitted) and i find the Florytes work better with some, and the Brumbies work better with the others.
I think Florytes need a bit more pressure (less line) as if you dont have a full stream, it gets more agitated hitting the glass.
Whereas the brumbies dont require a full stream, I think due to the angle of the spout.

 

[walzo]

Haha, I figured maybe they were just reflecting my excitement, I understood, I wasn't juding them.

I thought maybe the taps, due to everything else being the same. I did also notice, when changing pressures, that they didn't like to not have a constant flow otherwise nothing but foam.

I'll give the keg/line/tap swap a go and if that proves it I'll look into the line length for the florytes.

 

[damoninja]

I found that one of mine had something strange going on in the liquid post, I swapped disconnects, posts, dip tubes etc before replacing the poppet and all was good. Suspect must have been some strange kind of friction going on in there (that's what she said)

 

[walzo]

Hmmm, the kig is a bit questionable too. I guess when I do the swap I can test another keg on the floryte taps to confirm it all.

It has a lot of troubles with the gas disconnect. Has to be in the right spot otherwise there's a small leak. It's far from trustworthy.

 

[n87]

Hmmm, the kig is a bit questionable too. I guess when I do the swap I can test another keg on the floryte taps to confirm it all.

It has a lot of troubles with the gas disconnect. Has to be in the right spot otherwise there's a small leak. It's far from trustworthy.

Might be the gas disconeect or the o-ring
I have had the occasional disconnect (cornelius brand) that had scratches inside (from disconnect/reconnecting) deep enough to cause it to leak if pushed one way. I replaced it,

First thing to do is inspect the inside of the disconnect and the o-ring on the keg for damage
If they are good, give the o-ring a smear of lube
test

 

[Kingy]

I had a problem with a tap foaming a few weeks ago. Even tho I give them a good pull apart clean soak every 2 weeks,when a visual on this tap upon next cleaning cycle it was noticed to be loaded with black crud resisting the flow. After I cleaned her up. The foaming disappeared. Tasted fine either way but lol.

 

[walzo]

Disconnects should be good but the o-ring could be worth a check too.

Shame. The tap has never really had a clean. Had a few kegs through it. Guess I'll add that to the to do list.

Cheers guys. This has all been an eye-opener. Keep 'em coming.

 

[walzo]

Connected the keg in question to different line/tap. Much less foam than the floryte, although there's still quite a bit, the pic includes the final pour spit from the keg so a little extra foam.

Can safely say it's either the lines or the tap.

Will confirm with a pour of another beer normally on an intertap through the andale at a later stage.

 

[walzo]

Forgot the before and after pics

 

[walzo]

So, longer beer lines to increase friction prior to pouring?

 

[bradsbrew]

Now try the other way around, then look at reducing the beerline to the florytes to 2m.
What pressure are you serving at?

 

[n87]

Also have to account for warm taps on the first pour.
That will cause plenty of foam

 

[walzo]

I've been serving around 10psi. I'll give the reverse a go soon to confirm in regards to taps.

Yep, first pour has always been a bit of a write off. Always far worse on the floryte tap in question obviously.

 

[labels]

I had the same problems with Chinese taps. One of the 'O' rings on top of the tap unit where the handle is, was dodgy. Instead of letting beer out of it, it was sucking air in and mixing it with beer before the tap outlet. Result was massive foam. New 'O' ring seated properly fixed it in an instant. Worst part is it took me ages to figure this out as it's completely invisible to what's actually happening.

 

[walzo]

So could be worth soaping/spraying the tap during a pour to see if it's doing the same you reckon?

 

[labels]

So could be worth soaping/spraying the tap during a pour to see if it's doing the same you reckon?

You have to check all things you read in this thread, be methodical about it and cross them off as work your way through them

The fact you have two working just fine seems to suggest it is a tap problem, especially as the two which are playing up are identical and the two that are working fine are also identical so checking taps is a good place to start.