idea to stop gas leaks <$30

[TSMill]

Canary and a Webcam?

 

[sgtpinky]

Canary and a Webcam?

"Chuckles...Chuckles...are...are you alive?"

Damn. Need a CO2 refill.

 

[TheWiggman]

And a new canary

 

[Yob]

....or in my case I dont even tap the keg whilst carbonating. Which is the longest amount of time a CO2 bottle needs to be open without restriction

I dont usually leave the gas on ever.. when carbing the keg, I purge it, hit it to 30 PSI and shut off, hit again the next day and the day after that and it's done.

... but I am usually impatient..

 

[QldKev]

To find a gas leak the first idea is to use a flow sensor, but the flow rate of a leak is so low it can't be measured reliably.

I have an idea for a system to detect a leak and turn off the gas supply, and I'm pretty sure the parts would cost less than $30 (from ebay). It requires:
- solenoid vale ($10)
- pressure switch ($5)
- controller e.g. arduino ($15)


The valve and pressure switch are connected to your gas lines this way:

[A]
cylinder ----- regulator ----- valve ---+--- keg --- taps

|
pressure switch

So in summary the valve is able to cut off the flow from the regulator, and the pressure switch is responding to the pressure after the valve. Let's say the pressure from the regulator is 10psi and the pressure switch turns on at 5psi.

It works like this:
* Initially the pressure at A and B are equal (10psi), the valve is closed, and the switch is on (because it has 10psi on it)
* Eventually the pressure at B drops either because the tap is opened or there is a leak
* In response, the controller turns on the valve for 1s to let the gas flow, then closes it again.
* If the cause of the pressure drop was a leak, then after closing the valve the pressure at B will not drop again for a long time. The controller will keep the valve closed, and maybe also beep or flash an LED until a reset button is pushed
* If the cause of the pressure drop was a tap opening, then after closing the valve the pressure at B should drop again quickly. The controller continues opening the valve for 1s intervals as long as the pressure drops quickly after it is closed.


Can anyone see any problems or improvements?

I cant see this working. The main issue the kegs will not always be at a true equilibrium to the supply. Hence if the kegs absorb the small amount of CO2 pressure difference causing you to think you have a leak. I have had leaks over the years, but they have always been due to either shit parts I used or to me (or someone else) putting crap on the disconnects when in use. I leave both my kegerators connected to CO2 24x7. IMHO just buy quality kegging components and forget about making life harder than it needs to be.