Is this Normal? John Guest Fittings

[hopnerd]

Hi all, apologies if this is covering old ground. I've just switched to Kegging and am loving it, I'm blown away with how much simpler packaging day is.

Everything is hooked up and pressurised with no leaks. The CO2 line attaches to the keg via a John Guest fitting on the Gas In QD. All is well if I don't move anything - however on the slightest bump to the CO2 line I can hear a small amount of gas escaping.

So essentially the question is - is this normal? Or should I be pushing for a better seal?

 

[spog]

It's not normal check the fittings and connections you don't want any leaks at all.
It will ruin your happiness

 

[MastersBrewery]

No it's not normal. Though can happen, so to fix I would remove the JG from the line, re-cut the line so it is sqare and clean, then reinsert to the JG as far as it will go, give it a good tug to set the seal, then over pressurise the line just to be sure. Reset you pressure and you should be good go.

 

[hopnerd]

Cheers guys, will give that a go.

 

[Camo6]

A bit of lube always helps with insertion. Even when you think it's pushed all the way in you can usually force it a bit more just to be sure...

 

[MHB]

Have a look inside the JG where the line goes, there is an O-Ring, if the line was cut badly the first time it's possible that you have knocked a chunk out of the O-Ring and it will always leak.
A bit of good quality food grade grease makes it a lot easier to insert the tube, as does slightly chamfering the leading edge of the line (a pencil sharpener can work a treat if you are careful.
The other point is that there are quite a few size options with JG fittings, 6mm and 1/4" aren't the same nor are 10mm and 3/8" its easy to get a slight size mismatch which will make getting a good seal harder.

JG fittings aren't really designed for repeated use, in and leave is the rule, if you want to take the line on and off the fitting regularly they make a ridged barbed adaptor designed for multiple uses, looks like this


Personally I think JG fittings are more trouble than they are worth.
Mark

 

[Crusty]

I quite like JG fittings & have them on everything.
It took me quite some time though to trust a fitting that has no Oetiker clamps on it.
So, as above, cut your line again & reinsert. They do make line changing a breeze but make sure the fittings you get are genuine JG & not the copycat variety.

 

[Hpal]

I have a manifold which I built, and 1/4" ball valves with push on hose barbs. They don't leak and I have never needed hose clamps on them. I've never been tempted to use JG fittings, just more points to leak from.

 

[Kingy]

The best thing ya can do is get rid of the John guest fittings. They all end up leaking one day. The tiniest leak drains Ya cylinder before Ya even notice. My JG non return valve even drained a cylinder a few years back.
My gas in disconnects have started going to after about 8 years. Not a bad run. Just brought 5 new ones. I've taken to wobbling the disconnects and spraying all joins with starsan every time I keg to test for leaks. Picked up on another disconnect just yesterday hence the order for all new ones.

 

[TheWiggman]

I find when a fitting leaks like that it's probably because it hasn't been pushed in far enough. By the time they might grab and seal they can still go in a few more mm. Make sure it's in as far as it can go, which is probably around 10mm.

 

[DJ_L3ThAL]

JG fittings are as leak free as barbed if treated/installed correctly.

Make sure the lines are coming straight out of each JG fitting also as bending them puts stress through the fitting and exposes a gap to allow leakage.

Personally though in a static system, kegerator etc, I prefer barbed fittings. But my portable camping setup where I can use anywhere from 1-4 gas disconnects I use JG fittings so I can assemble only what is needed at the time.

 

[pcmfisher]

+1 to getting rid of the john guest fittings

 

[hopnerd]

I ended up replacing it with a spare barbed connection. Thanks again for the great advice, the pencil sharpener is a stroke of genius.

The JG fittings work well for all of the other connections, including the check valve on the Gas In - so I'm going to chalk it up to either a damaged O ring (as MHB thought), or some other imperfection in manufacturing.

On the plus side - the beer tastes great.

 

[Dae Tripper]

You might find it could be the disconnect itself. I had dramas until the post o rings where changed to slightly fatter silicone ones.

A bit of lube always helps with insertion. Even when you think it's pushed all the way in you can usually force it a bit more just to be sure...

Lol. So many bad jokes could go here!

 

[Mr B]

You might find it could be the disconnect itself. I had dramas until the post o rings where changed to slightly fatter silicone ones.


Lol. So many bad jokes could go here!

Jeez mate, you cant finger the opportunity without inserting something appropriate!