Remember the keg MUST be cold to carbonate and it MUST be cold to pour a beer.
Procedure for releasing excess carbonation:
If you have over carbonated your keg in error then gas can be removed from the keg as follows. Turn off the gas bottle and vent the gas from the headspace by releasing the pressure relief valve. Leave the gas bottle off and let stand for 1 hour while you repeatedly release any gas from the headspace. This will release some of the gas that is dissolved in the beer. When you have removed enough gas you can again turn on the gas and test. Repeat if necessary.
DISPENSING.
First reduce your keg from carbonating pressure to dispensing pressure. Do this by turning down the set screw on the regulator. If the pressure doesn’t come down as you turn the screw you may have to vent the keg using the safety relief valve to release the excess pressure.
A suggested dispensing pressure is 70kpa (10 psi).
Don’t worry if the first few glasses are a bit heady, as the release of the high-pressure gas can tend to do that.
If you did not filter your beer prior to kegging there may be some settled sediment which will be picked up initially, so the first glass may be a little cloudy. We suggest pulling a couple of glasses through until it clears.
Whether using a gun or a tap always dispense with it fully open, if it is only part way opened you will end up with all froth and no beer. Dispensing, like carbonating, can be trial and error - plenty of practice will see you right!
If it’s not gassy enough, simply re-attach the gas and shake for a further 30 secs.(but remember to let it settle again).
If it should be over gassed simply release all the gas and rock the keg gently for 15 - 20 seconds and then release the gas again. Repeat this process until the beer pours O.K
HOW TO STORE A PART EMPTY KEG
Despite our best drinking efforts we are often left with a half empty keg of beer. To prevent the gas coming out of the beer all you have to do is fill the empty space with around 60kpa of gas and the beer stays carbonated - so try and get in the habit of putting around 60 kpa into the keg when you’ve finished, turn off the gas and disconnect the lines.
Remember to release the gas before you start again or you’ll finish up with beer everywhere.
AGEING -
You can store your kegs either before or after gassing them but make sure to purge them well if you don’t gas them, and release the pressure to around 100 kpa before you take them out of the fridge if you do gas them.
TROUBLESHOOTING
Basically there are only two problems you may face :
1. The beer is too heady and tastes flat.
The beer is over-gassed and you are losing all the gas in the head when you pour the beer.( A tell - tale sign of over-gassed beer is that the line from the keg to the tap will turn straight tobubbles when you stop pouring) - Simply ‘ degas the keg as explained in the section ‘procedure for releasing excess carbonation’
2. The beer tastes flat and looks dead.
In this instance the beer is under-gassed. Take the beer line off, turn the gas up to 300 kpa and shake the keg for 30 secs., leave the keg to settle for a while and try again, or just leave the gas on 300 for around 4 - 6 hours.
HOW TO PRESSURE TEST YOUR KEG
Fill your keg to around the level of the top weld and purge the oxygen out by pressurizing to 100kpa and releasing 2 or 3 times. Now leak test your system by pressurizing to 300 kpa and spraying all joins and fittings including the relief valve with soapy water - if there is a leak it will foam up. If you don’t do this and there is a leak you can lose a bottle of gas in a couple of hours.
ENJOY !!!!