Barrel S30 Valve and soda stream not holding CO2

[jamesw]

Hi All,

I have recently moved to beer in a keg after years of bottling faff! Much easier process!

I got a 2 inch Barrel Cap with S30 Valve from Brewstore and a sodastream adaptor to save on single use co2 (and I have a sodastream anyway), bought for me for Xmas.
I had a very nice festival ale kit in there and when it ran low I went to top it up with the sodastream, which worked to refill, but not knowing how much to put in, I probably put too much, then it some gas escaped from the relief valve (the rubber band around the top).
From then through the rest of the keg, it would not hold much more than a pint or two's worth of CO2 topped up without escaping.
Has anyone had experience of this too? Should I stick to the CO2 canisters instead or is the seal faulty on the valve?
Cheers

 

[Agentgonzo]

I had one go many years ago. I took the rubber off both the relief valve and the inlet valve and gave them both a good cleaning. Put it back together and it held the pressure.

 

[jamesw]

I had one go many years ago. I took the rubber off both the relief valve and the inlet valve and gave them both a good cleaning. Put it back together and it held the pressure.

Thanks, I will give it a go. I was surprised as it was new but worth a try!

 

[Buffers brewery]

I was surprised as it was new

Just because it was new to you from a shop it’s probably had a life before from manufacturer’s stock room through all the various warehousing stays then in the shop for who knows how long? Rubber being a natural product will deteriorate with time. My experience of HB valves was frustrating in that they would work for a while and then fail, like yours. There’s a thread on pressure barrels in the “how to” section you might like to have a read. It’s recommended that the valve rubbers are regularly changed to avoid such issues.

https://www.thehomebrewforum.co.uk/threads/pressure-barrels-more-than-you-wanted-to-know.89344/

 

[Agentgonzo]

Thanks, I will give it a go. I was surprised as it was new but worth a try!

Ah, mine was 10 years old!