Corny. What else will i need

[crasher600]

As the title says ! Thinking about getting a corny (from ebay i think) and wondered what else i will need. Ie what type of co2 and how does that connect ? a regulator of some sort and gauge ? what about on the 'output' side, a tap of some description ?

 

[Wez]

Crasher - get in touch with Norman (the Corny King) - click the Links button at the top right of the forum, tell him that you got his details from The HomeBrew Forum :thumb:

He'll sort you out - proper top fella :thumb:

 

[Parva]

It's a whole different world and I certainly wouldn't be without mine but have your wallet at the ready. One cornie will never ever be enough and I suggest you budget to start with three. Then you'll need (ideally) pub gas. There are other methods but these will work out expensive in time, you really should try to find a proper CO2 supplier rather than go Hambleton Bard or Widget World. You'll need a regulator to fit to the bottle (again Norm can supply). And you'll need a tap, Norm does a nice one fitted to the keg but with only 1ft of 3/8th's pipe you're only ever going to get foam so you need to modify that with some 3/16th's pipe and JG fittings.

Budget £200 to start up with the above, whether going pub gas or Hambleton Bard or Widget World and you won't be far off. With just the one keg I seriously wouldn't bother, the keg itself is not the major expense, it's all the ancilliaries that go with it and whilst you will be able to knock a chunk off the £200 for running one keg I'll wager that you'll really struggle to do it for less than about £90 whichever way you do it.

The beauty of it is that once you have all the ancilliaries then you can add kegs at ~£30 or so a time which is cheaper than the half-decent plastic kegs (~£45) and unlike them you can properly force-carbonate beer, lager, water, whatever you like.

You won't regret going the cornie route (other than forever buying more) but be prepared for the initial outlay involved, it's quite steep but it does pay for itself in time.

 

[crasher600]

i think i will def only be able to budget for one to start of with then maybe try and sell my king kegs and use that money to buy another couple. will get hold of norm and see what he recommends. thanks for that

 

[pansub]

'Norm does a nice one fitted to the keg but with only 1ft of 3/8th's pipe you're only ever going to get foam so you need to modify that with some 3/16th's pipe and JG fittings'

Parva, could you just expand on this a little for me please.

 

[Parva]

Ok, here's the taps he supplies :-

In their supplied form they have the black disconnect fitted to about 12" of 3/8th piping. There's no way on this earth that you can get the pressure low enough to serve anything but a pint of froth. In the end I cut the piping in half, put a 3/8th - 3/16th John Guest fitting on each end and 6ft of 3/16th line and voilla, perfect beer.

 

[pansub]

sorry i am very new to this, so basically what you are saying is to take the clear tubing which goes to the tap off the cornie and put a wider one on.

 

[trunky]

Narrower, not wider.

The usual gas and beer pipe is 3/8th of an Inch outside diameter, what is being said is that to cut the 3/8th pipe in two and insert (by way of "adapters") a 6 foot length of smaller 3/16th inch OD pipe. This should help reduce foaming - presumably by reducing cavitation?

I too, am very new to this, but am battling away with a corny set up. When I understand what I am doing I am going to codense it into a real complete and utter idiots guide :wha:

 

[pansub]

Narrower???? does the length matter i have ordered a meter of 3/16

Thank god for that 'an utter idiots guide' i will be your fan

 

[Parva]

1 meter of 3/16th's pipe will be nowhere near enough. Take a look at this picture of my portable 'picnic' tap that I use when taking a small keg to a friends house, it will better explain what I have done to the taps on the big keg.

Ok, tap was supplied by H&G for £7.99 but with the short length of 3/8th pipe it was pouring foam. The bits required I got from Barley Bottom and these are :-

2 x 3/8th to 3/16th John Guest fittings (£1.95 each)
5 metres 3/16th beer line (15p per metre)

Try it at that then gradually cut the line down until you get the required flow, 3 metres is probably about right and possibly even 2 metres. I only bought 5 metres due to it being so cheap. My portable tap has 3 metres of line (pic above) as the kegs are usually unchilled, the tap fitted to my corney going via flash-chiller has 2 metres of 3/16th.

 

[bobterry]

I'm new to all this but like the thought of going for a corny or three, but how do you keep the contents cold enoigh to drink??

 

[BrewStew]

I'm new to all this but like the thought of going for a corny or three, but how do you keep the contents cold enoigh to drink??

you can leave them outside then bring them in when you want to drink them
or you can leave it in the fridge and serve it from a tap attached to the black rubber ring
or you can leave it in the fridge and then take it out when you want to drink it
or you can convert a fridge or freezer into a kegerator and change the controller on it for something like an ATC 800 specifically to keep kegs in
or you can do what i do and store them at room temp under the bar (though you have to drink them faster as they age quickly at room temp) and use a line chiller if you wish...

the options are endless

 

[Bradley33]

I think I should get a second job as I can forsee myself spending ALOT of money on this quite comfortably. Ha Ha Ha. And to think all my mates think I'm becoming some sort of mad scientist.

 

[BrewStew]

it'll turn from passion to obsession in no time, and you'll be broke... but buy god will you have alot of great beer :lol: :drink: :drunk:

 

[pansub]

i put 3 meters of 3/16 beer line on my cornie, just tried to pour a cider and it comes out in a trickle, what can i do, up the gas pressure?

 

[trunky]

Yes, or shorten the line length