Leaky tap woes - i'm desperate!

[Baldy]

Right, thought i had leaky tap sorted - come home today to find enourmous dribble on my garage floor :cry:

So it's like this, this is only my 3rd brew, first brew was the woodfords kit that comes complete with the keg and beer it. And i struggled to maintain pressure on that first brew. So for next brew i changed the valve assembly (ie bought a new one). That caused me some problems with leaking a bit but i thought that was down to me being tight with the vaseline.

Now this current brew has leaked on me again twice, what can i do?? It appears as soon as the keg gets to a certain pressure it just starts leaking. It's not from the spout but through the thread on the tap. I have no option other than to release the pressure from the keg to stop it leaking. I tried being VERY generous with the vaseline but all to no avail.

Its doing my tree in i feel this is spoiling all the brews i attempt, that other than this ****** problem, go really well.

So i now have a keg full of beer, thats got no pressure again. I cant do anything with it because it will just leak when it gets to a certain pressure again... how can i save my beer and what options are there apart from those bloody horrible/unreliable little plastic screw taps???

Thanks!!

(Angry) Baldy

 

[Muddydisco]

Have you got a pressure releif valve on the cap???

 

[Baldy]

Hi MD, no i have not, thinks it's a 'something 30' tap for introduction of gas, perhaps these do vent but i don't know that - but dont these kits reckon on being able to serve a fair amount of ale before you need to add aditional co2? Mine has only been pressurising 2 days so i can't think for the world of me it's particularly high. Defo a bum valve by the looks of it. There must be something better out there that i can swap over to...

My keg and valve ass are just like this one:

 

[Muddydisco]

KING KEG wow I have 2 and never had a problem, Stupid question but you have got the rubber washer on the outside of the keg? cos thats the only way I can think of it leaking past the threads is if you have the washer on the inside?

 

[Baldy]

It's not leaking from the thread where the valve assembly goes into the keg, it's leaking from underneath the cap that you screw and unscrew to open and close the valve with!!

Im thinking, perhaps i could get a lever type valve, then there's no thread for it to leak from?

But what about my beer? Can i just open up the keg, swap valves over and then reintroduce a little co2 to pressure the keg up again and then just leave it to carbonate (AGAIN!!)??

I dont want to mess up the beer, but i can't maintain pressure with that current valve on. It will just get up to pressure after a couple more days and leak again.

This is annoying the hell out of me :wha:

Baldy

 

[Aleman]

I must admit I hated those drum taps . . . even though they never seemed to leak for me, they were just crap for pouring beer.

I replaced mine with a Lynne Flip top Tap (sadly no longer available) . . . but Hamstead homebrew (0121 358 6800) do a similar type of tap which is a Flip tap with a long spout and creamer attached . . . . makes it nice and simple to pour beer.

And yes you can just unscrew the lid insert you sanitised hands and replace the tap. . . . Refit the lid Squirt of CO2 . . . tighten lid . . . squirt of CO2 . . . leave for an hour release pressure . . .tighten lid . . . squirt of CO2 . . . sorted.

 

[Baldy]

Ooooh i like the look of that tap aleman :) And since it costs £15 rather than the £2 those crappy white plastic jobbies cost, it suggests it should do me a decent job!

I'll pop to my local homebrew store this morning and see if he has them in.

Thanks for the heads up on how to keep my beer alive!! Very much appreciated.

Baldy :thumb:

 

[Wez]

I had those taps from Hamstead - they are very good :thumb:

 

[Baldy]

I had those taps from Hamstead - they are very good :thumb:

Can i just check that the thread length that goes into the keg on the Hamstead taps is the same as the one on the barrel type taps?

I went into my local homebrew on Saturday to see about getting a lever style tap, but the guy showed me that the thread on those is shorter than the barrel type tap and because of the plastic thickness on the kingkegs the lever style taps dont fit (you cant get enough thread through to screw them on). So i ended up changing the tap on my barrel like for like (but if thread length on the Hamstead ones is right i will defo have one of those next time i brew!!) :thumb: .

As it goes, i opened up my keg, changed the tap over, reprimed it as that's what the bloke in shop told me to do, gave it a swill around and its now stood for a further 2 weeks... Fingers crossed, there is certainly no leakage after the last two days :pray: The guy in the shop said he hates the barrel type taps and regularly has issues with them.

Do hope the Hamstead type one will fit the KigKegs :)
Baldy

 

[Aleman]

Ring Chris or Rob at Hamstead 0121 358 6800 to ask . . . they are designed to replace the crappy taps on barrels so I can't see there being a problem