Pressure barrels

[craft_ales_project]

What kind of float do you have? I’ve used 2 types. One, which is cylindrical in shape and I had problems with it with the intake bobbing up above the beer surface...foam! The other is a trapped ping pong ball. This works much better, but as @kelper says, the pvc tube is a bit stiff and depending how you’ve plugged it in to the tap, it can force the float against the barrel wall making it stay up rather than sink. Silicone tube is a good replacement.

It came with a ping pong ball, but I think gas escapes at the swivel joint, as it's not well engineered (not engineered at all in fact). I may have been unlucky to get the duff'en. I replaced with a cask widge for c £10, same issue, but this time I'm fairly certain that @kelper hit the nail with the leaking tap connector.
Edit: The silicone tube connects to the cask widge under the beer, unlike the supplied float which is above the beer so I would assume this would negate gas bypassing in this way.

 

[kelper]

The float's swivel has no seal because it's meant to be underbeer (is that a word??)

 

[kelper]

I like to point the spigot on the tap sideways. Good luck!

 

[craft_ales_project]

The float's swivel has no seal because it's meant to be underbeer (is that a word??)

I've just looked at the old float, and yes, it does look as though it sits below the top level, but fairly sure mine always sat at a 45 degree angle, so gas found its way somehow. I'll try beefing up the connection at the tap end!

 

[craft_ales_project]

I like to point the spigot on the tap sideways. Good luck!

Yes, I have mine like that now too, the widge looked happier that way as opposed to upwards.

 

[kelper]

Mine, too, sits at quite an angle but just works.

 

[craft_ales_project]

Mine, too, sits at quite an angle but just works.

I'll crack it one way or another, I'm not easily perturbed!

 

[craft_ales_project]

If the beer is foamy that probably means CO2 is bypassing the seal where the float tube is pushed into the back of the tap. To see if I am correct, tip the barrel forward slowly until the tap is below the surface and then pour some beer.

If it's not that route it can be that the tube is too loose on the two spigots. I find the o-rings need to be renewed occasionally. I also use silicone tubing now as the PVC stuff expands and hardens with time. If it is the first cause you can fix it temporarily with some PTFE thread tape wrapped around the seal and you could try this on the spigots too. I don't think the float is at the wrong angle. But when I fit new tubing I do make it a bit longer than the original to ensure freedom of movement at all levels.

So I went for a swap out with the barrel taps, I'd bought a brewgas sparkler tap last time I ordered gas, which has a nice barbed spigot pointing straight into the barrel. The silicone tube supplied with the cask widge was a nice firm fit and I'm happy to report beer is now flowing properly! All I need to do is adjust the tube length to make up for the spigot pointing into the barrel as opposed to 90 degrees and job's a good'un. The float is a tad lower in the brew than it should, but apart from that it works! All is forgiven King Keg.

The old tap:

 

[kelper]

What is this cask widge of which you speak?

 

[Buffers brewery]

Good job! I prefer the Sparkler tap myself. If the swap fixed it looks like @kelper was right and the gas was seeping through the tap at the float connection.

 

[kelper]

I ain't no foo, foo!

 

[craft_ales_project]

What is this cask widge of which you speak?

It's here:

Welcome to CaskWidge - CaskWidge It's a commercial dispense system, I guess mainly used with Cornies and normal barrels. the float bit is what I was interested c £10
Edit: It's a simple idea, and has a built in filter should you wish to add non fermentables like oak chips etc and not get them stuck in your line/tap.

https://caskwidge.com/Parts/Product/17

 

[craft_ales_project]

Good job! I prefer the Sparkler tap myself. If the swap fixed it looks like @kelper was right and the gas was seeping through the tap at the float connection.

THanks. I knew it was fixable, as I did have it pouring perfectly at one time, then it failed in the next brew, which was frustrating, I hate taking the lid off mid brew..

 

[craft_ales_project]

If the beer is foamy that probably means CO2 is bypassing the seal where the float tube is pushed into the back of the tap. To see if I am correct, tip the barrel forward slowly until the tap is below the surface and then pour some beer.

If it's not that route it can be that the tube is too loose on the two spigots. I find the o-rings need to be renewed occasionally. I also use silicone tubing now as the PVC stuff expands and hardens with time. If it is the first cause you can fix it temporarily with some PTFE thread tape wrapped around the seal and you could try this on the spigots too. I don't think the float is at the wrong angle. But when I fit new tubing I do make it a bit longer than the original to ensure freedom of movement at all levels.

Ah, tha's better:

Beer & BBQ back on tonight! Cheers all

 

[Nidger]

A few questions if I may please.

Are the co2 capsules the same as air gun ones ? As i have plenty, although some are pre charged with lubricant so obviously not them.

Also, this is my old barrel,

i only bothered on a few occasions to make lager but apart from gassing it up once and escaping i just drank it flat lol,
Question is, will i be able to carbonate it every time i have a few pints from it or will it be too costly, ie too much gas and more needed as the beer gets less ?

Two more questions, sorry to be a pain, i have a lager on the go now, wilko kit, expired 2015,
I used new yeast, mangrove jack's Bavarian lager yeast M76.
Temp 8-14 degrees,
Ive struggled to get the temp down from 26 to 18,
If I'd read the yeast first hand i wouldn't of followed the lager instructions putting 6-8 pints boiling water in first.
Will this effect the yeast or kill it ?
Will it not even ferment due to too high temp,

Lastly, i put the fermenting bin in the sink yesterday in cold water for ten minutes then moved to cooler conservatory in evening with a fan on it, unfortunately i forgot and went to bed, will the sun uv light this morning have killed it ?
Or is it opaque enough ?

 

[Tanglefoot]

I prime my old Boots barrels with sugar and find when undercarbed (e.g after a mate's been round and the barrel's had a bit of a hammering ) if I leave it a few days it will repressurise by itself.
I have a couple of barrels so if I alternate I don't usually need to reprime.
I bought a couple of King Keg tops with pin valves ( one works ok, the other leaked from new ) but in the end decided they are just an unnecessary extra hassle for me.

 

[terrym]

A few questions if I may please.

Are the co2 capsules the same as air gun ones ? As i have plenty, although some are pre charged with lubricant so obviously not them.

View attachment 32888


Also, this is my old barrel,
View attachment 32889

i only bothered on a few occasions to make lager but apart from gassing it up once and escaping i just drank it flat lol,
Question is, will i be able to carbonate it every time i have a few pints from it or will it be too costly, ie too much gas and more needed as the beer gets less ?

Two more questions, sorry to be a pain, i have a lager on the go now, wilko kit, expired 2015,
I used new yeast, mangrove jack's Bavarian lager yeast M76.
Temp 8-14 degrees,
Ive struggled to get the temp down from 26 to 18,
If I'd read the yeast first hand i wouldn't of followed the lager instructions putting 6-8 pints boiling water in first.
Will this effect the yeast or kill it ?
Will it not even ferment due to too high temp,

Lastly, i put the fermenting bin in the sink yesterday in cold water for ten minutes then moved to cooler conservatory in evening with a fan on it, unfortunately i forgot and went to bed, will the sun uv light this morning have killed it ?
Or is it opaque enough ?

View attachment 32890

First, lagers are better bottled because PBs are not designed to withstand the pressure required to carb up a lager. So bottle it and prime at the rate of about 6g sugar per litre to give you about 2.4 vols CO2 which suits the style
No idea about the CO2 bulbs but you can prime a nearly full 25 litre PB with up to 100g sugar which should get you down to half way or better before you need to top up. Next, if you have given a PB a hammering, the top pressure will recover to some extent provided you leave it alone for a few hours.
If you have kept the yeast in your beer below 26*C it should be OK. But its better to try to get below say 18/19*C if you can. And having your FV in a few hours of low sun is unlikely to have affected your beer imo. But you wont really find out about these things until you get to drink it.

 

[Nidger]

First, lagers are better bottled because PBs are not designed to withstand the pressure required to carb up a lager. So bottle it and prime at the rate of about 6g sugar per litre to give you about 2.4 vols CO2 which suits the style
No idea about the CO2 bulbs but you can prime a nearly full 25 litre PB with up to 100g sugar which should get you down to half way or better before you need to top up. Next, if you have given a PB a hammering, the top pressure will recover to some extent provided you leave it alone for a few hours.
If you have kept the yeast in your beer below 26*C it should be OK. But its better to try to get below say 18/19*C if you can. And having your FV in a few hours of low sun is unlikely to have affected your beer imo. But you wont really find out about these things until you get to drink it.

Thanks Terry.
I've read a lot about the trouble with PB's, my thoughts were to just throw the lager in and inject some co2 when needed and keep my bottles for cider,
But i may rack and prime it then bottle as you say,
If it turns out ok of course,
It hasn't started fermenting yet after 24 hours.

 

[tribalfather]

A few questions if I may please.

Are the co2 capsules the same as air gun ones ? As i have plenty, although some are pre charged with lubricant so obviously not them.

View attachment 32888


Also, this is my old barrel,
View attachment 32889

i only bothered on a few occasions to make lager but apart from gassing it up once and escaping i just drank it flat lol,
Question is, will i be able to carbonate it every time i have a few pints from it or will it be too costly, ie too much gas and more needed as the beer gets less ?

Two more questions, sorry to be a pain, i have a lager on the go now, wilko kit, expired 2015,
I used new yeast, mangrove jack's Bavarian lager yeast M76.
Temp 8-14 degrees,
Ive struggled to get the temp down from 26 to 18,
If I'd read the yeast first hand i wouldn't of followed the lager instructions putting 6-8 pints boiling water in first.
Will this effect the yeast or kill it ?
Will it not even ferment due to too high temp,

Lastly, i put the fermenting bin in the sink yesterday in cold water for ten minutes then moved to cooler conservatory in evening with a fan on it, unfortunately i forgot and went to bed, will the sun uv light this morning have killed it ?
Or is it opaque enough ?

View attachment 32890

think you will find air rifle type are bigger, when I bought one it wouldn't fit in holder

 

[kelper]

King Kegs use 8g unthreaded CO2 bulbs. These are also used for inflating bicycle tyres. About 80p each. Available on Amazon.

Air guns use 12g bulbs and the shape of the nozzle is different.