How To Balance Your Homebrew Kegging System

Learn how to balance your keg and CO2 system to ensure a perfect pour each and every time. Find out how to calculate pressure and what size tubing you should use.
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[@frumanchu]

After some really bad carbonation problems with my first few kegs, I watched this video and made some adjustments to balance the system. The results have been phenomenal. Thanks for sharing this information!

[@jacobortiz4708]

Same thing! This video will hopefully solve our issues.

[@bmikehogan]

That was great man, never heard that explanation/concept before about the back pressure/resistance. Starting the build on my chalk board kegerator, and this is must have knowledge. Cheers brother!

[@adrian7050]

Great video - clear and easy to understand. Thank you!

[@brianrobertsadi]

This is the best video on this subject. At last explained properly.

[@BrewDudes]

Thanks so much man!!!! BREW ON! -Mike

[@erconroy1]

Dudes, awesome videos, keep it up. Your knowledge helped me balance my new system, running a Bev air dd58. Thanks

[@BrewDudes]

You are welcome - thank you for watching. - John

[@GreyMannShed]

I know you posted this video a while ago, but just wanted to say thanks as it's helped me out a lot Cheers

[@spinalrx]

Very well explained. Looking into kegging and I can tell from watching this video I will someday have this issue. This video is in my favorites. Thanks

[@BrewDudes]

Cheers! -Mike

[@MarkWoodChannel]

Good video, I watched this and then redid my lines, worked like a charm, thanks!

[@BrewDudes]

Great - glad we could help, Mark.

[@JohnKaufmann]

This is gold! Thanks guys

[@BrewDudes]

Glad it helped you!

[@JeffM---]

Thanks man, the most informative video I have seen on this topic. I have a Mangrove Jacks kegerator and it came with 3 metre (9.10 inches) beer lines. These seem to be ok, I don't have any problems. I was looking elsewhere for this info and some were saying different lengths of beer line for different beer types, changing these every time would be so impractical.

[@BrewDudes]

Thanks for the comment - please like this video if it has been helpful.

[@Artseventy6]

great video and explanation, Thanks

[@walleyeye]

Great video. Thx for explaining.

[@BrewDudes]

Glad you enjoyed it! Cheers! -Mike

[@bdale393]

great job guys just found this video built my "keezer" last weekend after 11 years of bottling...first keg going on in a week or so...we'll see....

[@BrewDudes]

B Dale How did it turn out. I always like to make my lines a little longer than I theoretically need. Then I can slowly cut them back if I have to if what works in theory doesn't quite work out in real life!

[@slowbrew3074]

great video I built my keezer and could not figure out the foam issue I have.... now I understand all my beer lines are 5 feet long... after watching this video I will be ordering new lines.... thank you so very much

[@BrewDudes]

Sweet! Glad it helped. Remember to make your lines a little longer than you think. You can always trim them back later if you think you need to. CHEERS! -Mike

[@BrewDudes]

We are here to help! Brew on.

[@dkkristoffersson]

danny the swed here! ty for your videos 👍 i was wondering if this is to apply when using a beergun? i dont have one but thinking of getting. i see alot of ppl getting alot of foam? cheers

[@joelholmquist]

Hello Brew-Dude! Nice and informative video ;-) I'm not getting it to work here :-( I have 3/16 Polythelene 16.5 ft + 3 ft 3/8 with 2 "JohnGuest-couplings" The keg is on 20 psi in 70 F. The first second it explodes with a "poff" when i open my tap. Almost directly it calms down and comes out, in a slower pace then I saw on your video...howerver FOAM comes out, slow and steady ?!? I can se an air gap above the beer in the hose...? why? Does air leak through the couplings? Please help a swedish beer-brother in need ;-)

[@iShootPhoto]

Great video! I require a lot of beer line it seems for the volumes I need... Will the beer in the lines lose its carbonation if sitting there for say a week? Thanks.

[@joshuapinter]

Great question. Did you find an answer?

[@michaeltoner1993]

very helpful thanks

[@BrewDudes]

Thank you!

[@midnightmover2329]

Enjoyed the video,thanks. A question for you. I have 5/16 tubing at hand. Do you think I’ll have any issues? Thanks

[@BrewDudes]

You need much longer lines of 5/16 than standard 3/16th line. That's the only switch. -Mike

[@geffthebricky]

Hi Brew Dudes from the UK, thank you for uploading the videos on kegging, they are really helping me out while planing a system similar to yours. I have some beer ready to keg soon but my head is spinning with all the information. I am planning to use the set and forget method. I understand that I need to add pressure to the keg according to temperature of the beer, to reach the desired carbonation by following the charts available. But once the pressure is added can I disconnect the gas and refrigerate? or do I need to keep the bottle connected with the pressure on until the desired carbonation is reached? If you have the time to answer I would really appreciate it. Thanks Geoff

[@BrewDudes]

+geffthebricky GREETING Geoff!!! Once the beer is chilled and you apply the desired PSI to the keg, the keg needs to be continuously connected to carbonate properly. Its not just that first blast at 15PSI or so that has enough CO2 to carbonate. That said once its carbonated you can disconnect it. And you can certainly disconnect it while carbonating to serve a different keg if you only have one hookup. Then put it back on the keg you are carbonating. Hope that helps.

[@geffthebricky]

+Brew Dudes Thank you for the reply. My local shop has a new owner, he's a great guy but seems just as confused as me when it comes to kegging beer so thanks for helping me out. I have a feeling I will soon have a few more visitors to the house! Brew on Dudes!

[@daviddumplingeater]

wow perfect pour!

[@BrewDudes]

Ha - he's had some practice.

[@davidmcpeters3812]

Do you leave the co2 at serving pressure at all times (after initial carbonation)? Even if you don’t plan on drinking for an extended period of time? If so does that over carbonate or drain your co2 tank? Or since no gas is actively being used then it doesn’t deplete your bottle?

[@BrewDudes]

Once the system is balanced I've never found the need to turn it off. The only way the tank would drain is if there was a leak in teh system. Be diligent about setting it up and there shouldn't be leaks. Also the beer doesn't over carb if the system is balanced because the amount of CO2 that can be absorbed is based on temperature and pressure. I won't absorb more than what the settings dictate. I have tried the off and on thing but I found my carbonation levels fluctuated sometimes and I didn't like inconsistent bubbles. So being sure there are no leaks is the key. Cheers! -Mike

[@MrRato1951]

Very Nice thank you

[@BrewDudes]

Thank you! - John

[@thecheekof]

How should we adjust the pressure for elevation? I live at a little over 5,000ft above sea level. Looking at a carbonation chart, how much should I add to the base CO2 level?

[@BrewDudes]

I don't have a handy reference for how that beer chart changes at elevation, but in a closed keg system... it doesn't matter! CO2 solubility is still pressure and temperature dependent and its the pressure inside the keg not outside it that matters! The place where this comes into play is DECARBONATION in the glass! I have a family member that used to live in Denver and I always noticed that the bubbles seemed to escape the beer faster there then when I was at home. Is it significantly noticable... only to total beer geeks like me. Cheers! -Mike

[@tonylemos3272]

Wow, that was one hell of a pour at the end.

[@BrewDudes]

We try to do it right!

[@mogie620]

great video. just bought a kc1000ss and i get LOTS AND LOTS OF FOAM. some people are saying wait 24hrs. i tried 10-12psi for landshark lager and it just keeps coming up foamy if i reduce or ramp it up. i will go tomorrow and buy an 8ft 3/16 since it came with only a 5ft. what else can i do to reduce so much head/?? forgot to mention it's a corny keg and the fridge is set to 35 degrees. help!

[@BrewDudes]

If you are indeed pushing commercial Landshark Lager unfortunately you can't easily bleed excess pressure off the keg to see if its the beer thats' over carbed or if its a function of the lines, faucet and pressure settings. You are on the right track with longer lines. I know I'm a little late here, but you should try a 12 foot like then you can always trim it back if the beer pours too slow. Let us know @mogie620 how it goes. -Mike

[@mogie620]

HI there! I got it to 10feet and a psi of about 14 and the first pour is heavy on the head. the second and subsequent pours are better. I installed a pc fan blowing air into the tap to see if the ambient temp change would help and unfortunately it does not. I have a stronger fan on order to see if the temp variable will help with the first pour. Cheers!!!

[@jlqtraceur]

Good video, does this work for bottling with beergun ?

[@BrewDudes]

Not really. Beer guns usually require that you lower the pressure to get minimal foaming. -Mike

[@contactingrichard]

Great video. Is it definitely possible to serve highly carbonated lagers from a keg? It seems to me that all the resistance will take most of the carbonation out of the beer.

[@BrewDudes]

Depends on what you mean by highly carbonated.

[@contactingrichard]

Pilsner type carbonation?

[@BrewDudes]

I am kegging a pilsner in a few weeks. You can get your keg to produce well carbonated pilsner with no issue.

[@contactingrichard]

Great news. Thank you.

[@BrewDudes]

Brew on, Richard!

[@Axel-gh3rn]

Question: So I have all 4 of my beers, wine, and mead on tap but this is my first kegerator build so I think I'm missing something in my initial pressuring technique. The short of it is when first carbing my tap mechanism gets overwhelmed and even though closed, super spurts out the brew everywhere, and makes a huge mess. I think the problem is caused by having no water in the lines initially, causing my initial carbination to blow a slug and bypass my closed taps. After this happens my taps work properly at the given pressure settings so I know they aren't all bad or anything. I It is always just that initial carbonation. Anyone done this/seen this? Heeelp!

[@BrewDudes]

+Axel Hannenberg I've never heard of anything like this happening. It sounds almost as if your faucets don't hold a good seal until there is pressure behind them. That seems very odd to me. So do you mean that once you put the keg under pressure the faucets start to leak? How high is your PSI? And do you have pipe clamps on everything? Is it leaking from the faucet to the connections behind the faucets?

[@danemacveigh7331]

Hey. I bought a new keg and pressurized the keg to like 25 psi. All I get is foam... I bleed the keg the. Failed the pressure back to 5 psi but I still only get foam! Help!

[@BrewDudes]

Hi Dane - I am not sure we'll be able to solve the issues through a comment on KZbin, but I was able to solve my foamy beer issues this past week by taking the keg out of the fridge, bleeding it of all the gas in it, letting it sit for a couple of days outside the fridge - bleeding it once a day, and then hooking the gas back up to the keg and pushing it out at 5 PSI. You may need to let the beer de-gas a bit longer. - John

[@danemacveigh7331]

Thanks for the help. It worked great. Pouring like a dream again!!!

[@BrewDudes]

@@danemacveigh7331 That made my day - Thanks! - John

[@boarsassbrewing2026]

I have a really long beer line and I still get a foamy beer . Beer line is 20 feet and cold . Don't know what the problem is.

[@BrewDudes]

Tell me more. What’s the inner diameter of the line, temperature, carbonation pressure, dispensing pressure, desired carb level, what type of faucet? - Mike

[@boarsassbrewing2026]

3/16 beer line and I have red Gas line think it is 5/16. Pressure @ 16 psi. standard American. I am going to try a flow control and cut my line down and lower PSI to around 12 PSI. Also I am looking into a little fan to keep air temp constant through out the keeser

[@turner111971]

Just so I understand...this 8 ft of 3/16" tubing is from tank to manifold and manifold to keg...correct??

[@BrewDudes]

turner111971 Nope. This 8 ft is from the keg to the faucet. The length and diameter of the lines from the tank to the keg have no impact on the way the beer pours (extremes excluded of course).

[@dob3079]

Flow control faucet

[@BrewDudes]

Stay tuned! Cheers! -Mike

[@Elido]

Good video. That pour made me thirsty

[@BrewDudes]

Thanks and brew on!

[@EricTheBassaholik]

3/16" Vinyl Tubing has 3lbs of restriction, not 2.

[@JoeGraves24]

Most resources put 3/16” beer line at 2.2 lbs/ft

[@farmerblake-0]

force carbonation video?

[@BrewDudes]

+blake scott We can add it to the list.

[@BrewDudes]

+blake scott Actually - we have this one that shows off rapid carbonation: kzbin.info/www/bejne/ipzRnaJuarCNm6M

[@justusgraham]

Classic video

[@BrewDudes]

This one keeps getting hits despite its age. Thanks for watching. Cheers! -Mike

[@toenyo]

Bishops head Lol

[@BrewDudes]

I don't get it. -Mike

[@toenyo]

@@BrewDudes Aww its what we in Ireland call a Large Guinness Head. the pint would be handed back to the bar man. Quoting "Comon, there is Bishops head on that Pint" pertaining to the Hat That Bishops Ware on there head... Lol...Nice Videos by the way