co2 freezing?

[thriftynomad]

I'm about to ask what may be a really stupid question... is it possible to freeze co2?

My kegerator has been a little bit on the fritz lately... it will stay at the same temp for 2-3 days (usually a perfect 37F) and then duck down without warning to about 10 or 15F... the fridge is about 40 years old, so i can hardly believe it... but it does, and regularly.

Usually this seems to happen overnight, so I open the door and unplug the fridge when I wake up and that gets it back up to a reasonable temperature... and all has been fine to this point...

until now...

when i opened the fridge this time, the co2 gauges both read 0... nothing showing in the tank, and no pressure going to the keg... i poured a beer or two and they have all been fine, so i thought that maybe i had just broken the gauges by freezing them?

i have poured maybe 20 pints since then and while they aren't coming out with much force, they taste fine and are carbonated... but i get nothing from the tank. if i open or close it, i hear nothing and the gauges don't even budge...

should i just keep pouring until the beer stops flowing? i can always just go get more co2... but will it ruin the keg by totally depleting it of co2?

i'm picking up a thermostat regulator on tuesday so the freezing will be solved, but i'd rather not lose 3/4 of a keg.

thanks again all...

greg

[Caffinehog]

Your CO2 isn't freezing... it's probably out. Of course a massive leak of CO2 could cause a huge drop in temperature, but such a release would probably pop the door open too, so it's unlikely.

Losing pressure won't ruin your beer. Heck, it ferments at almost zero pressure.

I'd refill the tank, and maybe get a temperature controller for your fridge. As a bonus, you could use the temperature controller to make lagers in a chest freezer.

[thriftynomad]

So, it will be about 2 days before i can get more co2... in the meantime is it okay to just run the beer until it stops flowing and then disconnect the regulator and swap co2 tanks?

thanks for your reply... good to know i'm not going to lose all that beer.

[toneyc]

The beer will be fine, as long as it is kept cool. If you do keep pouring pints, they will get flatter and flatter until the pressure equalizes. But that won't hurt the beer, you'll just have to wait a day or two to get the co2 back into it.

:)
Toney.

[Steve16823]

You won't hurt the beer if you keep drinking it until it won't come out anymore, but as the beer sits with no pressure in the keg, the beer will go flat. When you reconnect the CO2, the beer will recarbonate but it might take a day or two for the beer to absorb CO2. So, you might be faced with a day or two of semi-flat beer.

[thriftynomad]

thanks guys... great to know... it's been a long holiday weekend here in Canada, so it's been important that the beer doesn't stop flowing altogether!!

i've checked all my hoses and i can't seem to find a reason that my co2 disappeared in the first place... would freezing and thawing a couple of times cause this to happen?

i've got a 5 lb tank and it was full when this keg started... so it really shouldn't be out...

thanks again... you're help is truly appreciated.

[Sunriver]

Leeks suck. (Unless your a vegatarian)


To locate any leaks fill your tank up and leave it at normal room temprature for a while (disconnected from your beer) Then run your hand over all the plumbing. Expanding gas cools quickly so feel for a cold spot. Check the connections very carefully (that is where the leaks will be).

If you locate any leaks depressurize the system and remove the offending piece, Wrap well with teflon (Not Loctite) and reseal.

If your regulator leaks SEND IT IN TO THE FACTORY. A certified Airsmith (Like me!) will be able to repair your reg with the correct parts (dont guess on this one or you might end up nicknamed One eyed pete.

Another thing to check (Most CO2 supplier do this every time you fill) is the last Hydrotest date on your tank. MORE THEN 3 YEARS MEANS contact your Gas supplier for instructions.

[Fast_Eddy]

Originally posted by thriftynomad
I'm about to ask what may be a really stupid question... is it possible to freeze co2?

....

CO2's triple point is at -70 F. I think that's outside the ability of your fridge.

[aquitana]

any easy quick way to test for leaks is to turn off the co2 @ the tank and watch for the pressure to drop. (about two minutes) don't forget to tap the gages as you wait. they will fall slowly for a small leak until the end when they will just drop off.

[thriftynomad]

hmmm... well, maybe the problem was something different altogether. i took the co2 tank to get it swapped and the person there just suggested we might have used it all.

it's a 4.5 lb cylinder and it only pumped somewhere between half and three quarters of a 1/2 barrel. (that's a lot of fractions!!)

seems to me i read that a 4 or 5 lb cylinder could pump at least a keg or two... could it really take that much to pump lager at about 14 psi?

again, my thanks... the learning curve here is steep but sweet!!

[Richard English]

Of course, you could always throw away the carbon dioxide cylinders and the pressure aparatus and just bung in some yeast starter and suger.

Hey presto, cask-conditioned beer!

[Caffinehog]

A 5lb cylinder is plenty for several kegs.
The most likely leak, especially if you have a used keg, is the seal around the opening where you put the beer in. You may have to play with it to get it to seal properly. Used kegs suck. I almost think it's worth it to buy new.

[Caffinehog]

Originally posted by Richard English
Of course, you could always throw away the carbon dioxide cylinders and the pressure aparatus and just bung in some yeast starter and suger.

Hey presto, cask-conditioned beer!

And you'll have globs of yeast coming out the tap unless you shorten the dip tube.

[Richard English]

Quote "...And you'll have globs of yeast coming out the tap unless you shorten the dip tube..."

Absolutely. So you arrange the pickup to be above the yeast level - just like we do it in our pubs here in England!

So, you lose a bit of beer but you save the cost of the gasworks (and the beer tastes better as well).

[montero]

My first 5lb tank lasted 14 months. I'm not kidding! I go through a 1/4 every 2 weeks. I keep my pressure at 10.
I have no idea how it lasted that long. Does anybody have any insight into this?

[danno]

Originally posted by montero
My first 5lb tank lasted 14 months. I'm not kidding! I go through a 1/4 every 2 weeks. I keep my pressure at 10.
I have no idea how it lasted that long. Does anybody have any insight into this?
I'm assuming you're buying commercial quarter barrels. since they come already carbonated, your co2 needs are much less than a homebrewer. (if you like your beer at 2 volumes of co2, which is 10 psi at 47ºF, a force carbing homebrewer would use three times as much co2 as one that was only dispensing already carbonated beer...)

i also bet your beer is coming carbonated higher than 2 volumes, so you're actually dispensing with the co2 in the beer before you ever get to your own co2...