Hi all, had my wherry in a pressure barrel since Saturday, everything was fine at first. Had some kitchen roll under the tap just in case and in the last day or so it's started leaking. Why would it suddenly start? Over pressured? What should I do?
Pressure barrel leaking -help
- Thread starter DrPips
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Bigjas
Landlord.
I take it you primed your barrel with sugar? If so, how much sugar? As the beer carbonates it gives off C02 which will create pressure in the barrel. Depending on how much sugar you primed with, will depend on how much pressure is created in the barrel. Its started leaking now because it takes a little while for the pressure to build. Try tightening the tap a little or releasing a little pressure from the barrel to see if it stops leaking. What barrel is it?
Jas
Jas
SwissBrew
Member
The instructions for my new PB recommended to tighten the tap with a spanner before use, so you may want to try this now. You just don't get enough talk on the tap when hand tightening.
Or you could use some PTFE tape as a quick fix maybe?
Or you could use some PTFE tape as a quick fix maybe?
It's part of the learning process. The Beer Gods test you with a leaky barrel to see if you have the patience to continue :-)
I don't know what tap or barrel you have, but I would say over tightening is as much a cause of leaks than under tightening is. If there is a rubber washer in between the tap and the barrel it can easily get deformed by over tightening. Hand Pressure, plus a little extra should be enough. A little lubrication on the seals also helps. Some use Vaseline, but you can also get food grade lube.
As Bigjas says, try releasing a little pressure by loosening the lid a bit, then re tighten, but not too tight!
I don't know what tap or barrel you have, but I would say over tightening is as much a cause of leaks than under tightening is. If there is a rubber washer in between the tap and the barrel it can easily get deformed by over tightening. Hand Pressure, plus a little extra should be enough. A little lubrication on the seals also helps. Some use Vaseline, but you can also get food grade lube.
As Bigjas says, try releasing a little pressure by loosening the lid a bit, then re tighten, but not too tight!
Bigjas
Landlord.
I like to leave mine for 2 weeks in the warm before chilling. I use the 2 weeks fermenting + 2 weeks conditioning + 2 weeks chilling method and it seems to work for me.
I bought the cheaper Young's value pressure barrel to start with and had the same issues as you, I now have 2 King Kegs and they seem much better. I also fitted pressure gauges to the king kegs to keep an eye on pressure, they work great.
Jas
I bought the cheaper Young's value pressure barrel to start with and had the same issues as you, I now have 2 King Kegs and they seem much better. I also fitted pressure gauges to the king kegs to keep an eye on pressure, they work great.
Jas
Speccy
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Which part of the tap was the leak coming from, just out of interest?
If it was from around the washer where it meets the barrel then I'd vote for using a spanner to get the tap on a bit tighter, being sure to grip only the base to avoid distorting the tap mechanism. As SwissBrew says, they don't seem to fit the taps very tightly in the factory.
If the drip's coming from within the tap itself then it might be a dodgy tap, and worth replacing (which you can do by tipping the barrel onto its back and swapping the tap for a new one, maybe adding a dash more sugar to the beer before resealing to help re-pressurize the barrel).
Either way, as long as your tap is properly screwed in and doing its job, there's a pressure relief valve in the barrel's cap that kicks in automatically so you shouldn't really need to be loosening the cap to keep things under control.
(Barrels are a complete pain!)
If it was from around the washer where it meets the barrel then I'd vote for using a spanner to get the tap on a bit tighter, being sure to grip only the base to avoid distorting the tap mechanism. As SwissBrew says, they don't seem to fit the taps very tightly in the factory.
If the drip's coming from within the tap itself then it might be a dodgy tap, and worth replacing (which you can do by tipping the barrel onto its back and swapping the tap for a new one, maybe adding a dash more sugar to the beer before resealing to help re-pressurize the barrel).
Either way, as long as your tap is properly screwed in and doing its job, there's a pressure relief valve in the barrel's cap that kicks in automatically so you shouldn't really need to be loosening the cap to keep things under control.
(Barrels are a complete pain!)
Cwrw666
Landlord.
+1 for that. I've had 2 pressure barrels - cheapo ones (ã25!!!!) - and they were both c**p.
I've just spent this morning bottling 23L of Brown ale from a PB that's failed to hold it's pressure.
Never again...
SwissBrew
Member
They're not
Releasing the pressure is only a temporary fix. As soon as more CO2 is produced you'll get pressure on it again and it will leak again. If you release the pressure for the next 2 weeks you'll have flat beer.
So keep an eye on it. With any luck the dried liquid from the leak sealed it for now but I would certainly inspect it more.
Have you tried re-tightening the tap by hand? It may have become a little loose when things have settled down, I've had that before. I wouldn't tighten it with a spanner, you risk splitting the plastic.
The best thing you can do with the cheaper barrels is to buy a lid with an S30 valve and a Hambleton-Bard CO2 cylinder. When you've put the beer in and primed, close the lid and give it a quick squirt of CO2 - if there are any leaks you will hear it. Tightening the lid too much will de-form the washer producing a leak, not tightening enough will result in a leak too. They are fiddly to start with but reliable once you get the hang of them, mine are 5 years old and still going strong. I've had many more problems with the more expensive barrels so prefer these.
The best thing you can do with the cheaper barrels is to buy a lid with an S30 valve and a Hambleton-Bard CO2 cylinder. When you've put the beer in and primed, close the lid and give it a quick squirt of CO2 - if there are any leaks you will hear it. Tightening the lid too much will de-form the washer producing a leak, not tightening enough will result in a leak too. They are fiddly to start with but reliable once you get the hang of them, mine are 5 years old and still going strong. I've had many more problems with the more expensive barrels so prefer these.
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