King Keg Pressure

[Justin9]

Hi,
Forgive me if this is a daft question but still finding my feet with the beer side of homebrew.
I got given a king keg a couple of years ago. I want to use it for my next brew. I've replace the float as the old one looked knackered, ive filled with water and steriliser attached the float and put the cap on but its not drawing anything through the top tap. I injected co2 just to see and still nowt. Am I thick or something else
Many thanks

 

[Rodcx500z]

Something else, it might need new seals sounds like the gas is leaking out, spray round all the seals with a soapy solution

 

[Justin9]

Thanks,
I've not put any beer in it yet, I just wanted to check to see if it still works as it's been outside kicking around for a while. Is it possible to test it at all, can I fill it with water and add any kind of pressure to water to try and test it?

 

[Stevieboy]

Hi - yes - put it all together, fill with water and pressurize. Use the soapy water method to see if it leaks.

 

[Buffers brewery]

Hi @Justin9 If your king keg has been kicking around outside for a while there's a chance that the valve rubbers are cream crackered and are leaking. As others have said, fill your keg with water leaving a small headspace of air fit the top and pressurise with CO2 (bulb or S30 cylinder). Spray the valve with soapy water and check for bubbles. Top tap kegs need pressure to dispense so it's important not to have leaks. There's a thread in the "How to" section on pressure barrels you might find useful. Cheers.

 

[Justin9]

Many thanks once again,
Did as mentioned above and there's bubbles from the seal at the tap, so will look at replacing.
The advice on this forum is amazing

 

[The-Engineer-That-Brews]

The advice on this forum is amazing

We try… we try :-)

 

[Sandozer]

Use a bicycle or foot pump to pressurise when looking for leaks, not co2 its costly !

 

[jondi11]

Wish I seen this thread before I keged my beer in to my top tap kk, I recenty replaced tap and O ring (round type).
I used Ptfe tape around cap too. Filled with beer , Co2'd it 2 days later pressure is gone, I have had nothing but issues with my KK Top tap.
Could I transfer to another keg without ruining the beer? Please.

 

[Buffers brewery]

Yes, but make sure the other keg is leak free first (obviously). You'll need to re-prime if the beer has finished carbonating. The usual culprit for leaks is the valve rubbers on the cap valve so make sure they're in good nick and properly seated.

 

[Buffers brewery]

Just read your post again @jondi11 . You say you “Co2’d it”. Did you just put a gas bulb of CO2 in or did you prime with sugar? CO2 dissolves very easily into water (beer) so the pressure will drop until the beer is fully carbonated if you only used CO2.

 

[user 41945]

Just commissioned a KIng Keg barrel. Used advice from the forum to pressure test and fix leaks round the tap (PTFE tape), having fitted a Schrader valve to a spare cap and a bike pump to pressurise.

 

[Sandimas]

I have had nothing but issues with my KK Top tap.

Just like many of us. I've given up on them now, as have many brewers I know: if it's not pressure issues it's infections / off-tastes, many of us move to stainless-steel kegs like Cornies eventually, as these are much more durable.

 

[jondi11]

Just like many of us. I've given up on them now, as have many brewers I know: if it's not pressure issues it's infections / off-tastes, many of us move to stainless-steel kegs like Cornies eventually, as these are much more durable.

A corni would not fit in my under counter fridge, that's the trouble.