Young's Barrel Problems

[33export]

Hi there,

First attempt at homebrewing here so apologies in advance for stupid questions and/or complete general lack of knowledge! I recently made the Coopers Mexican Cerveza kit , and put it into a Young's barrel (the cheap budget one that seems to be standard with most starter kits) after everything seemed to have gone right during primary fermentation.

I left it for a few days and when I came back to it the tap was leaking and I had lost several pints to the carpet (schoolboy error, I now know...). I tightened the tap, and turned the handle back a bit so that it wasn't all the way 'off'. and this seemed to help. A week in I sampled it, and it was definitely carbonating, although only small bubbles in it. 2 and a half weeks after kegging I went to try it again, and the beer is completely flat. Lots of head, some pressure in the barrel but no fizzyness at all.

My questions are:
-Is there anything I can do to salvage this now? Will force carbonating it risk blowing the keg?
-How can I fix the tap for next time? Can I even fit a new one on with it only having a 2" hole at the top? Are King Kegs really better than these?

Thanks

 

[RobWalker]

how much pressure exactly? lots of foam? if so, you are almost there, it needs to go in the cold for a bit so the bubbles absorb into the beer.

i would say if it's minimal pressure, you have a slow leak from the tap, it might be wise to gas it a little and draw it off then, see what happens. if you're happy with that, you can just keep the ball rolling for this batch and sort it afterwards. chances are the tap is faulty or overtightened, it can be a nightmare but you'll probably just have to replace the O Ring after this batch. you can get 'em from your LHBS.

worst case scenario, grab 10x 2 litre bottles, some syphon tube, add 1.5tsp sugar to each and bottle into them.

 

[mickthetrick]

i would do as robwalker has advised and bottle it.
you will not get the required amount of carbonation for a cerveza in a budget keg. there good for ales, bitters, stouts etc but not lager type beverage

 

[kentmark]

The coopers cerveza i did i bottled and had loads of fizz that way!

 

[Will12283]

I had the same problem with a pilsner that I did. I learnt from my mistake and now only keg my beer/ale, everything else is bottled. But let's hope nagging swmbo will end in me getting a corny :pray: only time will tell.

 

[33export]

Thanks a lot all of you for your help! I must say I have learned a fair bit from this first batch. A few more questions though:

-What kind of bottles can I use? Can I go for 2L 17p Tesco value cola bottles?
-What kind of keg should I be looking at to successfully make something like this?
-Would I have to siphon it into the bottles or can I pour it straight out from that tap?

Thanks again

 

[mickthetrick]

Thanks a lot all of you for your help! I must say I have learned a fair bit from this first batch. A few more questions though:

-What kind of bottles can I use? Can I go for 2L 17p Tesco value cola bottles?
-What kind of keg should I be looking at to successfully make something like this?
-Would I have to siphon it into the bottles or can I pour it straight out from that tap?

Thanks again[/quote

1 - yes them bottles will be fine.
2 - cornelius keg would be my choice
3 - i would use a siphon tube rather than the keg tap to minimise oxidation.

 

[IPA]

Quote: Can I even fit a new one on with it only having a 2" hole at the top? Are King Kegs really better than these?

When you eventually empty the keg unscrew the tap and take a look at the thread in the barrel. My bet is that it does not go all the way and when you tighten the tap it stops against the unthreaded bit which prevents the washer from compressing and you have a leak from the joint. The answer is to use a scalpel or a really sharp knife and clean out the thread so that the tap screws right in. Did you realise that you can turn the tap to face downwards after it is tightened? The other problem is the cap washer it should be lubricated with food grade lubricant or vaseline and LIGHTLY tightened because if you over tighten it the washer distorts and CO2 escapes. The original caps had a different sort of washer which did not distort. I notice that these have a patent number that the new ones do not have one. My guess is that these barrels are now made cheaply in the far east and are not as good as the original ones. Also look at the rubber band on the cap that allows gas to enter but not come out as sometimes it is not fitted correctly and allows gas to escape. When they are working correctly these barrels hold enough pressure for any type of beer but you will have to replace the tap from time to time as they become dirty and cannot be cleaned without putting them in hot water and pushing them apart which in turn can cause leakage problems Hope this helps