Co2 hook up for bright tank

[jcmccoy]

Hello,

I am wondering about how I hook up my Co2 to my bright tank below is the end of my CIP arm With a 4 way 1.5'' TC with pressure gauge, valve and empty slot. To pressurize my tank and put head pressure on beer I would hook up my Co2 to the empty slot I assume. I should put on a Ball valve to a quick disconnect or hose brab then to my Co2 tank?



I also want to split my gas line so I can keep head pressure and send Co2 to my stone. What hardware do I need to do this?

Thanks for any help!

[TGTimm]

Yep. Hook it up to your downtube or CIP arm for head pressure. You should have a check valve at the connection between the TC and the CO2 line, and a self-closing QR disconnect is very handy. Use a ball valve, always. The place you should NEVER have a ball valve is between the tank and the Pressure/Vacuum Relief Valve--which you appear to have. The PRV is a last-resort safety valve, which is mean to save an expensive tank from explosion or collapse--and possibly to save a life or two.

[jcmccoy]

Yep. Hook it up to your downtube or CIP arm for head pressure. You should have a check valve at the connection between the TC and the CO2 line, and a self-closing QR disconnect is very handy. Use a ball valve, always. The place you should NEVER have a ball valve is between the tank and the Pressure/Vacuum Relief Valve--which you appear to have. The PRV is a last-resort safety valve, which is mean to save an expensive tank from explosion or collapse--and possibly to save a life or two.

Thank you for the reply. So I hook up my gas to the down side of the arm where that valve is and I sure just put a cap on the other? The PRV is on the top of the tank with no valve on it.

[TonyT]

Yes, Put a valve between your co2 feed and the FV...

If you want to put co2 into the head space, get a 1.5"TCx5/16" barb and attach a quick disconnect to the barb with a small length of tubing. This can couple to a co2 feed off a secondary regulator or off your main tank or whatever. You can now move co2 where ever you need it.

Also, if you put full head pressure on a tank while trying to carb through the stone you will get reduced or zero flow through the stone. There has to be a pressure differential in order for co2 to flow through the stone.

[gitchegumee]

Yes, however...

There must be pressure differential in order to motivate gas to move. And if you have full head pressure (meaning, I assume, your desired saturation pressure for the carbonation rate you desire), then you would have to use more pressure on your stone to overcome the wetting pressure of the carbonation stone, the cracking pressure of your check valve, and the liquid height of the BBT. So be it. This is where you want to be. DO NOT carbonate with less head pressure than your target saturation pressure. So first add head pressure until you reach your target, then close off the CIP valve and move your CO2 to your stone. Now crank up the pressure until you see a FLOW RATE that you know will provide slow and gentle carbonation of your beer. Then you've got it! Good luck! Although luck should have nothing to do with it.

[jcmccoy]

There must be pressure differential in order to motivate gas to move. And if you have full head pressure (meaning, I assume, your desired saturation pressure for the carbonation rate you desire), then you would have to use more pressure on your stone to overcome the wetting pressure of the carbonation stone, the cracking pressure of your check valve, and the liquid height of the BBT. So be it. This is where you want to be. DO NOT carbonate with less head pressure than your target saturation pressure. So first add head pressure until you reach your target, then close off the CIP valve and move your CO2 to your stone. Now crank up the pressure until you see a FLOW RATE that you know will provide slow and gentle carbonation of your beer. Then you've got it! Good luck! Although luck should have nothing to do with it.

Right! gitchegumee you have been very helpful I have been reading many of your posts about carbonation.

[Dennis_W]

There must be pressure differential in order to motivate gas to move. And if you have full head pressure (meaning, I assume, your desired saturation pressure for the carbonation rate you desire), then you would have to use more pressure on your stone to overcome the wetting pressure of the carbonation stone, the cracking pressure of your check valve, and the liquid height of the BBT. So be it. This is where you want to be. DO NOT carbonate with less head pressure than your target saturation pressure. So first add head pressure until you reach your target, then close off the CIP valve and move your CO2 to your stone. Now crank up the pressure until you see a FLOW RATE that you know will provide slow and gentle carbonation of your beer. Then you've got it! Good luck! Although luck should have nothing to do with it.

Sorry to bring back an old thread. We are trying to get away from the "vent" method. But I'm wondering if the head pressure is set and you are pumping a slightly greater psi into the stone won't the head pressure rise as the stone does its thing? Or since it's only being pumped in from the stone at a slightly greater PSI will it get dissolved in the beer before it raises the pressure in the tank?

[gitchegumee]

The latter.....

If your head pressure isn't at your desired saturation pressure when you start, then it will be when you finish. Where does that CO2 come from? The stone. Not what you want. With proper head pressure, the gas is forced into the beer, not through the beer and into the head space. Hope this helps!

[Dennis_W]

If your head pressure isn't at your desired saturation pressure when you start, then it will be when you finish. Where does that CO2 come from? The stone. Not what you want. With proper head pressure, the gas is forced into the beer, not through the beer and into the head space. Hope this helps!

It's very helpful! Like others I'm sure I've been reading a lot of what you've posted on carbonation. One more question for a 3bbl BBT and the beer at 38 degrees any clue about how long it'll take? 1 hour.... 12 hours? Just looking for a ballpark idea on what to expect so I know when to start the Co2 on the stone. (I understand I can't walk away from it) Thanks for all the great info gitchegumee!

[gitchegumee]

Get your beer colder....

38F is about right for serving perhaps, but if you can get your beer colder for carbonation then it will suck up the CO2 much quicker. 38F and 13psi will get you an "industry average" of 2.66 volumes, or close to it. But it's stretching what your 1 bar tank will do without the SRV going off. At least that's the way it's supposed to work. Time is a factor of how far from equilibrium you are, tank geometry, stone configuration, and many things I'm not thinking of at this moment. So I can't tell you how long it will take. I can tell you how long it should take: IF you spund properly and cool sufficiently and do everything right with good stones, then you can expect to fine tune carbonation in about 1-2 hours. Good luck!