Bottom of CO2 tank freezing

[Luke7e]

Have something odd going on..or maybe it's normal I don't know... I push co2 into my fermenter to transfer the beer to our kegs and after 10 minutes or so I notice that the bottom 3rd of my co2 tank has ice formation. The tank will read zero after a while and than the next day will show it is not in fact empty...is this common or a problem with my process or regulator?

[fuelforthehate]

The frost on the tank is normal and usually only occurs during periods of prolonged use.

As for the gauge reading zero: my guess would be that you're pulling too quickly and the vaporization of CO2 is causing the gauge to freeze. How large is your tank? It might be undersized for your needs. If it's a bulk tank you might want to consider installing an evaporator or heated regulators. You can talk to your gas provider about solutions.

[Luke7e]

Its not the gauge as the gauge is not frozen and the c02 actually stops flowing as well... We only put 5psi of pressure into the tank to limit foaming...

[Todd Hicks]

Drawing CO2 too quickly. Add a second bulk tank, or even a third. Install an evaporator. All problems solved.

for kegging, you should at least 15 psi

[TGTimm]

You're drawing CO2 too rapidly from what sounds like a 50 lb tank. When the demand for CO2 is too high for the tank to supply, the fluid CO2 in the tanks turns into solid CO2--dry ice-- ("snowing up") which evaporates very slowly, hence your problems. The dry ice will convert back to fluid over time (if there's enough left in the tank), but this can take overnight--as you've seen.

Solutions--bigger tank, like a bulk Dewar flask, with a vaporizer and primary regulator. This is a whole-house solution, and if you grow, will be something you'll have eventually. The primary reg. should be a high-flow, high-pressure, reducing the 300 or so psi in the Dewar to ~100 psi for your distro lines. Secondary regs at each point-of-use reduce the 100psi to your working pressure, usually ~15 psi.

Another solution: Heat your 50lb tanks. You can buy electric blankets for this--use ones made for wet conditions, not household electric blankets--and wrap them around the lower 1/2 of the tank. You can use a hot-water bath, etc.

Using more than one 50lb tank in parallel will allow a faster draw without "snowing up". Again, I'd use a primary reg to bring the tank's pressure of 500-1200psi down to 100 or so, then a secondary to get your working pressure. The primary reg can be a heated unit.