I HATE Corny Kegs

[Common]

Rant Warning...

Can't fucking stand these pieces of shit anymore. No wonder soda stopped using them. Past 6 months or so I've had nothing but problems. I've gone through so many pounds of CO2. My tank is 20lb, filled it twice in 1 month. I always listen for leaks at 30psi, then dial it down, some even seal, then leak noticeably when I dial the pressure down. Two gas posts are obvious leakers. I've bought new O-rings and taken them apart, everything looks fine. More recently a keg or 2 have been leaking out the liquid post, wtf! Lost over half a keg of DIPA from it.

I am extremely close to selling all of them and throwing down the $30 deposit for 6+ 1/6bbl sanke kegs and buying all the D-couplers. I have had a lot of experience with commercial kegs and draft systems and I have taken the spears out quite a few times as well. I also found a tool to make it even easier than a screwdriver, the keg knife.

It's such a better system, and the gaskets and snap rings I can buy in bulk cheap if they wear out. I've never had a commercial keg leak from the connection to the keg, or from the coupler.


What do you think?

[wildwest450]

I think you're the victim of bad luck. Invest in some keg lube. I have 15 of them, and only one or two has ever given me any problems. A post leak is an easy fix with lube or a new poppet.

[Common]

I'm going to have to buy a bunch of poppets and lube and see what happens I guess. If I get one more leak I am selling them. I may blow one up tho...

[Big_John]

Buy some of these universal replacement poppets and your keg problems will come to an end. These poppets have a much stronger spring than the OEM poppets. They also have a replaceable O-ring, so you will never have to replace the entire poppet again:

http://www.midwestsupplies.com/universal-poppet-fits-most-kegs.html

If you keg lids leak at lower pressures, you can try bending the legs on the lid clamp so that they exert more pressure when the clamp is closed. It's a little difficult to explain, but if you look at how the lid clamp works, you will quickly understand what I'm talking about. Now then, bending the legs is not as easy as it looks. That heavy SS wire is some very springy and tough stuff. It helps tremendously to use a bench vise when bending the legs. Be careful as you will be applying substantial force when you do this. Other than that, the post O-rings take the most abuse. Replace them often. They are dirt cheap. Silicone spray (Lubrifilm) works wonders on O-rings and lid gaskets. I like the Lubrifilm stuff as it is much easier to remove than keg lube. Much less messy as well. Get the poppets! You won't regret it.

[Common]

I've seen those universal poppets but I figured they were like typical universal stuff... shitty and kind of works on a few things. Good to hear these work well. I will try them. Thanks for the tips. I'll have to take them to my dads and use his bench vise and maybe some other equipment. Think heating the area I want to bend with a propane torch will help? (I will remove any rubber/plastic parts prior, hah).


Also, they only leak when the QD is attached, the posts I mean, which I would assume would be the o-ring. But like I said I replaced those and it continued. Different QDs don't make a difference either.

[Lerxst]

I bought my kegs in a couple different orders and wound up with several different styles of ball lock posts & poppets across 8 kegs. When I stripped everything and cleaned them, I wound up mis-matching some of the posts/poppets/kegs and had a few slow leaking kegs.

....I had to go back, strip them all and figure out what posts actually belonged with what kegs and what poppets fit properly in what posts. After that, they are all good. There are some PDFs floating around of the various styles.

[devilishprune]

Maybe you could try silicone o-rings? Those are supposed to be squishier than the Buna-n kind and that might help with your problem.

[christo]

I had a liquid post stay open on me a few weeks back and I lost a gallon of beer. I removed and cleaned everything and now seems to be fine.

Keg Lube is my friend.

I bottled 10.5 gallons of Weizenbock and BDSA last weekend (they were strong beers and have lower gravs planned for my 3 kegs). That little episode reminds me why I keg most everything.

[sanders5x]

I was thinking about switching to the 1/6 bbl as well, I have a supply up here. I just don't want to deal the the cleaning/sanitation side of them . Plus its alot harder just to hook up the gas side or just the liquid side.

[Big_John]

I've seen those universal poppets but I figured they were like typical universal stuff... shitty and kind of works on a few things. Good to hear these work well. I will try them. Thanks for the tips. I'll have to take them to my dads and use his bench vise and maybe some other equipment. Think heating the area I want to bend with a propane torch will help? (I will remove any rubber/plastic parts prior, hah).


Also, they only leak when the QD is attached, the posts I mean, which I would assume would be the o-ring. But like I said I replaced those and it continued. Different QDs don't make a difference either.

I've always been skeptical when it comes to universal parts myself, but this product works as advertised. I'm gradually converting all of my kegs to the universal poppets. They are that much better. I would not apply any heat to the keg lid clamp. It is some kind of tempered stainless steel that is quite springy. Heating it may alter the tempering characteristics, reduce the springiness etc. You should be able to bend them without too much trouble. The difficulty is getting a grip on them. The vise will take care of that. Yes, remove the little plastic feet before you attack so as not to damage them. The ideal configuration is to bend the legs so that they are at a 90* angle to the long part when viewed from the side. Take care to make sure that the legs are symmetrical on both sides for best performance. The poppets only come into play when there is no connector attached to the post. If you have a leak with the connector attached, then the problem is almost certainly with the post O-ring. These take the biggest hit for wear and tear and it's best to replace them frequently and keep them lubed up. Bending the lid legs will put additional clamping pressure on the gasket for a better seal from the git go.

[-Dan-]

Poppets are what usually the root of all evil. I'm having the same issues here with 2 of my 9 kegs but have yet to find the team to deal with it. I just don't use them right now and it's alright but when it comes down to it, replace them with John's recommendation and you're fine. I can assure you...

[Common]

Thanks for the tips again. When at a real low pressure, 1psi, they lose their seal around the lid and slowly leak gas. I don't have any lube, so I tried some vasoline, prob not the best thing, but it worked. Had to dial it down that low for short lines with picnic taps.

[flyangler18]

No need to buy 'branded' keg lube - go to your big box home improvement store and get some plumber's lube (silicone grease).

[-Dan-]

...or the lube you enjoy w/ your girlfriend ;)

[flyangler18]

...or the lube you enjoy w/ your girlfriend ;)

Also appropriate. :)

[Common]

For FUCKS sake. Another lid randomly started leaking. Carbed my Smoked Porter, it was good, left it at 10psi on tap, lowered to fill a couple bottles, then increase it to 12psi. Last night I noticed it lost all pressure, but the beer wasn't flat yet. Not a single hiss from the pressure relief. To make matters more ridiculous, it is also bubbling where the rubber top meets the metal top. Wtf? I thought that rubber top was just glued on to solid aluminum underneath it? How the fuck is it leaking there?

Talked to a guy that used those keg knifes, said it was very easy. That may have sold me...

Regardless I am totally blowing a keg up at the shooting range in the future. Totally worth the cost of selling it instead. I need to call the range to see about specifics. I would love to fill with some sort of fuel... People have blown up propane tanks there, so I don't see it being an issue. AR15 or bolt action .270? I will try to get a good video shot if I do this.

[Cookiebaggs]

I think you're the victim of bad luck. Invest in some keg lube. I have 15 of them, and only one or two has ever given me any problems. A post leak is an easy fix with lube or a new poppet.

Lube is your friend.....:)

When I started kegging, I just ordered one bag each of all different size o-rings (other than the lid) from McMaster & Carr. Swapped out the old ones for new right away and have a bunch for when they wear out. Keg lube helps a ton.

[Flyindutchman]

For FUCKS sake. Another lid randomly started leaking. Carbed my Smoked Porter, it was good, left it at 10psi on tap, lowered to fill a couple bottles, then increase it to 12psi. Last night I noticed it lost all pressure, but the beer wasn't flat yet. Not a single hiss from the pressure relief. To make matters more ridiculous, it is also bubbling where the rubber top meets the metal top. Wtf? I thought that rubber top was just glued on to solid aluminum underneath it? How the fuck is it leaking there?

Talked to a guy that used those keg knifes, said it was very easy. That may have sold me...

Regardless I am totally blowing a keg up at the shooting range in the future. Totally worth the cost of selling it instead. I need to call the range to see about specifics. I would love to fill with some sort of fuel... People have blown up propane tanks there, so I don't see it being an issue. AR15 or bolt action .270? I will try to get a good video shot if I do this.

Just use Tannerite. Damn that shit is fun.

[Common]

Nah. Fireballs are more fun :)

[Ron]

You gonna have to use tracer rounds to get it to ignite, that or have a flame source near it when you shoot, personal experince in random destruction of things with firearms.;)

[Common]

Yea I've experienced a few mushroom clouds from firearms hitting barrels of diesel fuel... :D

Random tidbit: A minigun with every 10th round being a tracer creates a solid glowing line. 800 rounds in 8 seconds. It was awesome :)

[zoebisch01]

bolt action .270?

Only because, I am quite fond of my .270.

[Common]

Lube is your friend.....:)

When I started kegging, I just ordered one bag each of all different size o-rings (other than the lid) from McMaster & Carr. Swapped out the old ones for new right away and have a bunch for when they wear out. Keg lube helps a ton.

Can you find the O-ring dimensions for the post and dip tubes?

[devilishprune]

Lid is size 417.
Posts are size 111.
Diptubes are size 109.
I think if you looked up those sizes you could find the dimensions.

As far a supplier goes, I went with oringsandmore.com last week. Got 4 lids, 50 diptube and 50 post for 16 bucks shipped (all silicone).

[Common]

Nice, thanks man.

[Common]

Just thought I'd post an update. I bought some silicone o-rings from oringsandmore.com . They APPEAR to have fixed my leakage. I don't want to get my hopes up yet, but I tested all the gas posts and didn't hear any leaking. Just got some silicone grease too. Most of my old o-rings appear to be new, but I guess they just didn't get the job done anymore. Thanks for the help. Hopefully my troubles are over.... I sure hope so. Hah.

[-Dan-]

There's a sticky here with quite a few numbers to the parts you need.

[Diver Down]

I don't want to get my hopes up yet, but I tested all the gas posts and didn't hear any leaking.
Don't trust your ears. I use soapy water in a spray bottle and spray it on all gas connections and both post. Has saved my ass a couple of times.

[Common]

Don't trust your ears. I use soapy water in a spray bottle and spray it on all gas connections and both post. Has saved my ass a couple of times.

Yea I know, just saying it helped some at least since I could hear it leaking prior.

Also, I'm still pissed. Still leaking everywhere, including multiple lids. Fuck these things.

[Boerderij_Kabouter]

I admit, if I could do it again, I would go with sankes. I agree, the cornies gargle balls. After using a sanke a couple times, there are a million times easier to clean, sanitize, and use. Boil sanitation etc. Just a better system.

[Common]

Finally someone that feels my pain, hah. Yea I am so used to sanke kegs at work never having any issues, and my shitty cornies leaking from everywhere. I really think I'm going to sell all my cornies and get all 1/6bbl sankes. I've been using a flathead screwdriver to pry out the rings, but I discovered the "keg knife" that I will definitely get. I even read people on probrewer using it. Seems much even easier. I already have 4 1/2bbl, although 1 is cut, and I will be cutting one more, and I need one for another purpose.. soo i guess I could use more of those to fill, but i digress...

[Boerderij_Kabouter]

Yeah. Sankes are just way more consistent and taking the split ring out takes a second at most.just pop out the edge and run a screw driver or tool around the rim to unseat the rest of the spring. Super easy. Further, sanke parts are a dime a dozen on CL (at least here in brew city). I have strongly considered sell off my corny stuff too...

[Brambles]

. I may blow one up tho...

This would make a great YouTube video.

[karmabrew]

This would make a great YouTube video.

Yes it would!