Pressure Barrel Leak......Different!

[WalesAles]

Hello Boys and Girls,
Got up this morning nice and early to bottle my Cherry Stout and Brew my Wherry.
Beautiful smell of Beer in my utility room! Aaaaah! What a Smell! Beer!
MrsAles said `Your Barrel is leaking`. The work surfaces were awash with wasted un-drunk Beer! Aaaaaargh! WTF is going on?
The leak was coming from the bottom of the barrel where the two halves of the barrel are joined together, heat sealed, glued, vibration welding, whatever,
but there it was, a tiny, tiny drip from the barrel. Gutted! Only had 10 pints in there and managed to salvage 5 pints for my Tea!
When I unscrewd the lid the pressure released was immense! Oh Well, At least I`ve got a spare tap and lid now!
WA

[Cully]

This used to be a common fault with King kegs. When it happened to one of mine i contacted Hambleton Bard and got a free replacement.

[Kev888]

+1, think they must have had a bad production run at one point.

Anyhow, it could be that the pressure was just a bit higher than normal and so proved the last straw for a weakness in the PB, but it could also be worth making sure the release valve is working okay before you re-use it; sometimes the rubber can get sticky and not release, or corrosion/scale can block it, and let the pressure rise above spec.

Cheers
kev

[WalesAles]

Thanks for the replies,
It probably is the release valve not working because I have never had so much pressure in the barrel with so few pints in it.
Is there anything I can do to the rubber seal to get it OK again?
WA

[Kev888]

You could just check it is still stretchy and not stuck onto the metal, but if it is getting old you can get replacement rubbers for many types without having to swap the whole valve.

TBH they aren't the most accurate things in the world though, so it could possibly be in decent shape but just not letting pressure out as soon as one would wish.

Cheers
Kev

[WalesAles]

Cheers Kev,
Just took the Rubber off the cap, still stretchy, put it back on with a tiny smear of vaseline.
The cap and barrel are only 18 months old. Is that old?
I`ve got a spare barrel and 3 other caps I can use anyway. Bought the caps in Dunelm on offer at £4.95 last year (as you do)! Marked down from £19.99!
WA

[Kev888]

Doesn't sound too old to me, probably a weakness in the PB then.

Cheers
Kev

[Wherryman13]

Well had to work Saturday morning, had been in garage b4 leaving for work to put washing machine on , my King Keg was sat as it has been for the last 6 weeks on its shelf nearby nothing unusual to notice or smell................
Later that morning get a call at work from the OH saying your beers all over the floor and washing machine area and I'm having to clear the mess up !
Turns out when I got home a pinhole leak has just appeared out of the blue in the base and the KKeg is only about 14 months old. grr. Waste of beer ! Obviously the latest hot weather had built up the pressure enough to find a hidden fault

[turbo 2011]

That's why I got a corny keg I just store and condition now in them cheep kegs and force carbonate in corny, I had two leak on me , stick the barrel in a builders rubble bucket next time any leaks it just goes into bucket i used to put a bag over keg also .
Do your self a favour buy a corny keg best thing I ever done .

[Wezzel]

My King Kegs have pressure gauges and tyre valves fitted to the lids. I think the gauges were about £13 each from Ebay. The tyre valves were free from a tyre shop (they cost pennies). I know it's an additional expense that you shouldn't have to make but it makes such a difference.

Since fitting them I realise how unreliable the standard pressure relief valves are. If I prime with anything over 100gms sugar I have to vent the keg almost every day while I am conditioning (even at 12 degrees in a brew fridge) to keep the pressure below 10psi. I went away for a few days once and on returning the gauge was nudging 15psi and the valve still hadn't opened.

I think most of the problems people have is too much pressure building up causing the joints to fail, after all the kegs are only designed to take 10psi.

I have also discovered how little pressure you need to get a good seal. I tend to fill with beer, screw the lid on very gently, give the keg a shot of Co2 to about 5 or 6 psi and then gradually tighten as required until the needle stops falling. I'll then leave it for an hour or two and if the needle stays put, I'll vent it back down to 1 or 2psi and pop it in the brew fridge to carb up.

It really takes the guesswork out of using a keg and makes them a pleasure to use.

[Wherryman13]

Leak on mine was so small that the stream coming out was no thicker than a spiders thread making it near impossible to find initially, hopefully I might get it exchanged as it should not be doing this after such a short time ...will be going back to where I bought it from to discuss the matter.....