Force carbonation & serving pressures

[HantsGaz]

Hi All,

If I force carbonate a Belgian beer - say to 15psi, this seems to be too much pressure to serve at. If I then expel the headroom gas (after the beer has carbonated) and re-pressurise to 2-4 psi for serving, am I right in thinking that over time, as the head pressure will now be < the original carbonation level, that some sort of equilibrium will occur and the beer will lose its initial carbonation level?

If that's the case, what do most people do - just drop the pressure for serving then top it up again? That seems to be a bit of a waste of gas, especially if the cornie is nearly empty! Or can the 15psi be maintained with a long length of 3/16 tubing and a flow control tap? I’m still getting a lot of froth when serving at 10 degrees with 15 psi with 3m of 3/16 tubing and a flow control tap, but don’t really want to expel the gas from the cornie and re-pressurise at 4psi every time when I fancy a pint!

Thanks, Gaz.

[HantsGaz]

OK - thanks Chris - I'll keep experimenting trying to maintain the right pressure on the keg. I think the sparkler element may be creating some of the head - so I'll take that out next time I try.