I recently got several mini-kegs and was curious about force carbonating ‘em. With my initial purchase, I got a Philtap system and after weeks of Googling, I came to the conclusion that not many people were force carbonating mini-kegs.
To make a long story short, I don’t currently have any room for a corny keg and a CO2 tank, but I can fit several mini-kegs, (5L) in the garage fridge. So after hours of research, I simply removed the valve from the schrader valve on the Philtap and hooked the CO2 tank right up to it for some force carbonation action.
It worked! And it worked extremely well. I used 12PSI and shook the heck out of it several times over a 30 minute window.
One of the reasons I wanted to post this here is so it would show up in Google.
I was very please with the results!
If you’re interested, here’s the Youtube video of the first time using it!
Comments & questions are welcomed!
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Hi,
I would like to make seltzer (carbonated co2 water) in mini-kegs. Can you provide some more detailed instructions for how to do that? I have a 5lb c02 tank, what do I need to force carbonate a mini-keg?
Hey Roman,
If you have the CO2 tank and regulator, you can do something like this:
http://forum.northernbrewer.com/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=61167&hilit=mini+kegs
That might be a lot of work for just water. On the otherhand, for the cost and ease of use, take a look at the SodaClub machine. I have one and it is great!
http://www.sodastreamusa.com/
I am not familiar with the PhilTap system, but I am wondering I can do the same thing with my EdgeStar mini beer dispenser. What is the purpose of the Schrader valve on the PhilTap system? Is this were you normally attach the CO2 for dispensing?
Hey Stefan,
The Schrader valve attaches to a modified CO2 bike pump that uses a Co2 cartridge for dispensing; you are correct! I removed the valve and was able to force carbonate the mini-keg. In hind sight, and since then, I’ve found it to be a pain in the butt, but it does work!
Thanks for the quick response, Jeff! So I still don’t quite understand how this is different than the set up you would have for dispensing your beer. Are you using a larger tank of CO2 instead of the cartridges for the forced carbonation?
What do think of this: I take a keg of unprimed homebrew, tap it, and put it under CO2 pressure in my beer dispenser (which uses a 16g CO2 cartridge) and leave it alone for a few days/ week. As long as the pressure is high enough and the bung on the keg does not blow, it should carbonate, right? Thanks for your help!
Hey Stefan, yes… I was using a larger Co2 tank for carbonation.
You’re method sounds reasonable, but I bet you’ll end up using more than one cartridge, plus you run the risk of over carbonating it. With a larger tank, you’d have a regulator that you can limit the PSI’s. Couple of notes…
Check out this thread for more info. It should put more items into perspective.
http://www.homebrewtalk.com/f35/keg-force-carbing-methods-illustrated-73328/