If you have a draft beer dispenser (kegerator) in your home or business you probably have experienced moments where the beer foam is out of control. You clean your lines and scrub your faucets like a good barkeep should. So why do you still have so much foaming? This is always a tricky one to answer without knowing all the information about the kegerator setup.
Excessive beer foam can be caused by so many different things ranging from temperature swings, escaping CO2 during transport, dirty beer lines, wrong pressure setting, beer line length, temperature or hardware failure. I’ve heard and seen just about every problem you can have regarding kegerator beer foam issues.
Because foaming is such a huge problem for the average kegerator owner, companies are creating products to allow more control of the beer flow and help you solve that foam issue for good. Here’s 5 new foam control devices to help control your kegerator.
Keg King Flow Control Kegerator
Keg King has integrated flow restricting faucets into a new line of flow control kegerators. You set your CO2 tank pressure to the highest level based on the temperature and level of carbonation needed using our carbonation chart and then use each faucet’s flow controller as a secondary regulator to dispense beer at different flow rates. These Keg King kegerators also have a built-in tower chilling fan to keep temperatures balanced inside the refrigerator chamber and the draft tower.
Kegerator Flow Control Shank Adapter
You can also control and restrict flow using a new adaptor that mounts between the shank and faucet. The kegerator flow control shank adapter can change any faucet into a flow control faucet. The flow is adjusted using an Allen wrench and then is locked in place, so this is a more permanent solution with less ability to adjust on the fly.
Draft Tower Chiller Sleeves
Most kegerators are not equipped with a draft tower cooling fans to keep cold air blowing into the draft tower. If the beer lines extending into the tower are not cooled, they become a few degrees warmer and CO2 escapes causing more foam than wanted during the pour. The draft tower cooling sleeve paired with a tower chilling fan will reduce excessive foaming caused by temperature swings. It’s like a coozie for your tower and it will insulate and reduce condensation.
In-Line Flow Control Restrictor
Add the perfect amount of restriction to any beer line to reduce foam with the In-Line Flow Control Restrictor. Eliminates the need for flow control in the faucet itself. Great for use inline with varying levels of carbonation. The biggest advantage to using one of these is that you can use shorter beer lines and still have perfect restriction or use larger ID lines and adjust as necessary.
Beer Line Length Calculator
Old dirty beer lines are a very common problem for foamy beer pours, but sometimes the length of the beer line is the issue. If you are looking to replace your beer lines and want to calculate the perfect length use the beer line length calculator.
