[bbump22]

Hey - I was wondering if anyone has any great guidelines for first time keggers.  I kegged my first batch tonight and according to the regulator, i used half the CO2 tank in less then 4 hours.  Granted the beer I was trying to keg was probably around 64 degrees when i started carbonating and so i had the pressure up to around 24 to start and lowered it by 2 every 15 minutes and agitated the keg every 5.  I was in a rush to keg and carbonate, so I know its most likely user error, but does anyone have any guidelines I could use for the other batch of beer i have in secondary?  THANKS FOR YOUR HELP!

[bruck]

Unless you have a leak, there is no way you could use half the tank carbonating a 5 gallon keg. First step should be to check for leaks. However, the gauge that is on your regulator in my experience is never right until the tank is totall empty. From what I have read, the temperature in the kegerator will throw off the readings. Good luck. Kegging is the only way to go.

[bbump22]

Im pretty sure i misread the regulator...its about a notch or 2 down from where it started at, so I haven't used half.  The temperature in the fridge was warmer when i started carbonating too, meaning I would have used more at the start.  I lowered the psi over night and the co2 level remaining had not changed.  I just need to get use to my system - ancy to drink keg burs!

[bruck]

Good luck brother! There is no turning back after kegging!

[rabid_dingo]

Don't expect to get a ton of detail out of the high pressure regulator dial. It will show full until you run out
of liquid then it drops pretty quick and inevitably you will convice yourself that "It was full yesterday!"
Start collecting the pocket change to get a spare tank. It is much nicer to run out with a spare on deck
than to find out that you have to make the run for refill/exchange...

[a10t2]

The high pressure gauge won't move at all until you run out of liquid CO2, at which point the tank is about 90% empty. If it did change, it's because the temperature changed. Here's a vapor pressure chart. If your high pressure gauge doesn't read what the chart says it should, it's broken.

[bbump22]

Thanks for all the help guys...I kicked my first keg this past weekend!  A bittersweet moment...kegging is the only way to go! 

[rabid_dingo]

I hope you had another full keg to throw in there!