[alexmenary]

Hey everyone this is my first post on this forum so I hope it is in the right spot.

After reading the (Un)Real Cask Ale article from the last issue I think I would like to build a similar set up to it. I'm wondering if anyone has built this yet and has any feedback on how it works, or issues that you've ran into.

Also if anyone has one of these, would they mind posting a video of how it pours? It would be cool to see one in action just to get an idea of how it works.

[Dave Carpenter]

Hi! This is Dave Carpenter, author of the Unreal Ale article. Feel free to send any questions my way! I'm not on these forums too frequently, but I'll do my best to respond as promptly as I can. I'm currently on a brewery tour in OR and WA, so I'll only have intermittent connectivity until Aug 8.

One reader sent me the following question via e-mail:
What about the degradation of the membrane in the propane regulator? CO2 is much more corrosive than propane. Is there any advantage to using the propane regulator over just setting a CO2 regulator to zero (effectively making it a demand valve)?

To which I replied:
I hadn't considered membrane degradation in the LP regulator at all. I think I paid $10 or $15 for it, so if it lasts a couple of years or more, that's okay by me. If it only lasts a couple of batches, though, that's not good. I only have three data points at the moment, so I'll have to see how it behaves when I dig it out for the winter. I hadn't tried just setting the CO2 regulator to zero. I suspect that would work just fine, but I have no evidence to support that suspicion.

I can take a video, but it won't be until October at the earliest. I don't use temperature control for serving my real ales, so I have to wait until the house cools down enough to do it properly.

I'm happy to answer any other questions, so fire away. Cheers! 

[braufessor]

I have been procrastinating, but really hope to get it going in the next couple weeks.  I always have british bitter and/or british dark mild on tap, and would love to try this method of dispensing.  My basement fluctuates between low 50's and upper 50's year round, so it would be perfect.  I will post back when I get a chance to get at it.

[hopfenundmalz]

I have used the low pressure propane regulator for 3 or 4 years as a poor man's cask breather. No problems so far, it only gets used a couple times a year.

Side Note - the LP regulator was talked about on the HBD a long time back. It works.

[stlaleman]

I have mine 90% done, waiting for the regulator to arrive. I beat the serving temp problem. Found a guy here who makes a "corny chiller" out of stainless steel. Pump water from my keezer thru it, and 52 degree ale!

[Dave Carpenter]

I'm glad to hear that others are trying this. I tried to give credit in my article to all of the sources I used in designing and building the system, and I apologize if I overlooked anyone. My goal was to distill down the massive amount of information out there into something concise and relatively simple to understand. Unlike many homebrewers, I am not terribly handy, so I always appreciate seeing things that don't assume a working knowledge of welding, wiring, and wainscoting.

Found a guy here who makes a "corny chiller" out of stainless steel. Pump water from my keezer thru it, and 52 degree ale!

staleman, could you post a link or send the guys info? That sounds like something worth having. 

[alexmenary]

I have been putting this off as well, my fridge recently broke so I have been spending time on a new keezer. Now that it is done I plan to get started on this with in the next little while. Did you guys get the parts for this online or from a store? I have a used regulator, anyone have any idea if there would be issue with using that? I would run some CO2 through it to get the propane out, seems like it would be fine but I don't know much about gases really.