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Beer Faucet/Tap Selection and Kegging

BeerSmith

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Beer Faucet/Tap Selection and Kegging article posted today!
  http://beersmith.com/blog/2013/03/12/beer-faucettap-selection-and-kegging/

Cheers,
Brad
 
 
May I add Brad,

...... that the Perlick faucets you mentioned (forward vs. rear  sealing discussion) are a purchase WELL WORTH the price. I have been kegging or better than 20 years, and have always struggled with the "stick" that develops on the rearward sealing varieties. I have a 3 tap system, and have for many years fought this. If you don't drink daily, the faucet sticks. And the longer you let it sit unused - the worse the stick. I have actually feared breaking off the whole tower (envisioning the uncontrolled loss of my precious liquid spewing all over the place unstoppable) until I bought the Perlicks.
 
    Wow - what a difference! I did buy the 525SS (Stainless - no flow control) and while more than the chrome plated brass I can't see any downside. I always wondered about the bacteria I was ingesting - but really don't see any downside to the small amount of brew held inside the faucet since it never gets exposed to air. And this may just be my imagination, but I swear I get perfect pours nearly every time.

Wish'd I had done it in the beginning!

DISCLAIMER- I have no affiliation with Perlick or any other beer hardware manufacturer.
 
A few comments:

Most serious beer brewers eventually transition to stainless steel bar taps.

might be more accurate if it said "metal" instead of "stainless steel".  The material differences between Stainless and Brass is overstated and the price difference is understated. 

Chrome plated brass will last a very long time.  I personally have never even heard of one wearing out.  There have been many discussions over on HBT, and no one has ever reported (that I have read) a perlick brass faucet wearing out.  Yes, the interior chrome plating will be etched away in a fairly short time, but the mechanism and seal is unaffected.  You should still expect to get years and years of service life out of a brass faucet. 

The price difference is basically a factor of 2. 

Perlick 525pc (chome plated brass) average price is around $20. 
Perlick 525ss (stainless steel) average price is around $40. 

Occasionally you can find the 525ss on sale for $25 to $30.  But, that still 25-50% more.  If you are putting in 4-6 taps the cost difference is still significant. 

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"  The downside is that a small amount of beer is trapped in the faucet itself."

I really don't understand the comment regarding the beer being trapped inside of the perlick mechanism.  How is that supposed to be different than the beer trapped inside of the beer lines?  It is sealed and sanitary.  It is certainly more sanitary than the beer left coating the inside of the rear-sealing faucets, exposed to air/fruit flies/bacteria. 

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"A creamer faucet is a special rear closing faucet that operates in both the forward and backward directions"

There is nothing about the "creamer faucet" that requires a rearward seal.  In fact the perlick 575 is a FORWARD sealing creamer faucet.

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"This can be a big plus if you are serving a variety of beer styles from a single pressure source, since you can compensate to some degree for too much or too little pressure for a given beer style."

You say "to some degree", but I think that bears a little more elaboration.  You are not going to succeed at using a flow control faucet to serve a 3+ volume beer and a sub 2 volume beer from the same CO2 source, or even through the same length of liquid lines.  Trying to serve a 1.7 volume beer at 20 psi using a flow control faucet is going to be a very frustrating experience----lots of foam.  Besides, that 1.7 volume beer will equalize over several days to 3.5 volumes of CO2, then it won't be a porter anymore. 

So, they are useful for compensating for (or fine tuning) slight line length issues.  They are no substitute for a properly balanced system.  But, at $60 (non sale price)....they are pretty hard to justify.

 
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