How to Balance a Beer Line

Balancing a beer line is the most important step in serving a properly poured pint of beer.

Draft beer is regarded as the best way to serve this classic, delicious beverage. Unlike most bottled beer, beer from kegs or large tanks is not pasteurized, which gives it a unique and more accurate taste. A well-functioning draft beer system is vital to maintaining the integrity of flavors and textures found in the beer. Understanding how to balance a beer line is crucial to pouring and enjoying a delicious pint of beer.

Things You'll Need

• Calculator
• Beer line resistance table
• Measuring tape
• Pencil
• Paper

Instructions

Proper set up

1. Chill the beer to a temperature between 36--40 degrees Fahrenheit and ensure that this temperature will remain constant.

2. Carbonate the beer with CO2 gas, using a regulator designed for CO2 beer systems. Other gases such as nitrogen will require special setups and calculations.

3. Connect your beer to the faucet and tap using hardware designed for beer delivery. The calculations used to balance the beer line only work with lines and hardware that are designed for use with beer.

Make calculations

1. Write down the resistance values for your beer lines using a beer line resistance table. There should be three values: one for the beer coming from the keg to the edge of the refrigerator (R1), one from the refrigerator to the faucet (R2), and one from the faucet to the tap (R3).

2. Measure and write down the length of each section of line. Denote the length of line from the keg to the edge of the refrigerator as L1, the line from the refrigerator to the faucet as L2, and from the faucet to the tap as L3.

3. Measure and write down the height (H) from the top of the tap to the center of the keg.

4. Calculate the required pressure to set on the CO2 regulator using the following equation: P = (L1xR1) + (L2xR2) + (L3xR3) + (1/2)H, where length and height are in units of feet and P will equal pressure in lbs.

5. Set the CO2 pressure regulator to the value found for P. If the value is above 19 lbs., alter your system to lower the pressure by using larger diameter line or by shortening the distance from keg to faucet.

Tips & Warnings

• If your system uses fewer than three different lines to get the beer to the tap, eliminate those values from the equation. For example a draft system with one line running from the keg to the tap need only use the equation P= (L1xR1) + (1/2)H.

• Always be careful when dealing with pressurized gas. Keep gas away from heat and upright at all times.

References

• Keg Balance Information