Draught Equipment and System Configuarations > Equipment and Configurations for Long-Draw Draught Systems > Components
Topics in this section include:
Barrier Tubing
Wall Brackets
FOB (Foam On Beer)
Beer Pumps
Quick-Connect (or Push) Fittings
Barrier Tubing
Barrier tubing has a “glass-smooth” lining that inhibits beer or mineral stone deposits and microbial growth to maintain beer freshness. Its properties make it the only industry-approved beer line for long-draw systems.
Barrier tubing may be purchased by itself in various diameters but most suppliers sell it in prepared bundles (called bundle or trunk housing) with beer lines and glycol coolant lines wrapped inside an insulating cover. These bundles vary by the number of beer lines they carry with popular sizes matching the number of faucets commonly found on tap towers.
Many older long-draw systems installed single-wall polyethylene tubing. This relatively porous material allows beer oxidation during extended pouring delays and makes cleaning difficult. Today, you may find blue and red polyethylene tubing carrying glycol from and to your glycol power pack and is the only recommended use for polyethylene tubing in long-draw systems.
Wall Brackets
One-Faucet Wall Bracket (left) and Two-Faucet Wall Bracket
Wall brackets join tubing together in a long-draw cold box. The wall bracket gives a solid connecting spot for jumper lines from the keg. Tubing is connected with a washer, nut, tailpiece and clamp combination. (Most of these installed in the past were made of plated brass, and should be inspected for wear and replaced with stainless steel.)
FOB (Foam On Beer)
Stainless Steel FOB (left) and Plastic FOB (center andright)
FOBs stop the flow of beer through a line once the keg empties. This reduces the beer loss normally associated with changing a keg and therefore reduces operating costs. While available in different designs, all feature a float in a sealed bowl that drops when beer flow from the keg stops. The FOB allows the beer lines to stay packed. This makes for less product loss and generates savings for the account. FOBs should be cleaned every two weeks when the draught system is cleaned and completely disassembled and manually cleaned quarterly to assure a clean system.
Beer Pumps
Beer Pumps
Beer pumps draw beer from a keg or other beer-serving vessel and deliver it to the faucet. Rather than using gas pressure to drive beer, beer pumps use mechanical force to propel the beer through the system. We find beer pumps in draught systems when working pressures for gas dispense gets too high. This includes very long runs (>200 ft.) or high vertical lifts. We also see them used on multi-barrel brewpub serving tanks that have low-pressure limits.
Beer pumps themselves are powered by high-pressure gas or compressed air that does not come into contact with the beer. Of course, some portion of the pump contacts the beer and like anything else, it must be regularly cleaned to prevent beer stone build-up and microbial infection.
Beer pump setups require two operational pressures: CO2 pressure on the keg or tank to maintain beer carbonation and separate gas pressure to the pump to propel the beer to the faucet.
- Proper CO2 pressure should be applied to the keg or tank to maintain the beer’s carbonation level (See Appendix B).
- The pump pressure is then set to equal system resistance. Here the only caveat is that this pressure must at least equal that required to maintain carbonation in the keg in order to prevent carbonation breakout in the beer lines.
Quick-Connect (or Push) Fittings
Coupler (left) and Vinyl adapter (right)
Special fittings can join the different types of beer line found in long-draw systems. Quick-connect fittings work on hard or rigid tubing including polyethylene (used for glycol), barrier line and stainless tubing. Couplers attach to square-cut tubing ends with an O-ring and gripper. Adding a vinyl adapter to the coupler allows for transition from barrier or stainless to vinyl tubing.
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