As anyone who as ever worked in a pub or poured a fair share of pints knows, without proper maintenance beer taps will eventually stick. This fact of nature is also true for a our growler taps if not cleaned after use and left to dry.
An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure!
Once you have finished your delicious carbonated beverage from one of our pressurized growlers, we recommend to immediately flush the unit with warm water. To do this properly, fill the growler to the point of overflow, then open the tap and tilt the unit forward a bit until the water gently drains out the faucet. Once you have finished the initial flush, hold the tap under warm running water while opening and closing it 5 to 10 times using the tap handle.
If you forego this step or do not fully rinse the unit you will risk any residual beer or beverage in the tap having the opportunity to dry out and gum up the inner mechanics. Undoubtedly and over time this will leave you with a sticking or stuck tap.
How To Fix A Stuck Tap
- Do not use excessive force on the tap handle, this is just putting pressure on the lever unit (6) and it can get bent or damaged.
- Make sure the lock is open (#2 an #3 separated)
- If the lever moves back and forth slightly but the tap is not opening, it is likely the shaft that is sticking (9). You can verify this by looking at the tap head on. You will be able to see the shaft end as it moves in or out of the faucet body (7).
- Try running hot water over and in the tap body for 1 minute, even up into the spout if you can. Gently try to open the tap handle (don’t force it), if it opens, run more water through while gently opening and closing the tap.
- If the above options fail to work, try removing the tap and goose neck tube unit at the neck nut (with a crescent wrench) just above the sight glass. Repeat Step 4 by running hot water through the goose neck tube, and into the spout while gently opening and closing the tap.
- Sometimes soaking the unit in hot water with a small amount of dish soap can help loosen things up a bit. If possible, use some Powdery Brewers Wash (packet included in your growler kit). PBW was formulated to clean beer and beverage products and will most surely unstick your tap.
- Finally, in the most extreme situations the tap body (7) can be removed from the goose neck spout. This is done with a crescent wrench where the tap body (7) meets the goose neck spout nut. Hold the tap body, and quarter turn the nut, and the tap body will be released. You can then flush the inner parts of the shaft, tap body, etc. Soaking with PBW or similar is recommended and thorough rising.
