If you force-carbonate kombucha in a bright tank, you face a problem most brewers don’t: your product usually arrives warm. FizzWizz was built to handle exactly that without someone babysitting the tank.
A real kombucha run
Our kombucha plot article walks through a run that went well:
- The kombucha reached the tank at over 12°C, far too warm to carbonate.
- The client set FizzWizz’s start temperature to 5°C (the default is 3.5°C). At 5°C a little pre-scrubbing is fine, but carbonation isn’t.
- The product chilled overnight. When CO2 first kicked on, it stirred the tank and drew warmer product past the sensor, so FizzWizz paused and restarted as the tank evened out.
- They left about 1.5 PSI in the tank as a floor, so the chill couldn’t pull a vacuum. It dropped nearly half a PSI while cooling.
- Once the product was stable at 2.29°C, the pre-scrub ran and carbonation started automatically. It shut off at 11.24 PSI against a target of 11.22: within 0.02 PSI.
All the operator decided was when to turn the FizzWizz on.
Why temperature matters so much for you
CO2 dissolves far more readily in cold liquid. In water at 10 psig, equilibrium falls from about 2.69 volumes at 0°C to 1.97 at 10°C (University of Florida IFAS, calculated for water). Carbonating before the product is cold wastes gas and misses target. Waiting for the start temperature does the job properly.
Protect the tank
Chilling a warm tank lowers the pressure inside it. A tank fails when the pressure difference exceeds its external rating, and a properly sized, working vacuum relief valve is the protection (Paul Mueller). A small positive pressure floor, as on the run above, adds margin.
Choosing a target
Kombucha carbonation levels vary by brand and style, and published reference tables don’t list kombucha. For comparison, lemon-lime sodas typically sit at 2.5 to 3.5 volumes and high-carbonation colas at 3.5 to 4 (University of Florida IFAS). Set the target that suits your product.
Carbonating kombucha? Talk to us.
Sources
- Carbonating Kombucha, Pop, and Cider.
- University of Florida IFAS, FS379, Tables 1 and 2.
- Paul Mueller, The Basics of Vacuum Relief in a Brewery.