---
title: Automated Carbonation for Kombucha Makers
url: https://fizzwizz.ca/carbonation-for-kombucha/
date: 2026-10-15T07:41:41+00:00
modified: 2026-10-15T07:41:41+00:00
lang: en_US
---

# Automated Carbonation for Kombucha Makers

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](/kombucha-pop-cider-carbonation/) 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](https://ask.ifas.ufl.edu/publication/FS379), 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](https://www.paulmueller.com/academy/the-basics-of-vacuum-relief-in-a-brewery)). 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](https://ask.ifas.ufl.edu/publication/FS379)). Set the target that suits your product.

**Carbonating kombucha?** [Talk to us](/contact/).

## Sources

- [Carbonating Kombucha, Pop, and Cider](/kombucha-pop-cider-carbonation/).
- University of Florida IFAS, [FS379](https://ask.ifas.ufl.edu/publication/FS379), Tables 1 and 2.
- Paul Mueller, [The Basics of Vacuum Relief in a Brewery](https://www.paulmueller.com/academy/the-basics-of-vacuum-relief-in-a-brewery).