Dry Ice Rootbeer plan - suggestions

Bad plan:

: I am thinking of doing this: : Get Gatorade type drink dispenser (5 gallon) with screw on lid. : Install a vent pipe & weight from pressure cooker in top, load : ingredients & Dry ice and seal. The CO pressure would (hopefully) : raise to 5, 10 or 15 lbs/sq inch (pressue is adjustable based on how : you set weight on vent pipe) and carbonate RB. Kids liked seeing : bubbles.. but this should lead to better root beer, and the noise & : visual of pressure regulator rocking back and forth should be neat.

: Issues: : 1) don't think there is safety issue, as the pressure regulator will : prevent overpressurization.

"Over" pressurization will be anything over probably about 1/10 PSI

: 2) My brother thinks the Gatorade type dispenser (orange, you see them : on sidelines at football games) will not hold pressure. he may be : right, need to test.

He's likely right. A little basic math will tell you that 10 psi on a 15" diameter lid will produce over 1700 lbs of force. I doubt that the designers had that kind of force in mind when the built the injection molds for the lid.

: 3) I have seen (what appear to be old style) corny kegs on EBay that : are about 15 gal's. Would those be a good substitute for drink : dispenser?

The 5 gallon ones at least are rated for 130 psi.

I've also heard of funky bacteria, etc living dormant within dry ice. Not supposed to be food-grade.

The good news is is probably wouldn't be too dangerous. The lid will likely blow off at a fraction of the pressure you're trying to operate at... probably long before enough energy can be stored to completely destroy the container spraying shards of plastic at great speed at all the kids oggling the neato bubbles. Of course, I could be wrong... lemme know how it turns out.

-Cory

The old style 5 gallon Corny kegs are used all the time for exactly what you suggest. They are used for soft drinks and homebrewed beer. Unfortunately, you lose any visual dry ice effects. Perhaps you can do the dry ice separately, disguising the keg faucet somehow.

(I also imagine the Gatorade cooler would not hold pressure - certainly not enuf to carbonate rootbeer).

Another note... while I don't "keg" in Corny's, I understand that you'll need to make the rootbeer somewhat ahead of time and put pressure on it in advance to carbonate it - a few days for sure. Do a little Googling for it and I'm sure you'll find a lot of information.

Derric

Cory,

It IS possible to share your knowlege without being a jerk about it..

: It IS possible to share your knowlege without being a jerk about it..

Yes, but I was fairly certain it was a troll. It seemed pretty absurd to me to be considering pressurizing a very large, non-pressure vessel.

-Cory

If you think it is a troll.. don't feed it. Losers who troll feed on negativity.

I do not see what was wrong with the way he was saying what he did with the question you asked. The only thing that would of been worse if you would of asked about putting the root beer in pet bottles and putting the dry ice in the bottles and closing the lids, then giving the bottles to the kids and having them shake them.

He got your attention that may of saved lives, and just maybe your own.

Homebrew 15psi max, dry ice can produce 1312 psi min. I don't know if it will hold the pressure.