CO2 Tank with a Siphon Tube for Thrill

Summary: The cylinder is not in the box. Buy a CO2 tank with a siphon tube, filled with food-grade E290. Keep two tanks and refill those same two. A beer-tap exchange usually comes back without the tube, and the machine will hiss without chilling the glass.

Where can you order a siphon-tube tank?

Order two before the chiller is installed, so a full one is ready when the other is out. Muretti sends buyers to a 20 lb tank and to a shorter 10 lb tank. Siphon-tube tanks look the same as a beer or soda tank, so read the listing and confirm the words siphon tube are on the cylinder you are buying.

The 20 lb tank is on Amazon: 20 lb CO2 tank with a siphon tube. The matching listing is aluminum, about 28 inches tall, with a CGA 320 valve. That page also shows other 20 lb tanks, so check the words “siphon tube” before you add one to the cart.

The shorter tank is a 10 lb aluminum cylinder at Gas Cylinder Source: 10 lb aluminum CO2 tank with a siphon tube. The listing puts it at about 21 inches with the valve and handle, and says the height can vary by a few inches. It ships empty. Measure the cabinet before you choose it over the 20 lb.

Either cylinder still needs food-grade CO2, marked E290, the same gas a bar uses. A welding fill can leave an odor in the glass. Thrill’s CO2 sheet calls the US connection Mod. B. Both of these listings show a CGA 320 valve, so match the nut to the tank in front of you.

Where do you refill it?

Refill your own tank. Any shop that refills CO2 for restaurants and bars can do it. An exchange usually hands back a standard tank with no siphon tube, and the glass stays warm. Call ahead and ask whether they refill siphon-tube tanks.

What should you ask the gas supplier for?

Say siphon tube, or dip tube, and say the gas has to be food-grade E290. The tube has to reach about 2 mm from the bottom of the cylinder. Thrill’s 2021 manual says a tube that stops short can leave a resulting failure outside the warranty.

Ask for an overpressure valve and a manual shutoff. Industrial or welding CO2 can leave an odor in the glass. The manual says it will not give the hygiene the machine is built for.

How do you buy the tank, step by step?

• Say what it is for. The tank is for a glass chiller, not a beer tap. Confirm the siphon tube is in this cylinder, not just printed on a similar one.
• Measure the cabinet. A 20 lb tank is the usual home-bar size. A 10 lb tank is shorter when the opening is tight.
• Buy a second tank. Thrill recommends two per machine so one can be out for a refill.
• Refill, do not swap. An exchange program usually hands back a standard tank with no siphon tube.
• Turn the nut, not the black valve. The 2021 manual says a 27 mm wrench on the nut, and a twisted valve is not covered.
• Match the fitting. Thrill’s CO2 sheet lists the US connection as Mod. B. Match the nut to the tank in front of you.

How much CO2 does one glass use?

Five grams per second. A chill is the short press. A frost is the longer one. Thrill’s own bottles are about 150 glasses from 4 kg and about 400 from 10 kg. A 20 lb tank is a little over 9 kg, so a normal chill is a few hundred glasses. On an ERT line, add about 15%.

Where does the tank sit, and which hose do you order?

Under the machine, on the standard hose. Thrill’s current Cube and SBI pages say that hose reaches up to 2.5 m, about 8 feet. The 2021 manual says 2.8 m. The closet or the next room is a different machine: the ERT, at 8 m (26 ft) or 12 m (39 ft). It has to be ordered with the chiller. A standard unit cannot be converted later. Do not kink the black tube. The minimum bend is 5 cm, about 2 inches. Which cabinet you are filling is Cube, Jet, or SBI.

How do you change a tank without venting the line in your face?

Close the cylinder valve first. Press a glass, or run an empty cycle, until gas stops coming out of the nozzle. Then unscrew the nut. The 2021 manual is specific because the line stays pressurized if you skip that.

On the first day, charge the battery 8 to 16 hours, unplug the charger, and run one empty cycle. Packaging residue can smell. That smell is the first cycle, not the drink.

What goes wrong with the tank?

• It hisses and does not chill. That is a tank with no siphon tube, or a siphon tank that has used up its liquid and has only gas left. It is not, by itself, a dead machine.
• The exchange tank has no tube. A beer-gas swap usually comes back without a siphon tube.
• The room is closed. The manual warns that CO2 can build past 0.5%. Keep the room ventilated, the tank upright, and out of sun and heat. The limit in the manual is 104°F.
• The black valve was twisted. Tightening the fitting by turning the black solenoid is not covered.

If it hisses and the glass stays warm, change the tank before you decide the machine is broken. Measure the cabinet, buy two siphon cylinders, and refill those same two. We can check the hose against that cabinet at 134 W 25th St, or you can start from the Thrill glass chiller page. Call (212) 457-1355.