SodaFountain

  After just two days, I checked my new 5 gallon tank of CO2 and discovered it was empty - which means I must have a leak. I hook up my newly filled and recertified 4.5 gallon tank and just turn it off after each use. I will have to refill my 5 gallon tank, but need to give it a few days, so the guys at the welding shop don’t suspect me of huffing. Now there is a pump that randomly pumps syrup out on its own, and the water leak is worse. So I have turned everything off - when I have the time, I will disconnect everything and reroute it to make it easier to find and fix the problems which will pop up. I tightend down - refitted a few connections and have eliminated all but the carbonation leak. I suspect the fitting connecting to the bottle - I am hand tightening - So I continue to turn it off when not in use.

  I continue to test and tune Sprite, Dr. Pepper, and Rootbeer.  Everytime I think it is right, my kids show up and bitch, moan and complain about all the flavors. When one kid thinks it is finally right, no one else does. I plan on tuning it until I like it - and that will just be the way it is. I have FANTA Orange hooked up, but the carbonator pump for that flavor is not running - so I will have to fish those lines to a different pump. I turn off the carbonation, and wait for the pressure to leak out. Then I disconnect the Fanta Orange line - only to have the pump, using the stored CO2 in the carbonation tank - pump out about 2 cups of orange syrup. All over the pumps and the tangled lines inside the cabinet. I clean up as best I can - Reattach to a different pump and manage to get the orange working - according to my kids, the best flavor so far. I purchased Fuse Raspberry Iced tea syrup to hook up to the non-carbonated line - but because the Corona Virus has locked down ...

  It’s now March, and I am growing despondent - I have now invested a few thousand dollars and still can’t get a palatable drink from my machine. So, I Brix it again and discover that the Brix has two options - a 5:1 option and a 5.5 to 1 option. So I switch Coke to 5.5 to 1 and it is closer. Next I run through a large number of taste tests. I take a drink - compare to a canned coke, make a quarter turn adjustment on the machine, cycle some before tasting it again. I find that I have almost run out of CO2. I have no idea how full my little tank was when I started this process, so I do not know if this is indicative of the life span on my machine. Just in case, I order a 5 gallon tank as a backup ( $80 from Amazon, this size fits under the sink ). I take my 4.5 gallon tank and the new tank in to be filled ( eventually found a welding supply shop that fills CO2. ) They fill the new tank, but the old tank is out of date - before they will fill it it needs to be inspected ( like a scub...

                 After 24 hours                                              - I pour my first Coke -                                                                                                and it is very WRONG. The carbonation is not right - the bubbles are very tiny and the flavor is vile. I decide to use the Brix kit - and find that my machine is set to pump 5 parts syrup to one part water, which is backwards. A search on the internet shows me how to adjust my dispenser and I achieve the 5 to one water to syrup ra...

It is LOUD. It is like having your home air conditioner inside. I was unprepared for that as well. However, after 4-6 hours it stops and drops back into a semi-soft refrigerator hum. Only kicking into loud mode once a day for about 15-20 minutes. Next I address the new leaks that have sprung up - tightening and stopping all I can find. I order Ikea bags to put my cardboard syrup bags into - after learning that they can leak and make a huge mess. I ordered a 5 gallon rasberry ice tea box online for $140, but it arrived leaking, the box disintegrating around a VERY LARGE BAG of unwield sticky syrup. I returned that for my money back - but learned the lesson. And Ikea shopping bags fit the bill.

  I started to hook up my soda syrups only to discover that my machine came with three different types of connections. I have 2 PEPSI only connectors which are a little bigger and GREEN. I have 2 Generic blade type connectors which look like giant oversized corkscrews and seem to fit nothing I can buy - not even the generic stuff. Then  I have 4 Coke connectors which are smaller, red, and seem to fit everything. I have been unable to find Pepsi syrup anywhere, and the company that promised to help source all my syrups before they got my money has been very quiet after depositing my check. I trace the line from the machine and plug it into a pump attached to the line to the syrup I need for that dispenser. Then I route all the lines, trying to get them out of the way as much as possible. This takes a lot of finagling, but finally I am almost ready. I ordered 2 Pepsi to Coke adapters from Amazon ($15 each), as well as 2 Coke connectors ($6 each).