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Did you ever get a copy of the K-Way Manual by chance cuz I'm looking too

I see this post was from 2011 & hoping I get a reply because I'm looking for info (any info) on K-Way systems. Have an old one, trying to figure out if repair or replace is best option but can't find ANY info online-I know the company is out of business but if you have any info you'd like to share, it would be greatly appreciated

Originally Posted by bearturk

Just found this thread

I fix the K-way systems for a living.

There is no water bath in this system The refigeration coils are right inside the carbonation tank. It will build a small ice bank of carbonated water.

I do have a manual for this system if you want one i can email it to you

bearturk38

That would be great if you could email me a copy of the manual. I will email you my contact info.

Seeing as how you have experience working on the K-Way systems, is there any known issues or problems with them? I have been looking all over for some detailed info on them ever since I got it, and I can't really find any. It's almost like these systems never even existed.


Thanks!

That sounds cool, never worked on that kway before but I did work on a lot od soda systems in the past I'm curious to see that manual, heat exchanger in the carbonator seems cool!

Mike

Just found this thread

I fix the K-way systems for a living.

There is no water bath in this system The refigeration coils are right inside the carbonation tank. It will build a small ice bank of carbonated water.

I do have a manual for this system if you want one i can email it to you

bearturk38

Originally Posted by Johnla

No in the training film I'm talking about, that I seen about 35-40 years ago. And it was probably made around 10 to 15 years before I seen it, it was old film even then. They used a oxygen tank for gas welding. They had it on the ground and about 20-30 feet away from a cinderblock wall, and a guy broke off the valve with a sledge hammer, and the tank took off and blew right through the wall.

Yes there's a hell of a lot of energy locked up in a full tank. You couldn't pay me enough to swing that sledge!

Originally Posted by Johnla

They also showed a similar film in the SCUBA diving class I took, where the showed a SCUBA air tank taking off like a rocket after the valve was broken off. And they also showed quite a few different still pictures of what those tanks can do to things like car trunks that were damaged or even blown apart, after it was hit in the rear during a accident and it ruptured the SCUBA tank that was in the trunk of the car.

In fact, here is some still pictures that are very similar to what we were shown in diving class.

http://www.thescubaguide.com/gear/tanks/safety.aspx

I wonder if that was covered by the owners insurance?

Originally Posted by Johnla

Also, I have read up on what the CO2 and carbonator can do if it backflows into the water supply line, in that it can make you really sick, or worse. So I bought a new anti-backflow valve for the water supply input, just in case the chiller itself don't have one built into it.

Good to hear

Originally Posted by Johnla

As for beer, I just don't drink much beer, and I never really did. Other than for when I was maybe eating a pizza, for some reason beer and pizza just go together so well. It's almost like they were made for each other... But with that and the fact that with some of the medication I must take due to a back injury that happened at work when my first foolish natural reaction was to try and catch a falling transmission that another person let go of when the two of us were moving it, and then the resulting disc fusion it required, they pretty much tell you not to drink any alcoholic drinks.

Some things take a split second to do and a life time to get over

The beer thing is kinda forced on me. I'm Australian. It's expected of me.
It's a cross I have to bare

No in the training film I'm talking about, that I seen about 35-40 years ago. And it was probably made around 10 to 15 years before I seen it, it was old film even then. They used a oxygen tank for gas welding. They had it on the ground and about 20-30 feet away from a cinderblock wall, and a guy broke off the valve with a sledge hammer, and the tank took off and blew right through the wall.

They also showed a similar film in the SCUBA diving class I took, where the showed a SCUBA air tank taking off like a rocket after the valve was broken off. And they also showed quite a few different still pictures of what those tanks can do to things like car trunks that were damaged or even blown apart, after it was hit in the rear during a accident and it ruptured the SCUBA tank that was in the trunk of the car.

In fact, here is some still pictures that are very similar to what we were shown in diving class.

http://www.thescubaguide.com/gear/tanks/safety.aspx


Also, I have read up on what the CO2 and carbonator can do if it backflows into the water supply line, in that it can make you really sick, or worse. So I bought a new anti-backflow valve for the water supply input, just in case the chiller itself don't have one built into it.


As for beer, I just don't drink much beer, and I never really did. Other than for when I was maybe eating a pizza, for some reason beer and pizza just go together so well. It's almost like they were made for each other... But with that and the fact that with some of the medication I must take due to a back injury that happened at work when my first foolish natural reaction was to try and catch a falling transmission that another person let go of when the two of us were moving it, and then the resulting disc fusion it required, they pretty much tell you not to drink any alcoholic drinks.

Originally Posted by Johnla

Slatts,
Yes I am well aware of what a CO2 leak could do in a enclosed area with little or no ventilation, it could possibly reduce the oxygen supply in the entire house and maybe even kill you as a result if the house is small enough. That kind of stuff was drilled into me over and over when I first learned how to weld, when they got to the part about different welding gases, showing how even the nonflammable ones had some very serious potential dangers to their use. Not to mention to mention the training films showing a tank where the valve is broken off on purpose and taking off like a unguided torpedo and breaking clear through a cinder block wall, in order to get the point across to you, to secure the gas cylinders so they can not fall or move and possibly break off the valve and become possible missiles.


But enough of that, as I also have another question.

Seeing as how some of you have experience with both working on and maintaining soda dispensers in one form or another. Can anyone recommend a good water filter setup for me? Keep in mind that my soda dispenser setup will be used only in a home environment, and will never get the heavy use that it would like in a commercial use. That means something like the ultra expensive commercial use water filter setups are pretty much out for me. Plus I think most of them would be total overkill for my situation.

But, I also don't think a low end $50 to $75 filter setup from a home building center is quite enough for using with something like a soda dispenser either.
I'm thinking that I should be able to get something decent, and that should work well feeding just the soda dispenser and nothing else in the house, for somewhere in the $125 to $150 range or thereabouts.

Also, I did pick up a Multiplex 8 head remote tower dispenser head unit, to use in place of my barguns. Which will be very nice, because I really want to have root beer as one of my flavor options, and I don't want any taste cross contamination issues.

I saw that training film to! It was on mythbusters wasn't it?
I wouldn't have slept well if I hadn't pointed out the potential dangers of CO2.
The bottle pressure is nowhere near that of a nitro bottle though.
I'd go with an activated charcoal filter to get any odours out of the water. Nothing fancy.
When you fit it, put a temperary line on the outlet side and run water through it till it runs clear. They used to get a lot of carbon dust in them.
I don't know if that still happens, But better to make sure than serve black lemonaid.

Put a stainless steel check valve in at the end of your copper water line and run either plastic or stainless from there on.
If I remember correctly carbonated water reacts with copper to form carbonic acid or some other unpleasant compound.
If the check valve into your carbonator leaks back and you don't have that 2nd check valve in line it could cause a few nasty problems.
Keep in mind that the carbonator tank is held above mains pressure by CO2. It will force the soda water back up the supply line.
Don't forget to bleed the carbonator tank when you start it up. Should be a bleed valve on top of it.
All this trouble for soft drink... Now if it were beer..

Slatts,
Yes I am well aware of what a CO2 leak could do in a enclosed area with little or no ventilation, it could possibly reduce the oxygen supply in the entire house and maybe even kill you as a result if the house is small enough. That kind of stuff was drilled into me over and over when I first learned how to weld, when they got to the part about different welding gases, showing how even the nonflammable ones had some very serious potential dangers to their use. Not to mention to mention the training films showing a tank where the valve is broken off on purpose and taking off like a unguided torpedo and breaking clear through a cinder block wall, in order to get the point across to you, to secure the gas cylinders so they can not fall or move and possibly break off the valve and become possible missiles.


But enough of that, as I also have another question.

Seeing as how some of you have experience with both working on and maintaining soda dispensers in one form or another. Can anyone recommend a good water filter setup for me? Keep in mind that my soda dispenser setup will be used only in a home environment, and will never get the heavy use that it would like in a commercial use. That means something like the ultra expensive commercial use water filter setups are pretty much out for me. Plus I think most of them would be total overkill for my situation.

But, I also don't think a low end $50 to $75 filter setup from a home building center is quite enough for using with something like a soda dispenser either.
I'm thinking that I should be able to get something decent, and that should work well feeding just the soda dispenser and nothing else in the house, for somewhere in the $125 to $150 range or thereabouts.

Also, I did pick up a Multiplex 8 head remote tower dispenser head unit, to use in place of my barguns. Which will be very nice, because I really want to have root beer as one of my flavor options, and I don't want any taste cross contamination issues.

Watch your ventilation in the basement. If you get a syrup leak the pump will run continuously, Or if a CO2 line develops a leak or a pump fails and vents gas it could conceivable raise co2 levels in a small space to dangerous levels.
Check with your supplier for carbonator regulator setting. Too high and you can get crook from it.

If I was not also buying a all new bundle of lines, I think I really pretty much have everything else that I need. About the only other things I really need to do now, is wait for my new lines and have the CO2 tanks filled up, and then install everything. As I also have most all the other needed parts, two 20lb CO2 tanks and all the gauges and a large assortment of both Coke and QCD/Pepsi type BIB connectors and a assortment of SS hose fittings and mix of SS Oetiker clamps. Plus I also bought 6 brand new Surflo pumps for only $10 each, just so I don't have to worry about any of the used pumps not working or having any kind of a aftertaste in them.

A pre-mix system is pretty much not the way to go for a home setup, as far as I'm concerned, post mix offers a lot more options and is also easier to find and buy supplies for. The only reason I wanted a remote chiller setup is because I do not have the room to place a countertop dispenser unit where I need it to be. But with the remote chiller I can place the chiller/cooler and all the BIB syrups and pumps and CO2 tanks in the basement and right below the room I want to have the dispenser in, and then run about 15-20 feet of line up through the floor behind a wall under the sink and then have it come out right by the kitchen sink.

I do also have a 6 flavor self cooled Cornelius Venture countertop dispenser that I picked up for $50, which is also how I found out real quick that I don't have the room to use one like that.

I would however like to get something like a 5 or 6 flavor Lancer remote tower dispenser head, to use instead of the bargun to avoid any taste cross contamination issues with using a bargun. But with me now having three 12 button barguns, I also don't want to pay out the kind of money one would cost unless I could sell off at least two of the three barguns for a really decent price to help cover the cost of a remote tower unit like the Lancer.

Originally Posted by Johnla

I have no children of my own, so I'm not too worried about having all the kids in the neighborhood at my house bugging me for free soda. I do however have grown up adult friends over quite a bit to watch movies, which is why I also have a fairly nice theater type popcorn machine.

Hmmm, that's the same kind of stuff that kids like. OK, OK, lets just call it a bunch of grown up kids that do show up....

One thing nice I found when looking for BIB syrup suppliers, is that there is one local to me and only about 10 minutes away from me that sells to the public and also carries the syrup mix in BIB for Green River soda. I used to love that soda, but it became almost impossible to find other than for around the 3 or 4 weeks right before each St. Patrick's Day. Problem is, they are the R/C Cola distributor for the area and I don't want that. I want Coke, they do however also have 7up and Dr Pepper which I want. So that leaves just Squirt, and also a name brand of root beer. Plus a non-carbonated lemonade. I know I can get Coke BIB at Sams, but I'm trying to find if there are also other local options other than just Sams for any of the Coke brands.

John

Wouldn't it make more $ sense to run a premix system for a low volume novelty?

You still need to buy the parts to get this one going.




I worked at clover club before where they make the green river and was totally brown nosing it .

they gave me a case of bottles

I got a 2 liter in the fridge right now

They are family owned and I'm sure they will keep you stocked if you call them and say please

Don't let the pumps start up till you've got water in them.
if I remember correctly it doesn't take much to destroy the carbon vanes in them

K buy looking at your pic of the unit looks like u have 4 lines coming in or out of the unit. First will be incoming potable water. Second will be soda water leaving carbonator. 3 and 4 will be your soda supply and return. One of the pics show pumps and connectors. The elongated ones are called flojet and the other is shurflo your connectors are called QCD connectors. Qucick disconnect will not work with coke syrups. Will work with pepsi, 7up ,rc . You will need a bottle of co2. 2 regulators a high pressure for the carbonator usually 90-105 psi. and a low pressure regulator to push your pumps 40-65psi. Anything that will come in contact with the soda water must be either stainless steel or plastic. You will get sick if you use anything else. Last don't put root beer thru that gun.. Your drinks will smell like sewer in a few months. Stay away from the pungent syrups in barguns root beer dr pepper orange strawberry , anyways good luck if need something else just ask.

Confirmed. U have a water bath filled with water and only water. Fill it up to the top of the overflow tube inside. Don't know how big your system is but you will have one brass and one stainless steel pump. The brass procon is used to pressurize the water before it enters the carbonator tank and meet with the co2 therefore making soda water. So your carbonator tank will either be in the water bath or somewhere remote but eventually the water will enter coils in the bath. From there depending on how many lines you have in the bundle tubing or python and how many flavors you are planning to run that will determine how many times you want to loop that soda circuit inside the python. Your soda water will be recirculated with the stainless steel pump. The stainless pump will suck from the tank from the inlet side of the pump and push soda water to your tower or dispensing valves. At your tower no matter how many valves you have you should have a u type of flow in and out of the tower. From there it will return to your stainless steel pump with a check valve before entering the pump again so you don't have soda h2o back to your brass pump.. The more you loop your soda the colder it will be. The kways are similar to the Mcdonalds Multiplex unit now owned by servend. Check their site lots of good info there. Good luck but in my honest opinion get rid of that thing and pick yourself what they call a counter electric unit. Basically a 1/4 to 3/4 hp reefer deck sitting inside a miniature water bath.. Lot smaller less power to run and less parts to replace. Barguns have the worst tasting soda there is it out there.. They contaminate with pungent syrups very easily . If you want want to use the barguns pick yourselk a cold plate. Your syrups/drinks run thru the coldplate and ice over the coldplate will cool your drinks.

I have no children of my own, so I'm not too worried about having all the kids in the neighborhood at my house bugging me for free soda. I do however have grown up adult friends over quite a bit to watch movies, which is why I also have a fairly nice theater type popcorn machine.

Hmmm, that's the same kind of stuff that kids like. OK, OK, lets just call it a bunch of grown up kids that do show up....

One thing nice I found when looking for BIB syrup suppliers, is that there is one local to me and only about 10 minutes away from me that sells to the public and also carries the syrup mix in BIB for Green River soda. I used to love that soda, but it became almost impossible to find other than for around the 3 or 4 weeks right before each St. Patrick's Day. Problem is, they are the R/C Cola distributor for the area and I don't want that. I want Coke, they do however also have 7up and Dr Pepper which I want. So that leaves just Squirt, and also a name brand of root beer. Plus a non-carbonated lemonade. I know I can get Coke BIB at Sams, but I'm trying to find if there are also other local options other than just Sams for any of the Coke brands.

John

Originally Posted by Johnla

Anyway, thanks for the help guys.
And if any of you do happen to come up with any other sort of information, especially if it pertains to this exact K-Way system. Please come back and post it.

Thanks again!


John

John

I still think your opening Pandora's BIB (ccnova )


Dress your kids in sweaters and put some Velcro on the ceilings.

Your gona have every kid in the neighborhood at your place



Better put in a tapper while your at it

to help the adults cope

Yes you are 100% right about the cooled line doing a "U-turn" right at the bargun in order to recirculate the cooled water. I guess I'll remove the cover sometime later this week take a look inside and see if I can find out anything else about it. And order up a new bundle of lines, over trying to clean the old used ones. And then assume I need to just use water. I guess the worst thing that could happen is that it could maybe freeze up and burst the recirculation lines if it did need a water/gycol mix, so I'll just keep a close eye on it for the first few hours, and then for the first couple of days.

Anyway, thanks for the help guys.
And if any of you do happen to come up with any other sort of information, especially if it pertains to this exact K-Way system. Please come back and post it.

Thanks again!


John

Originally Posted by ccnova

From what I see on the name plate you have two 1/3hp motors and the compressor. I would guess that one pump is brass and feeds plain water to the carbonator and the other pumps something through the bundle to cool the syrup and water. What ever it pumps will probably just go up one tube to a u-bend close to the gun and then back to be cooled again. I work for Coca-Cola and all our systems similar to this use only plain water or soda water to circulate and cool. I have never seen a soda system in this part of the country or anywhere that uses glycol. The only place I have seen that is in beer systems and some remote ice cream dispensors.
ccnova

I concur.
Water. Not glycol.

From what I see on the name plate you have two 1/3hp motors and the compressor. I would guess that one pump is brass and feeds plain water to the carbonator and the other pumps something through the bundle to cool the syrup and water. What ever it pumps will probably just go up one tube to a u-bend close to the gun and then back to be cooled again. I work for Coca-Cola and all our systems similar to this use only plain water or soda water to circulate and cool. I have never seen a soda system in this part of the country or anywhere that uses glycol. The only place I have seen that is in beer systems and some remote ice cream dispensors. As for what they mean by a "dry refrigerated" system I have seen some old systems that used a mechanically refrigerated block of aluminum with coils imbedded in it to cool as opposed to a water bath system. Maybe thats what this has? Find out which pump goes to the carbonator tank and then follow the lines to and from the other pump to see where the inlet goes. I'm sorry but thats all I can say for now. I will ask around and see if I can find any more info.
ccnova