I know this isn't home brewing but I figured folks here may be able to help me out. I have running a 5lb co2 tank and 1/4 kegs. Usually 14psi is around the sweet spot as far as taste goes but I always have to pour a glass of foam out before every good pour, even if there is only a few seconds between glasses. I am wasting a lot of beer. I bought a tower cooler but that didn't seem to improve anything. I have also read that hose length may also be a factor but not sure how it all plays in. Anyone have foam problems and get them figured out or can offer tips?  Thanks

Drink from the hose, therefore no foam in glass

Here's an article and calculator I used for line length balancing: http://www.mikesoltys.com/2012/09/17/determining-proper-hose-length-for-your-kegerator/

I'm running 10' lines at 12 PSI and 38-40 degrees and I'm happy with my pours.  Another option is to try the spendy Perlick flow control faucets.

I had a similar problem OP.  My keg tap has(had) a little white plastic ball in the beer line that I think was supposed to "close" the line when you disconnect. I tried it without the plastic ball and the foam problem went away for me. Not sure if your's has that ball, but it is a easy thing to try if it does.

Are you fully opening your tap, full blast, to pour?  If not, you should.  If you try to "baby" the beer out of the tap by partially opening it, you'll get excess foam.

I don't have a kegging system. It seems, however, if you have too much foam, you have too much pressure. Pressure forces gas into the liquid. The gas " wants to get out" when you pour (lower the pressure). Try a lower pressure?

Watch some youtube videos. There are plenty about this subject.

Draft beer sans foam is a matter of balance.  The goal is to balance applied pressure with the appropriate amount of resistance.  Temperature is always a key factor as the solubility of CO2 in solution is temperature dependent.

We need more information on your system...

-What is the temperature of your beer.  Measure coming out of the faucet.  A thermometer inside your kegerator does not necessary tell you what temp your beer is.

-What is the ID of your beer line.

-What is the length of your beer line.

-What is the elevation gain/drop from the midpoint of the keg to the faucet?

-Are you using a real faucet or one of those picnic/cobra style faucets?

-What kind of keg?  Corny or Sankey

-How old is your beer line?

Need to know more about your rig
Foam can be controlled by going to a smaller ID serving line, lowering the pressure at the regulator and by incresing the length of your serving lines.

For example, my lines are 6' of 3/8 ID and they pour with the proper ammount of foam at around 10 to 12 PSI.

A lot of commercial kegerators have short serving lines (at least the ones i've seen) could be you need longer lines.
need more info on what you have in order to offer advice.

As the others have said try a longer dispensing line from the keg to the tap. Also if the C02 is too high it will foam. I didn't think about the diameter of the line, that is a thought. Also check for air intrusion, if you have an air leak it might not leak fluid but it may suck air. I know folks that use clear line to check for leaks.

I use the internal mixing component from epoxy mixer nozzles (McMaster-carr #74695A58)

I cut out the white plastic insert and put 2-2.5 down the dip tube of my keg (I run at 10psi).  This works as a gentle flow control.  That's the concept of using longer lines.  This way it doesn't matter what my tubing length is.  I clean, sanitize and reused the inserts when I clean the keg.

Well at 14psi your beer is overcarbonated.  Unless your serving it at 40F or warmer.  Even if you go to the top of the beer style chart for Americal Pilsner 2.75 is the max volume of CO2.  At 14 PSI and 38F you are at 2.75 any colder and your at 3.0.

CO2 Volume chart


The easiest fix.  Run 10ft 3/16" ID lines at 8-10 PSI.  If the beer is not carbonated enough or pours to slow.  Cut 6" to 1 ft off the line.  Continue cutting until you have achieved the desired pour.  I run my IPA, Pale, Lager lines at 8 ft and my dark beer lines at 10ft (all at 10 PSI) because I like a little more carbonation in the light color beers.

Great info here, guys. Thanks for the help. I need to swap kegs and hopefully get this figured out.

Honestly, the easiest way to do it is with flow control faucets.

I have a 1.5gal Torpedo keg with a flow control faucet connected directly to the ball lock.  So we'er talking about roughly 7" of dip tube as the only resistance, in addition to the faucet.  Pours awesome even at 13psi.

I experimented with hose length and diameter and also with the Perlick flow control tap.  The biggest improvement I found was the Turbo Tap attachment.  Retail price is pretty stiff, but you can get lucky on Ebay and get one much cheaper.  I see now they sell the Turbo Tap as a complete assembly.  Prior to that you could buy an attachment that went on your existing tap.  These were designed and sold to get faster pours at stadiums and events so they could sell more beer.

https://turbotapusa.com/about/  

Another cause of foam, you will notice, is that first few ounces.  You can either tap it off into another glass, or fix it.   It is caused by the hose length in your tower that is warmer.  Install a tiny computer fan to blow air into the tower, and also, make sure there is insulation in there. This is the same concept as a bar that has a long run to the tap.  They use liquid coolant lines in the run so the beer doesn't get hot on the way to the tap.  

A bartender tip I watched is not pouring into a frozen glass.  Several places have an inverted glass sprayer to shock the glass to a more normal temp prior to the pour.  I have also watched bartenders use their hand to warm the glass on the side where the beer will hit first.  

As far as over or under carbonation or temperature, that is some magic that you will never master.  I have gone through a lake worth of commercial kegged beer and you have almost no control of carbonation.  Temperature (cold, colder, and damn near freezing) really did not have all that much effect.  

You can see that I spent a lot of time studying the beer foam issue.  Trust me, get a Turbo Tap on ebay.  There are several on there right now at a reasonable price.

I would never buy that thing and I own a brewpub with 24 faucets.    

I definitely wouldn't buy that thing for home use.

For beer sales in a stadium, maybe.