New guy whos brews out ran his bottle supply

OK, I am sure everybody did this when they started. I have no room for kegs or extra fridges or anything bigger then stacking some cases of bottles. Then I will transfer what I want to drink to the fridge as needed. But my problem is the few cases of bottles I stashed away will be used up with the three brews I have fermenting now. I see people use 2 littler soda bottles. Is that a real option at this point? The glass bottles I can buy are not cheap. So any advice is appreciated. Thanks

I'd recommend going to costco and buying a couple of cases of your favorite beer. Drink it all and then clean the bottles and remove the labels. Better than just buying empty bottles IMHO.

If you have friends who drink Sam Adams, New Belgium, Avery, or any of the many others who use re-cappable bottles, ask them to give you their empties. I've bought 2 cases of bottles and have acquired 8 additional cases over the years.

Another quicker option is to go to your favorite bar and ask the bartenders if you can have their empties. Sometimes they'll save them for you if you offer some HB as a trade.

I trade cans and twist off bottles for useable bottles at the liquor store. I just talk to the clerk and most of them have had homebrewers before and they gladly do the trade. Then I wash the bottles in the dishwasher in the sanitizing cycle and then soak them in idophor.

20 oz coke bottles work fine too, but I wouldn't recommend 2L bottles unless you plan on drinking 2L of beer in one sitting.

Yup. Anything that held a carbonated beverage that you can reseal is fair game. Some people advise against using bottles that had root beer in them as the flavor is hard to remove. A 2 liter pours around 4 pints so find a friend before opening one.

Thanks to everyone who answered. Looks like 20 oz coke bottles will bridge the gap. Thanks again.

jeepinjeepin said:

Yup. Anything that held a carbonated beverage that you can reseal is fair game. Some people advise against using bottles that had root beer in them as the flavor is hard to remove. A 2 liter pours around 4 pints so find a friend before opening one.

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Also, little tip from my experience:

Pour the beer off into a pitcher, all at once from the 2 Liter, that way you won't kick up all the yeast lying at the bottom of the bottle.

2 Liters are perfect for homebrew club meetings.