exploding bottles

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GalenSevinne

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Is there any typical timeframe one could expect to see bottles exploding if they were to explode? Or could it be expected to happen anytime throughout the life span of the beer in the bottle?
 
Never had one explode, but if you're really concerned, waste a beer: pop one open at 3-4 weeks, room temp. If you have a huge gusher, you have potential for broken bottles.

If you followed all the directions, it should carb nicely, with no danger.
 
I guess my concern is that (this is my first brew) I mixed up enough priming sugar for 5 gallons but after pouring the beer from the fermenting bucket onto it in the bottling bucket there was only 4.5 gallons. Doesn't seem to be a big difference to me but because I have never done this before, it has my eye.


Thanks,
 
I'm sure you'll be fine- you generally aren't pushing bottles to their limit anyway, so you'll just have a spritzier beer. Assuming you were aiming for 2-2.5 volumes of carbonation (usually 4-4.5 oz. of sugar per batch), I'd say you're in no danger. I believe bottles can handle upwards of 3 volumes, though you don't want to make a regular practice of asking them to.
 
I guess my concern is that (this is my first brew) I mixed up enough priming sugar for 5 gallons but after pouring the beer from the fermenting bucket onto it in the bottling bucket there was only 4.5 gallons. Doesn't seem to be a big difference to me but because I have never done this before, it has my eye.


Thanks,

It will be fine, just a little more highly carbed. As you learn more about brewing you may come upon the term "carbing for style." And you will find that some styles are carbed lower (and would require less sugar/5 gallon batch) and Some are higher (requiring more sugar/5 gallon batch.)


The different sugar amounts equal different "Volumes of CO2."

An average style beer, and the way most kit beer come with 4.5 or 5 ounces of sugar produces about 2-2.5 volumes of co2.

So what ended up happening was that you by having 5 gallons woth of sugar/4.5 gallon batch raised the co2 vloume a tad....Maybe to three volumes.

no big deal, beer bottles can handle it.

FYI more on carbing to style, I am bottling a Belgian Saison today that require 4-4.5 volumes (around 8 ounces of priming sugar.) Most of them are going into champagne bottles.

Bottle bombs usually occur is someone bottles too soon where there is still the original sugar in the wort still left to consume ON TOP OF the sugar added to prime it and a huge amount of co2 gets provided, more than the bottle can handle...OR their is an infection that is eating the fermentables in the bottle as well as the sugar and producing too much co2....

Neither of those are in your case, so you will be fine...you'rew just nervous. :D

Just leave them alone for the weeks at 70 degrees, then be sure to chill the beer you plan on drinking down for at least 2 days to reabsorb any excess co2 back into the beer...and enjoy:D
 
thanks folks! Yes I am being nervous! I was nervous about initial airlock activity, nervous about hopping, nervous about SG readings, nervous about bottles exploding, so now I will just be nervous about taste :). I am whittling it down to its truest essence with time. Its never as good as the first time is probably true for brewing as well.

It is an IPA that sat in the fermenter for three weeks before bottling. It has been in bottles now for a week so I will continue to relax and enjoy my DFHs I bought last week in Rehoboth.
 
That first beer is definitely nerve-wracking. The best thing you could do now would be to make another batch. Regardless, you're two weeks away from tasting beer that you made, and that is pretty awesome.
 
that difference in sugar shouldn't matter.

I HAVE had exploding bottles, and it was a decade ago when I bottled an extract Stout that was about 1.024
stupidity and impatience, I figured it must be done after 1 week.

about a month and a half later they started exploding. one bottle would pop and break the 6 bottles surrounding it in the case.

every bottle gushed when opened until it was only half full. all a waste.
 
that difference in sugar shouldn't matter.

I HAVE had exploding bottles, and it was a decade ago when I bottled an extract Stout that was about 1.024
stupidity and impatience, I figured it must be done after 1 week.

about a month and a half later they started exploding. one bottle would pop and break the 6 bottles surrounding it in the case.

every bottle gushed when opened until it was only half full. all a waste.

I've had a couple. One was stored above my fridge and I figured it go too hot. I had another in my brew closet, best I could figure it was a bottle failure..maybe a weak spot.
 
You should be fine, as others here have pointed out. Go make yourself a nice Oktoberfest.

Now, in the unlikely event you do get an exploding bottle, try moving your beers to a cooler spot to slow down fermentation -- or chill them enough to stop fermentation entirely. Then start drinking.
 
Ive brewed 12-15 batches and I just had my first exploding bottle last night. I made the Saison de Garde recipe from the All About Beer that came out a couple months ago. I think I bottled a little prematurely; it was in the primary fermenter for 17 days. From what I've been reading, it could have probably used some additional time in a secondary fermentation.

I also used a cup of priming sugar for the 5 gal batch, so my carbonation will be on the upper end, but that is desirable for this style of beer from what I understand.

Hopefully I won't have any more bombs since i have another 10 days before I will sample one.
 
Ive brewed 12-15 batches and I just had my first exploding bottle last night. I made the Saison de Garde recipe from the All About Beer that came out a couple months ago. I think I bottled a little prematurely; it was in the primary fermenter for 17 days. From what I've been reading, it could have probably used some additional time in a secondary fermentation.

I also used a cup of priming sugar for the 5 gal batch, so my carbonation will be on the upper end, but that is desirable for this style of beer from what I understand.

Hopefully I won't have any more bombs since i have another 10 days before I will sample one.

Be careful with the Saison yeasts...I brewed an IPA with one (about two months ago) thought I'd taken precautions (very little corn sugar) and just had an exploding bottle tonight. The saison yeasts seem to be extremely hungry.
 
I had two bottles explode in my closet. I had moved the day before and I think they got shaken up a bit. Woke up in the morning and they had blown glass out of the closet into the hallway. There was glass EVERYWHERE (including sticking out of walls). It was actually rather disturbing.
 
I had two bottles explode in my closet. I had moved the day before and I think they got shaken up a bit. Woke up in the morning and they had blown glass out of the closet into the hallway. There was glass EVERYWHERE (including sticking out of walls). It was actually rather disturbing.

That's exactly what happened to me the first time, and yes, seeing the brown ale splattered across the wall, and discovering glass shards everywhere was disturbing and sort of terrifying. I'm confused this time (my Ipa exploded last night) because I didn't move it around a whole lot and fermentation as far as I could tell was done.

EFaden, what yeast were you using for your exploding bottles? Also, were they old, I"m not sure how old my bottles are at this point, or how often they've been used.
 
That's exactly what happened to me the first time, and yes, seeing the brown ale splattered across the wall, and discovering glass shards everywhere was disturbing and sort of terrifying. I'm confused this time (my Ipa exploded last night) because I didn't move it around a whole lot and fermentation as far as I could tell was done.

EFaden, what yeast were you using for your exploding bottles? Also, were they old, I"m not sure how old my bottles are at this point, or how often they've been used.

It was a long time ago, and I'm not even sure which beer it was at this point.
 
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