bottling wand mishap

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EmptyH

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I have a very cheaply made spring loaded bottling wand (will be upgrading this weekend) that has a tendency to stick in the open position. I was bottling my Hefe yesterday and the wand got stuck, so I am trying to fill the bottle, hand it off to my assistant to cap and move the wand to the next bottle without spilling too much beer (it looked like a bad I Love Lucy episode:drunk: ). Two of the bottles got over-filled, one of them almost to the brim.

My question is; does this increase my chances of bottle bombs? I have put the two bottles inside of the bottling bucket, with the bucket lid set on top, and I figure I will sample the one most full in a week. Will the reduction in head-space cause the pressure to increase too much?

Thanks,

MTH
 
Time to start kegging, bro. I don't know about the bottle bombs, but I think it works backwards. Too much head space = overcarb, too little = undercarbed, but I could be wrong. When mine used to get stuck and overfill a bottle, I'd just pour a little back into the bucket and fill it to the right level.
 
Lil' Sparky said:
Time to start kegging, bro. I don't know about the bottle bombs, but I think it works backwards. Too much head space = overcarb, too little = undercarbed, but I could be wrong. When mine used to get stuck and overfill a bottle, I'd just pour a little back into the bucket and fill it to the right level.
Click to expand...

I believe this is indeed how it works. Too little head space will result in undercarbed beer.

As for the kegging, it has its merits but isn't for every situation. :tank:
 
Perhaps I am incorrect, but I thought you wanted to fill the bottle to the brim when using a bottling wand. When you remove the wand from the filled bottle, it leaves the correct amount of head space (and uniform headspace too).

I have been bottling this way for a while and no explosions.
 
unclesamskid said:
Perhaps I am incorrect, but I thought you wanted to fill the bottle to the brim when using a bottling wand. When you remove the wand from the filled bottle, it leaves the correct amount of head space (and uniform headspace too).

I have been bottling this way for a while and no explosions.
Click to expand...

Thats the way it is *suppose* to work, however the wand was leaking, when I removed it, it did not stop dispensing and over-filled the bottle. I had to stick it into another bottle quickly because it was spilling onto the floor and by that time my assistant had already capped the completely full bottle.
 
zoebisch01 said:
As for the kegging, it has its merits but isn't for every situation. :tank:
Click to expand...

C'mon, now it has A LOT of merits. You have to admit that kegging is way less hassle. Hell, it only takes 10-15 mins to go from carboy to kegged beer in the fridge. Bottling is a whole ordeal but I'll still bottle my hefe's and special beers, keeping the "daily" beers on tap.
 
EmptyH said:
Thats the way it is *suppose* to work, however the wand was leaking, when I removed it, it did not stop dispensing and over-filled the bottle. I had to stick it into another bottle quickly because it was spilling onto the floor and by that time my assistant had already capped the completely full bottle.
Click to expand...

Why do you cap so fast?

When I bottle ( just myself ) I fill each bottle and just place a cap on top.
During the time I'm filling the rest of the bottles, there is co2 formed inside
the bottles causing the o2 in the headspace to be pushed out. You can
hear the slight popping of the caps when this happens if you listen closely.
 
Lil' Sparky said:
C'mon, now it has A LOT of merits. You have to admit that kegging is way less hassle. Hell, it only takes 10-15 mins to go from carboy to kegged beer in the fridge. Bottling is a whole ordeal but I'll still bottle my hefe's and special beers, keeping the "daily" beers on tap.
Click to expand...

True, but like you mention there are some beers that just need bottles :D. Bottling in itself isn't all that bad imo. :ban:

Empty, one thing you can do if it is one of those non-spring type nipple valves is to do a quick jab into the bottom of the bottle. That usually works for me.
 
zoebisch01 said:
True, but like you mention there are some beers that just need bottles :D. Bottling in itself isn't all that bad imo. :ban:
Click to expand...

I am a kegger. Despite my recent bottling mishap...
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showpost.php?p=252820&postcount=9

I agree with zoebish01.

It's the only way that you can get a vertical sample of a recipe.
Easier to gift or provide people samples (beer trades).
Gets you back into label design and simple marketing of your product.

I bottled for years then abandoned it for kegging (for years). I definately fell out of the practice and as a brewer I feel I need to get my skills back up to speed. It's one of those things that will help complete my brewery.
 
I had some trouble with my wand last batch. They went away once I pulled and twisted on the end of the 'feeler'. I think there is a rubber washer inside that got off kilter.

I use the bigger size "wine bottle wand" because it is faster. So pulling it out of the bottle leaves the bottle half full. Then I have to trigger the valve against the inside of the neck til full to about 1/2".

I bottle. I have all the stuff for kegging, but I don't see the fridge space for a corny when I drink one botttle per day. A separate fridge would cost more than the homebrew. Your livestyle will make the decision for you.
 
I definately want to get into kegging but right now its a time(set up time)/money thing, and my next purchase is going to be a setup to do partial mashes. I will probably end up getting a new wand this weekend.

Well at least I don't have to worry about the bottle blowing, if its under-carbed I can handle that.

Thanks:)
 
I've had the same problem with my bottling wand, and I just splash the excess into a small pitcher I place below the bottling wand to catch spills.

For me, this happens usually towards the end of a bottling session when I'm getting a bit tired of the routine. Early in the process I do what zoebisch01 said; jab the wand straight down on the bottom of the bottle. This seems to keep the needle assembly working pretty well. Later in the game, when I just want to be done with bottling, I get a little sloppy and don't always make sure the wand goes straight down into the bottle. Sometimes I'll catch the side of the bottle with the needle, and it sticks open.
 
Unclesamskid said:
Perhaps I am incorrect, but I thought you wanted to fill the bottle to the brim when using a bottling wand. When you remove the wand from the filled bottle, it leaves the correct amount of head space (and uniform headspace too).

I have been bottling this way for a while and no explosions.
Click to expand...
I think his problem was the bottle wand was stuck "open" and kept filling even as he was removing from the bottle. Normally the fill stops as soon as you lift from the bottom of the bottle.
 
I use one of these bottling wands for filling bottles, but instead of attaching it to a hose, I jammed it into a spigot (thumb tap) that I added to the bottom of a 7 gallon pail (i.e. bottling bucket). Best thing I ever did to improve the easy of bottling other than switching to Star-San.

Use the tap on the spigot to let the beer out, and the wand keeps it in the tube between bottles. If the valve in the wand sticks, all you lose is the bit of beer stuck in the tube.

If you put the bucket on a milk crate on the counter, you can line up all your bottles on the counter and comfortably stand and fill all your bottles. I just find it really convenient and I don't make the mess I used to flailing that wand and hose around. You also have more control with the tap to avoid oxygenating the beer as it initially goes into the bottle.
 
FlyGuy said:
I use one of these bottling wands for filling bottles, but instead of attaching it to a hose, I jammed it into a spigot (thumb tap) that I added to the bottom of a 7 gallon pail (i.e. bottling bucket). Best thing I ever did to improve the easy of bottling other than switching to Star-San.

Use the tap on the spigot to let the beer out, and the wand keeps it in the tube between bottles. If the valve in the wand sticks, all you lose is the bit of beer stuck in the tube.

If you put the bucket on a milk crate on the counter, you can line up all your bottles on the counter and comfortably stand and fill all your bottles. I just find it really convenient and I don't make the mess I used to flailing that wand and hose around. You also have more control with the tap to avoid oxygenating the beer as it initially goes into the bottle.
Click to expand...

Those all sound like great ideas. I'll be bottling a batch soon, so I think I'll give that a try.
 

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