Bottling in a 2 Liter soda bottle?

Is there any issue with me bottling in a 2 liter soda bottle? I'm pretty new to this Brewing thing and I don't have any bottles. My wife refuses to let me buy bottles.

It would work in a pinch but is not the most ideal. Why not start drinking (non twist-off) bottled beer and keeping the bottles to reuse? You could also look on craigslist to see if anyone has any bottles they are giving away.

dpsimswm said:

Is there any issue with me bottling in a 2 liter soda bottle? I'm pretty new to this Brewing thing and I don't have any bottles. My wife refuses to let me buy bottles.

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Plastic screw off bottles have long been sold with certain kits (Mr Beer comes to mind), and they are essentially the same as any other soda bottle, except soda bottles are generally clear or green, and most plastic beer bottles are brown.
Light will be an issue with clear or green (hop oils skunk under the light), so you might want to age/condition the bottles in a dark place to keep out the UV. Of course, large bottles will also allow the beer to go flat quicker if you don't consume it all at once after opening.

Many LHBS will also sell the plastic caps with new tamper evident seals, which may not be a big deal to you, but the inner seal will be new as well, and may help to keep the CO2 in. Of course, reusing plastic caps in a pinch is fine as well- most of the time they're good for several uses.

ETA: Plastic soda bottles will also typically hold more pressure than glass beer bottles too without breaking... so you can ramp up your priming sugar if you happen to have a style that benefits from the extra fizz, but don't go too nuts

Thanks!

I think I will start my collecting now then. My first batch of Mr. Beer will be ready for bottling in two weeks (one week old now). I have a dark cabinet above the fridge for storing and conditioning. It should work until I have enough bottles.

Your wife will let you brew but draws the limits at buying bottles....?

I would be careful with the temperature above the fridge it may be a bit warm

markm2151 said:

Your wife will let you brew but draws the limits at buying bottles....?

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She's right (always). In my case, SWMBO insists that it is completely absurd to clean craft bottles for reuse, essentially forcing me to buy homebrew bottles (which I am then allowed to clean and reuse). I think it has something to do with the labels. Idk. But again, she's right.

(I just save the bottles and clean them when she's not around).

freisste said:

She's right (always). In my case, SWMBO insists that it is completely absurd to clean craft bottles for reuse, essentially forcing me to buy homebrew bottles (which I am then allowed to clean and reuse). I think it has something to do with the labels. Idk. But again, she's right.

(I just save the bottles and clean them when she's not around).

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HA! SWMBO tells me that I need to bum used bottles from friends, as there is no way she's allowing me to buy more. Fortunately, I have friends who buy and drink enough beer! I also make sure never to give them enough beer in return for the bottles that they don't need to buy NEW beer

I use sparkling spring water bottles all the time when bottling. At least 2-3 get used with each 5 gallon batch as well as 2-3 One liter bottles.

The soda ones are tough to get the soda smell out of.

When I first started brewing, I obtained my bottles by going up to the local recycling center on a Sunday around lunchtime and just standing by the glass bin. I had 55 good bottles in about 45 minutes.

You are in San Francisco. There is a recycling center on every corner!

I've heard that sometimes someone can be convinced to save and give you bottles from a bar/restaurant.

I've kicked around the idea of bottling beer/mead in soda bottles for backpacking. Sure would reduce the possibility of an accident, reduce weight, and give me the ability to dispose of it if I feel like doing so, which may be the case as it seems like it would be hard to clean well as the mouth is so small. I'm not sure if I could get the bottle brush (wine size) in there.

Would a Gatoraide bottle withstand low carbonation levels (~1.5-2 volumes)? I realize the lid wasn't designed to hold pressure as a soda bottle is.

Any idea what level of carbonation a soda typically has?

rodwha said:

Would a Gatoraide bottle withstand low carbonation levels (~1.5-2 volumes)? I realize the lid wasn't designed to hold pressure as a soda bottle is.

Any idea what level of carbonation a soda typically has?

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No idea if a Gatorade bottle would work, but I would NOT try it. I was warned long ago not to use anything that wasn't designed for carbonation.

As far as soda bottles, I have heard that they are capable of holding much more pressure than glass, so no worries.

rodwha said:

Would a Gatoraide bottle withstand low carbonation levels (~1.5-2 volumes)? I realize the lid wasn't designed to hold pressure as a soda bottle is.

Any idea what level of carbonation a soda typically has?

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No idea if a Gatorade bottle would work, but I would NOT try it. I was warned long ago not to use anything that wasn't designed for carbonation.

As far as soda bottles, I have heard that they are capable of holding much more pressure than glass, so no worries.

It seems Gatoraide bottles would certainly work for uncarbonated mead, but I've considered a mildly carbonated mead also.

I've certainly heard that warning.

Go to the local distributor
Might be a lil gross at first but throw em in the dishwasher to clean.
If your wife still dosent want you reusing bottles for .5c a bottle at a 1 time cost per bottle ask her how about a 2 keg system with co2 tank for $350 would be better for her...

Monday is recycling day in my area. The bins should have lots of new years bottles.

Just make sure to avoid the screw top bottles. They always find a way into my bottle collection and I usually don't notice till the cap doesn't fit on right and I have already wasted the time to clean and sanitize them.

Sparkling spring water bottles are super cheap brand new go get u sum.

Using them for some belgian white in about 3 hours.

Anymore unless it's a beer that's going to age for a long time I only bottle 24 or so the rest go in ghetto growlers.

I reused some two liter bottles for a batch this last summer so that I could take them on to a music festival that didn't allow glass in. Long story short, the festival got cancelled so they came on a camping trip with a group of friends. Had no problems drinking everything before it went flat that way and everything did work out fine.

That said, it did smell remotely like root beer which was weird. You can buy club soda I think pretty cheap in two liters which wouldn't leave any smell.

Every batch I bottle I fill at least one "standard" soda bottle (clear bottles are fun as you can also watch the beer clear). I recommend you fill with the normal air space but squeeze the air out as you screw the cap on. I have used 1 liter bottles but prefer 1/2 liter.

2 benefits...
1) no oxygen in the bottle (probably no that big of a deal) and
2) when the bottle is "hard" the beer's ready to drink (well, carbonated anyhow).

I read this tip on HBT a couple years ago and it's one of my favorites!

Johnnyhitch1 said:

Go to the local distributor
Might be a lil gross at first but throw em in the dishwasher to clean.

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Dishwasher detergent can cause some carbonation problems if it leaves any film on the bottles.

Get your bottles the old fashioned way: by blowing them.

If you get two and 1/2 cases of Sam Adams or some other beer with pry-off caps, you can just save the bottles.

I used seltzer bottles, 1L are the best. My wife drinks a bottle of seltzer a night so I had plenty, before buying SodaStream. I was able to use the bottles 2-3 times before the caps stopped holding the pressure. Peligrino bottles worked well, they were green and come in double layer plastic or glass bottles. The metal screw caps only last 2 batches, the 2nd or third reuse and they beer was always flat.

I cleaned the bottles with bleach or oxy-clean and water

Even though I keg, I still do 1 or 2 liters in bottles to take to events. Just put 1-2 teaspoons of corn sugar in each bottle and I store in a warm (65-70F) closet.

"That said, it did smell remotely like root beer which was weird. You can buy club soda I think pretty cheap in two liters which wouldn't leave any smell."

Great idea! Thanks!

To have root beer hit the nose while taking a sip sounds strange indeed!