bottle filling is real slow

I'm new to this sport (4 PM's and 2 AG's so far) and have not invested in kegging equipment. I don't mind bottle cleaning so far.

The problem is the speed of bottle fill. I added a spigot to my bottleing pail and use the bottle fill tool with the push rod at the end. It is extremely slow, about 30-40 seconds per 12 oz bottle. I maintain about 4' of head pressure so that should'nt be the issue. I end up frustrated and fill straight with the 3/8" ID hose using the spigot valve to modulate and cut flow on each bottle. This makes a little mess, which I am OK with, but I think I introduce some oxygen with this method.

Any suggestions? What is the best bottle fill tool out there?

I use a normal bottling wand attached to my autosiphon and bottles fill up in about < 10 seconds, I think.

The bucket sits on the counter and SWMBO sits on the floor with the bottles, so there is a good 4 feet of gravity draw on the beer. The greater the distance the faster the siphon.

Hmmmmm...something seems wrong here. Usually my 22's fill in about 8 seconds and I have to be careful to not overflow because of the speed. That's with a spigot on my bottling bucket and 2' tubing.

1 thought- they sell 2 sizes of fillers. Make sure you have the bigger one. That means bigger tubing, too. You can even get away with a little bigger tubing than they recommend as long as there are no leaks on the spigot.

Thanx for the advice.
I found a 1/2" ID tubing one on morebeer.com. This time I'll get one without the spring.

YES! That's the exact one I got. I had the one with the spring first and it was terrible. Less spillage, faster fills with that guy. GL!

Have you got the lid of the bucket sealed? I just set the lid on the top of mine and my bottles fill very quickly. I have a 2" piece of tubing connected directly to the spigot which goes right into the bottling wand, no head pressure except the weight of the beer.

gonzo brewer said:

...Any suggestions? What is the best bottle fill tool out there?

Click to expand...

This one works for me





Sorry. Couldn't resist.

Yuka Yuka ... IT WAS BOUND TO HAPPEN

My fear of switching to kegging: Beer consumption goes up...body mass goes up.
With bottles, I have the willpower to stop at 1 or 2 in the evenings (except for get togethers with friends). With a handy tap, I'd be tapping that more often I fear.

gonzo brewer said:

...My fear of switching to kegging: Beer consumption goes up...

Click to expand...

And the problem is?

gonzo brewer said:

I'd be tapping that more often I fear.

Click to expand...

We still talkin' about beer?

You are probably doing it right, but maybe you aren't pushing hard enough on the bottling wand. The harder you push it to the bottom of the bottle the faster it will come out.