exploding beers

Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum

Help Support Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

jpr210

Well-Known Member
Joined
Jun 27, 2011
Messages
75
Reaction score
1
Location
west palm beach
So I bottled my first brew about two weeks ago now, I had one explode a day or two after bottling, and two more just exploded today. Now, I know that it's a product of over-carbonation that this happens, but is it a concern for all the beers I currently have bottled, or is it just random chance? Are there precautions I can take to make sure none explode in my next batch?
 
Your best bet for this batch is to put on some protective clothing and eye protection and move them to the fridge. This should cold crash the yeast and prevent further bottle bombs. You might consider putting them in cardboard boxes inside trash bags. Otherwise SWMBO might kill you, after you clean the fridge.

Next time make sure to take two hydrometer readings 3 days apart to make sure that you are done fermenting. Also make sure you only use 5oz of corn sugar for a 5 gallon batch.

Moose
 
+1 bottle bombs usually happen when beer is primed and bottled before fermentation is complete. Always make sure you're at FG before bottling and don't use more sugar than you need. 5 oz is the max for five gallons, I find that 3.5-4 is usually enough for the 4.75 -5 gal I finish with. In my experience, 5 oz makes the beer a bit to carbed for my tastes
 
They're not kidding about the protective gear by the way. If a bottle explodes in your hands it would not be a good thing.

B
 
thanks for the tips guys. now, how do i take an FG reading (or two) without contaminating the wort? should i buy a beer thief, or will a turkey baster do the job? also, someone told me to put my wort sample into a pint glass and stick the hydrometer in there to take the reading, but when i did that it just sunk to the bottom, and when i put the sample in the plastic that the hydrometer came in, all the beer overflowed out of it when i dropped the hydrometer in...suggestions?
 
thanks for the tips guys. now, how do i take an FG reading (or two) without contaminating the wort? should i buy a beer thief, or will a turkey baster do the job? also, someone told me to put my wort sample into a pint glass and stick the hydrometer in there to take the reading, but when i did that it just sunk to the bottom, and when i put the sample in the plastic that the hydrometer came in, all the beer overflowed out of it when i dropped the hydrometer in...suggestions?

A turkey baster is fine as long as it's sanitized.
I use a graduated cylinder to take readings in but I've heard guys using the tube the hydrometer comes in. Any tall container should do.... My Trumer Pils glasses worked great before I got a graduated cylinder.
 
Pint glass is probably too short. Just buy a thief or use a turkey baster and a graduated cylinder. Alot of things can cause bottle bombs: bottling too soon (incomplete fermentation), using too much priming sugar, incomplete mixture of priming sugar.

Give us some details about how you determined it was time to bottle and how you primed and bottled.
 
A sanitized turkey baster will do, but a thief is a little easier IMHO since you can draw your sample and test your sample with the same device. . If the tube your hydrometer came in is meant for samples just don't fill it quite so full, otherwise use a hydrometer jar or thief.

If you have space, it's easiest to put them in a plastic bin and the into the fridge to cold crash. This also allows you a little protection while transporting them.

Just so you know, you're not alone in this... In my early brewing career, i decided to make strawberry soda. I followed the directions to a tee and then bottled it in corona bottles. I had them conditioning in a cabinet in the kitchen. One morning I heard a boom in the kitchen and my wife yells "oh ****". Then another boom!, and another, etc. I quickly grabbed a trash can to put them in. By the time I got home from work that night, every one of my bottles had the bottoms blown out.
 
Pint glass is probably too short. Just buy a thief or use a turkey baster and a graduated cylinder. Alot of things can cause bottle bombs: bottling too soon (incomplete fermentation), using too much priming sugar, incomplete mixture of priming sugar.

Give us some details about how you determined it was time to bottle and how you primed and bottled.

i think i didn't wait long enough before i bottled it. i just waited till there were no more bubbles in my airlock (as per the suggestion of my LHBS). it was a little hasty...i used a 5oz bag of dextrose, so i dont think that was the problem
 
i think i didn't wait long enough before i bottled it. i just waited till there were no more bubbles in my airlock (as per the suggestion of my LHBS). it was a little hasty...i used a 5oz bag of dextrose, so i dont think that was the problem

That was the same thing my LHBS told me. Thankfully I found this forum and decided to let my beer sit in the secondary for a while more (until I got no change on the hydrometer). I really don't understand why they do this to new brewers... they must know that if bottles start exploding we'll never be allowed to brew again.

Best of luck with the cold crashing!
 
Yep just wait longer. You know the drill now.

Learning is all part of the process! :D
 
That was the same thing my LHBS told me. Thankfully I found this forum and decided to let my beer sit in the secondary for a while more (until I got no change on the hydrometer). I really don't understand why they do this to new brewers... they must know that if bottles start exploding we'll never be allowed to brew again.

Best of luck with the cold crashing!

my LHBS told me the same, directions even said it too. 'when bubbling is done, fermenting is done, start bottling!'. Havent had any bottle bombs *yet* since this is my first batch but i figure next time im going to leave it alone for a lot longer next time.
 
I think all those beer kits tell you to bottle when you have no airlock activity.... Bad advice. An airlock can never replace a hydrometer or refractometer as an instrument to gauge fermentation by. An airlock is simply that, a barrier between your beer and the bugs in the air.
 
Just use the hydrometer tube if you have it. It is a small amount compared to a pint glass.

When you fill the hydrometer tube, if it has two removable caps, keep your finger on the bottom one. I forgot once, and the cap came off, spilling the beer.:fro:
 
all of this leads me to another question, should my fermenter have a spigot on it to make it easier to take samples? i got two buckets when i bought all of my equipment and they said the one with the spigot is for bottling, the other without it is the fermenter, its looking now like it would just be easier to have two buckets with spigots on them. what does everyone here think? does anyone else use a fermenter w/ spigot?
 
all of this leads me to another question, should my fermenter have a spigot on it to make it easier to take samples? i got two buckets when i bought all of my equipment and they said the one with the spigot is for bottling, the other without it is the fermenter, its looking now like it would just be easier to have two buckets with spigots on them. what does everyone here think? does anyone else use a fermenter w/ spigot?

Step away from the bottling bucket!

You shouldn't use your bottling bucket for fermenting. The spout could leak over time, it is not as sanitary (gives the bugs a place to hang out), and soon you will be getting a few more primary fermetors. How are you going to feel when you beer in one of the primaries is done and you can't bottle it because you have beer fermenting in your bottling bucket?
I use a turkey baster, and the tube my hydrometer came in. The other thing I do now is let it sit in primary for 3-5 weeks. That way I know it has finished, unless it is a crazy big beer. Once you get a pipeline it will be easier to do this.
You didn't hear it from me, but... You can use stellar sanitation and take a hydrometer reading right in the primary. *Gasp* It has been known to happen on occasion and produced no ill effects.
 
Step away from the bottling bucket!

You shouldn't use your bottling bucket for fermenting. The spout could leak over time, it is not as sanitary (gives the bugs a place to hang out)...

Hogwash! All of my fermenting buckets have always had spigots. They could leak a little,yes, but it is seldom. And, that chance is well worth never having to siphon again. Since I always remove the spigots for cleaning, I test the bucket for leaks with water and sanitizer before using it. I always keep a spray bottle of Starsan handy, and just give the spout a spray before using it to transfer my beer. I've NEVER had an infected batch. My conicals also have drain ports, and I haven't had any issues with bugs getting in there either.
 
They could leak a little,yes, but it is seldom. And, that chance is well worth never having to siphon again.

-1

BAH! That's like saying that you threw away your car keys so you'd never have to drive to the store again.

Siphoning your beer is as much trouble as putting your socks on. A leaky fermentor is a tremendous problem... unless you enjoy ant infestations and lost beer.

There is no advantage (the yeast cake should just instantly clog the cheap, plastic spigot), and too many disadvantages to bother counting.
 
I second the responses about WHY youre getting the bombs. If someone told you to bottle when the bubbles stop, no wonder youre seeing them pop. Get the hydrometer/refractometer and do it the right way. Also, if you want to keep ypur beer sweeter and stop fermentation, get you some wine conditioner and kill off the yeastie boys right before you bottle.
 
My fermenter has a spigot, but i only use it for drawing off samples to test with the hydrometer, which I rarely do anymore (during fermentation). Since buying an autosiphon, i have never used the spigot for racking over. I let it sit in the fermenter a good 2 weeks, then rack to secondary and steal a small sample of that to test. Then at least 2 more weeks in secondary, and it's surely at FG.

Rack to the Ale Pail, steal a small sample for the hydrometer, record. Prime, bottle.

The fermenter has a little doodad on the inside of the spigot that's supposed to be a sediment reducer, when bottling (kit said to do everything in the single container, and use priming drops). It works well, but the autosiphon works better. Since I bought carboys for secondaries, and an autosiphon, and an ale pail and prime with dextrose not drops, it's rather pointless now. The trub in my pumpkin ale was well over the spigot anyways.

Anyways, your bottle bombs are one of two things: the beer wasn't done fermenting when you primed and bottled it, or you over primed. Fix the first potential problem with regular hydrometer readings and patience. Fix the second issue with a digital scale to measure out the exact amount of dextrose to prime with. I even marked my Ale Pail with recommended priming amounts, right on the gallon marks. 1oz per gallon is easy to remember, but I also added the conversions to cups. It eliminates the guesswork, and it's kinda like a study sheet for a relative noob like me to memorize the amounts (for later in life when I'll undoubtedly not have to refer to said "study guides"). I marked my fermenter in much the same way, but because it's metric and I go by gallons. I also made a small mark next to the thermostrip, as a 'do not pitch over this temperature' mark. Again, not necessary, just added steps for quality control.

Try little things like that over time, to improve future batches, and don't let a simple beginner's mistake discourage you. :)
 
-1

BAH! That's like saying that you threw away your car keys so you'd never have to drive to the store again.

Siphoning your beer is as much trouble as putting your socks on. A leaky fermentor is a tremendous problem... unless you enjoy ant infestations and lost beer.

There is no advantage (the yeast cake should just instantly clog the cheap, plastic spigot), and too many disadvantages to bother counting.

Your anaolgy makes no sense. That would be more like saying I stopped brewing beer because I didn't like to siphon. I made my own buckets, and placed the spigots a little higher on the bucket. I whirlpool, so there isn't much trub going in. I don't get yeast cake in the spigot. When I started brewing 21 years ago, the autosiphon was not available (at least not that I was aware of). I didn't like siphoning, so I put spigots on my buckets and never looked back. When I use buckets (now mostly 2 gals for small batches) I set it on a cookie sheet. I can see if there are drips and wipe it up. On the very few occasions I've had drips, it was probably only an ounce of beer lost.
 
Your anaolgy makes no sense. That would be more like saying I stopped brewing beer because I didn't like to siphon. I made my own buckets, and placed the spigots a little higher on the bucket. I whirlpool, so there isn't much trub going in. I don't get yeast cake in the spigot. When I started brewing 21 years ago, the autosiphon was not available (at least not that I was aware of). I didn't like siphoning, so I put spigots on my buckets and never looked back. When I use buckets (now mostly 2 gals for small batches) I set it on a cookie sheet. I can see if there are drips and wipe it up. On the very few occasions I've had drips, it was probably only an ounce of beer lost.

I have used a primary for the first 7 days of wine, and turned the spigot up, but I don't think I would do it long term. I still siphoned out of that (too many beers already in primaries and secondaries) I could see it if you were making your own spigot holes, but the OP has a standard bottling bucket. I would be concerned with the height of the trub if he doesn't whirlpool from the pot. The auto siphon makes things so easy why take any of these risks? If this is just a kit and has one primary and one bottling bucket, better to keep the bottling bucket for what it is intended and get more primaries for fermenting. That being said, I would bet each one of us using different methods still come out with the same thing, BEER! :tank:
 
Just wondering if its possible to have a weak bottle, maybe slightly damaged or any other reasons why you could have a bottle bomb. I just had one go off, but their is no way that it was not finished or to much sugar used. I made a cider and been sampling them and IMO could use more carbonation. My other beers have more carbonation then the cider atm. Its been about 2 months since I primed the cider. :confused:
 
Just wondering if its possible to have a weak bottle, maybe slightly damaged or any other reasons why you could have a bottle bomb. I just had one go off, but their is no way that it was not finished or to much sugar used. I made a cider and been sampling them and IMO could use more carbonation. My other beers have more carbonation then the cider atm. Its been about 2 months since I primed the cider. :confused:

If it's the only bottle that's gone off, it may have been a weak one. Perhaps exposed to a lot of heat or had a chip in it.

From my understanding though, glass bottles don't really deteriorate much. Probably just an unlucky guy.

Edit: How many bottles have you sampled? If it's the only one, maybe try opening another and see if you get more carb in that one then the other as that would be a priming issue.
 
If it's the only bottle that's gone off, it may have been a weak one. Perhaps exposed to a lot of heat or had a chip in it.

From my understanding though, glass bottles don't really deteriorate much. Probably just an unlucky guy.

Edit: How many bottles have you sampled? If it's the only one, maybe try opening another and see if you get more carb in that one then the other as that would be a priming issue.

I have had around 18 bottles already. :D And still they are not as carbonated as my other beers.....Maybe more sampling is needed :)
 
i think i didn't wait long enough before i bottled it. i just waited till there were no more bubbles in my airlock (as per the suggestion of my LHBS). it was a little hasty...i used a 5oz bag of dextrose, so i dont think that was the problem

I bet your LHBS didn't tell you to use a blowoff tube either. Just wait until he gets customers with MASSIVE fermenting messes when thoselids start getting blown off.
 
Learn to love the ways of the blow off tube lol... my second batch must have looked like a geyser coming out of the air lock spraying my pantry down with krausen before the lid blew off the bucket.

I've been lucky enough to not have a bottle bomb yet.
 
Gents, I thought the majority of the folks now go long primaries - like 20 to 30 days. If you did there would be almost no chance of bottle bomb, right??? I also do long primary and no secondary but I've never had a exploder either. My fav fermenter does have a spigot but it does not leak, and in the chiller I dont think bugs would get in or survive. Just my two cents - no judgement passed. Live and learn and keep brewin.:mug:
 
It's my simple observation that if you had used a blowoff tube instead of an airlock we would not be having the conversation on HBT. You wouldn't have relied on the bubbling airlock (which, tell me that now you understand how useless an indicator of anything important it is; it's more of a fascination point for all of us here), and you would have been forced to check your SG and FG instead of the bubbles. No bottle bombs happen if you follow the imperial, proven zymurgy steps.
 
So I bottled my first brew about two weeks ago now, I had one explode a day or two after bottling, and two more just exploded today. Now, I know that it's a product of over-carbonation that this happens, but is it a concern for all the beers I currently have bottled, or is it just random chance? Are there precautions I can take to make sure none explode in my next batch?

This happened to my second batch in my garage. I threw on some protective gear, covered them with a blanket & smashed them with a hammer. It was terrible even though I like things that explode. :rockin:
 
Gents, I thought the majority of the folks now go long primaries - like 20 to 30 days. If you did there would be almost no chance of bottle bomb, right??? I also do long primary and no secondary but I've never had a exploder either. My fav fermenter does have a spigot but it does not leak, and in the chiller I dont think bugs would get in or survive.

Mainly agree. I've been brewing for about 12 years (one contest entry - third place in a Philly Beer Week Home Brew IPA contest) and never had an exploder. I use a minimum of three weeks in the fermenter, often more, no secondary, and an air lock. I make sure I have a decent amount of air space at the top of the fermenter.

I rack to the bottling bucket to do my bottling. Don't count on a chiller to kill bugs. They are pretty resistant to cold. There may be things about your process that give you bug-resistance and I don't advise changing a process that works, but if it stops working, you might want to rethink.
 
I second the responses about WHY youre getting the bombs. If someone told you to bottle when the bubbles stop, no wonder youre seeing them pop. Get the hydrometer/refractometer and do it the right way. Also, if you want to keep ypur beer sweeter and stop fermentation, get you some wine conditioner and kill off the yeastie boys right before you bottle.

Won't adding wine conditioner just kill off the yeast you need to carbonate? Winemakers don't need to worry about that because they generally aren't carbonating.

I've had a few batches with gushers/bottle bombs. They were due to bottling as soon as I reached the target FG on the recipe instead of taking multiple readings to actually confirm fermentation had stopped.
 
I took my first gravity reading today it should be 3 weeks primary on wendesday. I am at final gravity on a low abv witbier. I might bottle tomorrow without taking a second reading.
 
I took my first gravity reading today it should be 3 weeks primary on wendesday. I am at final gravity on a low abv witbier. I might bottle tomorrow without taking a second reading.

Once again, if I can be a cautionary tale, don't jump to bottling just because you hit a target FG that may be listed on the recipe or kit. Depending on your brewery efficiency, you could stop short of that number, or keep going past it (I've had both happen). It won't hurt anything to wait a couple more days to take a second reading and confirm your FG hasn't changed.
 
Once again, if I can be a cautionary tale, don't jump to bottling just because you hit a target FG that may be listed on the recipe or kit. Depending on your brewery efficiency, you could stop short of that number, or keep going past it (I've had both happen). It won't hurt anything to wait a couple more days to take a second reading and confirm your FG hasn't changed.

True its extract so efficiency shouldn't be an issue. Would it?
 
Back
Top