PET screw top bottles

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veggiess

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Anyone used these? They are the plastic ones, like bottles of pop come in. I received 24 oz ones with my beer kit and am wondering how well they work. You re-use the cap (screw top). I like the idea of them being big & reusing the bottles, but having brown plastic bottles of beer almost feels like the ghetto way of doing it. I see the pluses however:

-big
-reusable caps
-light bottles
-impossible (nearly) to break

Any information/opinions would be greatly appreciated!

Cheers! :fro:
 
I use them all the time. the only thing to watch out for is that you can't age anything in them for too long. They start to oxidize after about 3-6months (I've heard :drunk:)
Other than that they work really well.
 
Thanks for the info. They oxidize? That's strange. I'm not sure that's true. I think I"ll look up more about those; I know there's a lot of info out there. I just wasn't sure how well they would work for brew-especially carbonation.

:fro:
 
what i think he meant was because they are not dark coloured the light can break down the beer giving off flavours and the like even within hours of being bottled so always store them in a dark place for best results
 
I think he meant was just what he said.
Normal PET is oxygen permeable. The O2 will scoot right through the plastic and start to degrade your beer. Even though the beer under pressure (water, ethanol, CO2 and the tasty stuff) can't get out.
There are some PET bottles in some test markets which have the inside coated with a fine layer of silicon dioxide to render them O2 proof.
Check the bottom to see what the stamps say.
 
I use the brown Coors bottles for shipping beer to people. They are great for that because there's no worry about breakage. They are also double lined to help keep air out but I still wouldn't trust them for long term storage.

Bottles2.jpg
 
those don't look like the normal beer cap. What kind of cap are they? Are they twist offs?
 
"what i think he meant was because they are not dark coloured the light can break down the beer giving off flavours and the like even within hours of being bottled so always store them in a dark place for best results"

Well, the ones I got are dark-just as dark as amber glass bottles. They do not appear to be lined, so I suppose the oxidation could be a problem. I'm guessing this will not be a big deal if I don't store them too long? I keep my beer in the closet until it makes it to the fridge-and I can't imagine 30 24oz bottles of beer lasting more than 6 months. :)
:fro:
 
Chairman Cheyco said:
I use them all the time. the only thing to watch out for is that you can't age anything in them for too long. They start to oxidize after about 3-6months (I've heard :drunk:)
Other than that they work really well.

I exclusively use PET bottles. I like using them. I use the Liter/Quart size. Quick & easy bottling. No bottle bombs. I haven't had one gusher yet either.

I only used them about 6 months. Nothing stays in them for more than three months so far. If I make some heavy stuff I will use glass.

Using PET I think its worth while to occasionally buy new caps. The seal will get fatigued, threads worn.

It does seem ghetto-like, but who cares? As long as it taste good. I don't drink from PET I always have a glass. Most of the time about 80% its just me and the neighbor drinking.

Now if I had a Quart PET in a brown paper bag swilling on the deck. That would be urban ghetto.

:cross:
 
Thanks for the info/reassurance. I think I'll stick with them for awhile. I always drink out of a glass, and to be honest, not many people are drinking my homebrews anyway (so I guess being ghetto is okay). Any idea how long the bottles themselves will last (bottled, drank, cleaned, sterilized, rebottled)? Supposedly they are to give a good run, but it always makes me wonder. I think I'll put a few in my glass bottles in case I want to store them for awhile or bring them over to friends' houses. :fro:
 
I've talked to couple other friends who use them they said they have beer in them from last October. Same batch. The bottles are still firm. The beer isn't flat either.

I don't know how long they last. I have heard people slam on them from the first use. I don't believe them when they say that. They had too have screwed up in priming. I'm on my 5-6th batch on a set of bottles. No issues whatsoever.

I haven't done this yet. I think this is a good idea. Keep the bottles and caps together. Put dot stickers on the caps with the number of batches used. That way if you start having problems you can get an idea of how long they will last.

If I ever do, I will switch to champaigne bottles. I understand if you call a banquet hall you run a good chance on getting their empties.

Good Luck! :mug:
 

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