Can You Brew in Your Average Plastic Bottle?

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WriterWriter

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I just mean, like a Coke bottle or 7-up or whatnot.

I know that a water bottle is out because the contents haven't been under pressure. But the others?

-WW
 
You can brew (ferment) in them, though they are rather small for that.

You can also bottle in them - just keep them in the dark (light interacting with hops makes for "skunked" beer). They are actually extremely strong, and you can feel them to see how the pressure is building.
 
Hi There,

Yeah, it's possible but with a few issues to bear in mind. Apologies for mixed and non-US measurements - the UK is only partially metric so please bear with me.

You are right about the water bottles, they are generally rated for 1 atmosphere (15ish psi) - these would be unsuitable.

The average single serving bottle (500ml in UK) is a bit small so I wouldn't bother with these, but the larger bottles (1 or 2L in UK) would generally be OK because they are normally rated to 100+psi. In this case the second ferment would be in the bottle and you should only be going up to around 22 - 25 psi.

Don't boil the bottles!! This will degrade the plastic and this will weaken them which would make them unsafe to use. Use a Sodium Metabisulfite sterilizer or similar as this will only require warm water and shouldn't affect the integrity of the bottle. Rinse thoroughly then rinse again.

Bottle your beer after the first ferment and add some priming sugar to the bottle, around 1 tsp (5 grams) per pint to acheive the CO2 saturation you need. Leave for about 2 weeks to become clear and bright and you should have achieved the right level. Don't forget to screw the caps on very thightly, I know it seems obvious, but a reminder can't hurt. It can be a good idea to play around with the measurements a little to acheive the best results for you but don't go over the top or you'll end up with a really gassy beer which won't taste good or a flat one which will taste even worse. Store the bottles as you would store any glass bottle - safely.

There will most likely be some sediment in the bottom of the bottle so store and pour carefully.

Hope this helps,

Carl...
 
carbonator.jpg


If you keg, you can also get a "Carbonator". You can put beer right out of the secondary in a 2 liter bottle, put the carbonator cap on, hook it to your CO2 tank and hit it with 30psi. The beer will be carbonated in a few minutes.

As far as fermenting, they could be used for tiny test batches. You could ferment in one, then rack to another and carbonate with priming sugar or a CO2 tank.
 
CarlsBrau said:
Hi There,

Yeah, it's possible but with a few issues to bear in mind. Apologies for mixed and non-US measurements - the UK is only partially metric so please bear with me.

You are right about the water bottles, they are generally rated for 1 atmosphere (15ish psi) - these would be unsuitable.

The average single serving bottle (500ml in UK) is a bit small so I wouldn't bother with these, but the larger bottles (1 or 2L in UK) would generally be OK because they are normally rated to 100+psi. In this case the second ferment would be in the bottle and you should only be going up to around 22 - 25 psi.

Don't boil the bottles!! This will degrade the plastic and this will weaken them which would make them unsafe to use. Use a Sodium Metabisulfite sterilizer or similar as this will only require warm water and shouldn't affect the integrity of the bottle. Rinse thoroughly then rinse again.

Bottle your beer after the first ferment and add some priming sugar to the bottle, around 1 tsp (5 grams) per pint to acheive the CO2 saturation you need. Leave for about 2 weeks to become clear and bright and you should have achieved the right level. Don't forget to screw the caps on very thightly, I know it seems obvious, but a reminder can't hurt. It can be a good idea to play around with the measurements a little to acheive the best results for you but don't go over the top or you'll end up with a really gassy beer which won't taste good or a flat one which will taste even worse. Store the bottles as you would store any glass bottle - safely.

There will most likely be some sediment in the bottom of the bottle so store and pour carefully.

Hope this helps,

Carl...
Click to expand...

That is the most incredible first post I have ever seen. Complete, grammatically correct, politically correct, and very few spelling errors. ;)

It sounds like a reply from an online help site. Or an entry in an encyclopedia. :off::mug:
 
Cpt_Kirks said:
carbonator.jpg


If you keg, you can also get a "Carbonator". You can put beer right out of the secondary in a 2 liter bottle, put the carbonator cap on, hook it to your CO2 tank and hit it with 30psi. The beer will be carbonated in a few minutes.

As far as fermenting, they could be used for tiny test batches. You could ferment in one, then rack to another and carbonate with priming sugar or a CO2 tank.
Click to expand...

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OJD0bv9kLAQ]YouTube - How to Make A Carbonation Cap[/ame]

This is pretty cool, a vid of a homemade carbonator cap.
 
I use P.E.T. bottles (lemonade bottles) one and two litre for bottling. If you bottle as soon as no bubbles rising in fermentation vessel and beer beginning to clear at the top, there is no need to add any priming sugar.
 
See I'm thinking for test batches they would be great. Especially some of the wines the boys are making in the other section of the forums. Rather than making 6 gallons of garlic or jalepeno wine, try a liter and see what happens.

Same goes for beer.

-WW
 
I've fermented in the one gallon glass apple juice bottles. Airlock? A sanitized plastic bag affixed with a couple of rubber bands. Ghetto, but it really does work. The yeast don't care if your junk is ugly. :rolleyes:
 
Sean said:
YouTube - How to Make A Carbonation Cap
Click to expand...

Sean said:
40-3736-NCL-ANGLE.jpg
Click to expand...


I fancy the idea of making that cap in the video. I'm wondering about the Co2 source though, I know nothing about the fittings. That tyre pump thingy looks like it might work, but what pressure does it deliver?

Anyone know of an easy way to combine the valve cap in the video with these mini tanks? It would be useful to get the co2 from the same source as the rest of my supplies. I need to have an idea of the fittings needed on the little co2 tanks.
 
they make those one shot bike co2 guns for cornies specifically:

co2 charger.

so that combined with a carbonation cap would work, i'd think. just remember that the bike ones go up past 100 psi, so i wouldn't use them on anything glass unless you have some reliable way to regulate the pressure.

edit: also, depending on the size of the vessel, it might take a couple of those cartridges to fully carbonate your beer.
 
john from dc said:
they make those one shot bike co2 guns for cornies specifically:

co2 charger.

so that combined with a carbonation cap would work, i'd think. just remember that the bike ones go up past 100 psi, so i wouldn't use them on anything glass unless you have some reliable way to regulate the pressure.

edit: also, depending on the size of the vessel, it might take a couple of those cartridges to fully carbonate your beer.
Click to expand...

Even better! I was a little concerned about the co2 designed for filling tires, whether there would be off flavors from a less sanitary source. but those are made for the task. I know what I'm getting for me in my Christmas stocking.:)

As for pressure, I thought I would just hold the side of the 2 liter plastic bottle until it felt like a new coke bottle, firmness. But I guess you could use an air pressure gauge.
 

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