How long do bottle caps last unused?

I haven't been brewing for long, only a couple months so I can always use some extra supplies to make my life easier, so when I saw a guy sell off all his old home brewing stuff I jumped on the chance. Turns out when I got there he had a bunch of extra stuff he had found to throw into the deal. Among these extra items were a couple bags of bottle caps. He hadn't brewed since last spring which is when he had bought them so they are over a year old. Do you think they are still usable? I don't like throwing stuff away if it's still good but I also don't want to ruin a batch of beer by using faulty caps. Thanks.

WHAT?! Why didn't I see this ad?! Where were you looking?

Just go to the Original homebrew outlet on Auburn in Sac if you have any doubts. I believe 200 caps are like $5.

They're probably good, but coming from some random guy that you found selling his old stuff I would just throw those out, and pick up some new caps. Then overly sanitize and clean everything you got from him.

I second the post above. If you're worried, just toss them, caps are super cheap and new ones are cheap insurance. Also, some kits that you buy online come with caps anyway.

That's what I thought but it's always best to get another opinion. Why waste something if it's still good you know? And as far as where I found him, every once in a while I just go on craigslist and type in "beer" in the for sale section and just see what pops up! And don't worry EVERYTHING is getting throughly clean. It all soaking in hot water in the bathtub, going to be scrubbed then getting a star san bath.

WTF?

I know you brewers are all uber paranoid when you're starting out, and know only enough to be dangerous. But at what point does common sense get thrown out the window? Tell me why on god's green earth would in your wildest fearbased imaginings would you believe that something like bottle caps, which aren't even organic, go bad?

As long as they aren't rusty they'll be usable long past when the last roach has given up and died of boredom or starvation from having eaten the last twinky on our zombie infested after 2012 post apocalyptic planet.

A note for new brewers.....Don't stop doubting common sense, just because this is a new thing, and somewhat complicated seeming, it really isn't. If something you're worried about doesn't seem logical in the "normal world" outside of brewing....then it's not going to be any less illogical or irrational to worry about it in your brewery.

Here, read this, Revvy's advice for the new brewer in terms of worry. You might find the info and advice helpful.

At least maybe you'll worry less.

Thanks for the read, Revvy. I actually based my assumption off of the fact that some caps I have sitting around have rust on them.

Revvy said:

WTF?

I know you brewers are all uber paranoid when you're starting out, and know only enough to be dangerous. But at what point does common sense get thrown out the window? Tell me why on god's green earth would in your wildest fearbased imaginings would you believe that something like bottle caps, which aren't even organic, go bad?

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+1^ to the rust. Common sense grows with experience. In other words Rev, you've been doing this for awhile so you have a much wider database of common sense to draw from then us when it comes to brewing. Common sense for me, at my experience level, would be to throw them out. It gets rid of the doubt.

See I wasn't concerned about rust, as I didn't see any, my concern was about the inside seal to the bottle. Some of them looked like they were starting to yellow and wouldn't seal properly around the mouth of the bottle when capped.

gregger said:

Common sense grows with experience. In other words Rev, you've been doing this for awhile so you have a much wider database of common sense to draw from then us when it comes to brewing. Common sense for me, at my experience level, would be to throw them out. It gets rid of the doubt.

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No...Common sense is common sense regardless of what realm it is in. Just because sometimes the arena we're operating in is new, people don't just regress to the level of idiots when we go into a new realm of experience- . We take our common sense with us wherever we go. It's a survival mechanism. It's the core of our being. We think (hopefully rationally) therefore we are....We don't move to a new country and the minute it starts raining start running around yelling "the sky is falling, the sky is falling" rain is rain regardless of whether it's in Detroit or Spain.

But anyway, can you tell me logically why you would throw perfectly good bottle caps away if they weren't rusty. He said they were a year old and in bags...Which I take to assume are un opened. Do they have an expiration date on them? A best used by date? NO they don't. They're not organic, they don't go "bad" whatever the heck that means to you or the OP.

Seriously, how the heck do you know how long the bottle caps have sat in the bin of your favorite retailer? Or how long they were at the distributor before they even made it to the store? How do you know the "fresh" caps you would replace them with are any newer or older for that matter than those you'd throw away? How do you know that your favorite commercial brewery gets regular "fresh shipments" of caps every week, or just has a bulk order made which may be a fiscal years worth of caps made up and sitting in their warehouse til they get close to running out and re-order.

You don't...because it doesn't matter. It's not like in the 1970's when bottle caps were still lined with cork. We're talking your basic metal and rubber gasketed caps....that have never been used.

Hell, most of the time, after I open a pack the rest (which is usually several batches worth) sit in a ziplock baggie until I need them again. And that could 6 months or a years worth in there, depending on the price I got for them....

It's not like they're going to "rot" not make seals....it's not like they are going to infect your beer, they are going to be sanitized before bottling, and that is all that matters.

Revvy said:

WTF?

I know you brewers are all uber paranoid when you're starting out, and know only enough to be dangerous. But at what point does common sense get thrown out the window? Tell me why on god's green earth would in your wildest fearbased imaginings would you believe that something like bottle caps, which aren't even organic, go bad?

As long as they aren't rusty they'll be usable long past when the last roach has given up and died of boredom or starvation from having eaten the last twinky on our zombie infested after 2012 post apocalyptic planet.

A note for new brewers.....Don't stop doubting common sense, just because this is a new thing, and somewhat complicated seeming, it really isn't. If something you're worried about doesn't seem logical in the "normal world" outside of brewing....then it's not going to be any less illogical or irrational to worry about it in your brewery.

Here, read this, Revvy's advice for the new brewer in terms of worry. You might find the info and advice helpful.

At least maybe you'll worry less.

Click to expand...

best post ever.

ThePaganJew said:

See I wasn't concerned about rust, as I didn't see any, my concern was about the inside seal to the bottle. Some of them looked like they were starting to yellow and wouldn't seal properly around the mouth of the bottle when capped.

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Obvioulsy if they look bad you don't use them....But if they are sealed up, or they look fine, then they are fine to use. More than likely the rusty and discolored ones were soaked in sanitizer but he put too many in and had some left over, ones you do that they tend to rust pretty quickly. Or if he did something not recommend any more like boiling them. That will f-them up pretty quickly.

But under normal circumstances, especially if their sealed then they would be fine to use.

Hey, Revvy what your forgetting is that common sense is being breed out of the gene pool . If any of the new brewers learn from YOU TUBE and cant waste time on an actual book .

StittsvilleJames said:

best post ever.

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Thanks. It's just that we need to remember this ain't rocket science, nor is it brain surgery...it's a hobby and not something to stress out about. And it's a pretty easy hobby if we let it be. All we have to do is make a good home for the yeast and trust them to do the rest. We're not in charge, they are....and they want to make beer. They WANT to eat wort, piss alcohol and fart co2. And they've been doing it for 4,000 or more years.

Half the crap that folks debate, dither or stress out about is so far away from what the yeast care about. And doing whatever it is or not doing whatever it is, they yeast would still do their beer making thing.

But this is one of my favorite examples about how often when new brewers start this, they throw basic common sense out the window.

I just want folks to Rdwha(h if they have any)b, and one of the easiest ways to begin doing it is to, I dunno, just remember they had brains and common sense, and wisdom before they started brewing, and most of what is needed isn't advance beer science but what they have inside them.

The bags weren't sealed, the bags had been opened and some of the contents used. Also, I have picked up books and read them, both Joy of Home Brewing and How to Brew. Also I belong to other hobbies that are filled with misinformation thanks to youtube so I try to stay away from that as a learning tool unless it's from a respected source. Look, I know I'm still in the paranoid stage but I decided to take a risk and ask what I already thought was a kind of stupid question to get some opinions from people that know more than me.

ThePaganJew said:

The bags weren't sealed, the bags had been opened and some of the contents used. Also, I have picked up books and read them, both Joy of Home Brewing and How to Brew. Also I belong to other hobbies that are filled with misinformation thanks to youtube so I try to stay away from that as a learning tool unless it's from a respected source. Look, I know I'm still in the paranoid stage but I decided to take a risk and ask what I already thought was a kind of stupid question to get some opinions from people that know more than me.

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Well, you're assuming those who answer would know more than you. I understand your caution, and I think maybe Revvy over did this a bit, but he's 100% correct. RDWHAHB

Revvy said:

Thanks. It's just that we need to remember this ain't rocket science, nor is it brain surgery...it's a hobby and not something to stress out about. And it's a pretty easy hobby if we let it be. All we have to do is make a good home for the yeast and trust them to do the rest. We're not in charge, they are....and they want to make beer. They WANT to eat wort, piss alcohol and fart co2. And they've been doing it for 4,000 or more years.

Half the crap that folks debate, dither or stress out about is so far away from what the yeast care about. And doing whatever it is or not doing whatever it is, they yeast would still do their beer making thing.

But this is one of my favorite examples about how often when new brewers start this, they throw basic common sense out the window.

I just want folks to Rdwha(h if they have any)b, and one of the easiest ways to begin doing it is to, I dunno, just remember they had brains and common sense, and wisdom before they started brewing, and most of what is needed isn't advance beer science but what they have inside them.

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I get that you have a ton of experience and spend a lot of time giving advice.... but seriously, step off the soapbox.

I haven't figured out what it is is, but there is something that makes you feel as though you can't give advice without being condescending. Even more entertaining is that you've got a troop of people who follow you like it is the friggin gospel.

People ask dumb questions. I'm going to guess in your 28,000 posts you've said enough stupid **** too. If you have to get this worked up about every single "stupid" question that is 100% common sense to you, perhaps you should step away from the computer and get some sun.

I don't even give a damn how much I'll get flamed by your horde of noobtastic followers. I seriously just don't understand people who spend this much time on a forum only to be grumpy to every noob that walks through the door.

You are not special. You are not a beautiful and unique snowflake.

Maybe YOU should RDWHAHB. Sounds like you should definitely consider some hypertension meds and a slew of anti-psychotics.

jd3 said:

I get that you have a ton of experience and spend a lot of time giving advice.... but seriously, step off the soapbox.

I haven't figured out what it is is, but there is something that makes you feel as though you can't give advice without being condescending. Even more entertaining is that you've got a troop of people who follow you like it is the friggin gospel.

People ask dumb questions. I'm going to guess in your 28,000 posts you've said enough stupid **** too. If you have to get this worked up about every single "stupid" question that is 100% common sense to you, perhaps you should step away from the computer and get some sun.

I don't even give a damn how much I'll get flamed by your horde of noobtastic followers. I seriously just don't understand people who spend this much time on a forum only to be grumpy to every noob that walks through the door.

You are not special. You are not a beautiful and unique snowflake.

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Wow..you're bashing me because I told someone to relax? I'm telling the op to not forget common sense when he enters into this hobby, and that's "preaching" and that's bad? I never said his question was dumb. I use my "ton of experience" to help new brewers put this into perspective. To help them relax and make good beer. If I thought people's question were dumb I wouldn't be here, would I?

jd3 said:

I get that you have a ton of experience and spend a lot of time giving advice.... but seriously, step off the soapbox.

I haven't figured out what it is is, but there is something that makes you feel as though you can't give advice without being condescending. Even more entertaining is that you've got a troop of people who follow you like it is the friggin gospel.

People ask dumb questions. I'm going to guess in your 28,000 posts you've said enough stupid **** too. If you have to get this worked up about every single "stupid" question that is 100% common sense to you, perhaps you should step away from the computer and get some sun.

I don't even give a damn how much I'll get flamed by your horde of noobtastic followers. I seriously just don't understand people who spend this much time on a forum only to be grumpy to every noob that walks through the door.

You are not special. You are not a beautiful and unique snowflake.

Maybe YOU should RDWHAHB. Sounds like you should definitely consider some hypertension meds and a slew of anti-psychotics.

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Please don't resort to name calling....

And if you want to bash on someone with a lot of posts who may have posted stupid stuff, that would be me.

Revvy said:

Wow..you're bashing me because I told someone to relax? I'm telling the op to not forget common sense when he enters into this hobby, and that's "preaching" and that's bad? I never said his question was dumb. I use my "ton of experience" to help new brewers put this into perspective. To help them relax and make good beer. If I thought people's question were dumb I wouldn't be here, would I?

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If you were telling him to relax, maybe you should have just said that. Read through your last 4 posts and tell me why you couldn't just say what you did in this paragraph instead of berating the OP about his lack of common sense.

Apparently your interest in hearing yourself talk is higher than your actual interest in helping people. If you didn't think the OP's question was dumb you shouldn't have treated them like complete crap. What the hell kind of way is this to welcome someone to a forum.

RDWHAHB. Pretty much all you needed to say. But instead you used several posts to point out how dumb it was to even ask this.

Well, common sense doesn't always bode well for the new brewer.

I agree that logically I can see no reason why year old bottle caps would be a problem, I can see why it might be good to get a second opinion first.

Some things that seem to be logical (covering the pot while it boils to prevent volume loss, or using the dishwasher to sanitize bottles without regard to the rinse agent, etc) are not always best practice for the homebrewer. So don't get too uppity about "common sense"... common sense IS different for an expert vs a novice.

To the OP... They're cheap and easy to replace if you have ANY doubts, but if they look clean/normal and only a year old, I'd use 'em in a heartbeat.

jd3 said:

If you were telling him to relax, maybe you should have just said that. Read through your last 4 posts and tell me why you couldn't just say what you did in this paragraph instead of berating the OP about his lack of common sense.

Apparently your interest in hearing yourself talk is higher than your actual interest in helping people. If you didn't think the OP's question was dumb you shouldn't have treated them like complete crap. What the hell kind of way is this to welcome someone to a forum.

RDWHAHB. Pretty much all you needed to say. But instead you used several posts to point out how dumb it was to even ask this.

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And that's why I love HBT but sometimes I hate HBT. 98% of postings - both questions and answers - are well thought out, get right to the point, are concise and make great sense. The other 2% really make you feel like sh*t if you're looking for a few simple points of view and explanations. Pretty common thing in online forums of any kind. Don't stop asking questions and looking at those books OP. It's how I was able to learn what common sense was when it came to brewing. At least in books you won't feel like an ant if you go looking for an answer. And fortunately, I learn new simple things everyday here on HBT. I hope this doesn't turn you off to this place.

Remember in kindergarten, when they said there's no such thing as a dumb question?

Ya, they were lying...

Sorry.

Use them.

I used some caps for soda that I'm sure were at least thirty years old. They came in a cardboard box from a second hand store. The owner threw them in with the 7-up bottles I bought, which were 40 years old.

Granted the soda wasn't as volatile and susceptible to spoilage as beer would be, but it did give a good seal, which surprised me as I too thought the seal looked a bit yellow. I had some bottles that sat for weeks after being capped and lost no carbonation.

Sanitize them and you're set.