Bottle from keg techniques?

[mkarnas]

What are the best techniques for bottling from a corny keg without buying more equipment (beer gun)?
I have a bottle filler and a picnic tap for my corny.

Turn Co2 pressure way down?
Pour straight into bottle with picnic tap? Use bottle filler on end of tap?
I've heard of using the carboy bung on the bottle filler to place over the bottle while filling?

There always seems to be a lot of foam when I've tried with the Co2 at around 8 psi. Help friends.

 

[JoshBlue74]

I just turn off my co2, pretty much let all of the pressure out, and use the picnic tap as almost a siphon. I you keep it below the level of the beer in the keg,it will pour... very slow. I fill them all the way to the top and cap them. You might need to crack the valve if you need more than a couple of bottles. Works for growlers too. They tay carbed a long time. Even months

 

[IrishBrewer74]

I have an extra liquid side disconnect with about two feet of beer line on it with one of those plastic clamps. I turn my gas off and release pressure. insert tube to bottom of bottle and give little shot of gas. With some practice it easy to hold bottle in one hand and manipulate the clamp with the other. No need to clamp the beer line on with a hose clamp, so it just slips apart for easy cleaning. Whole thing cost next to nothing and with practice you can really fly.

 

[wilserbrewer]

I have 6" of beer line and just simply fill bottles for consumption straight from the picnic tap w/ little foaming or issues. I usually am just bottling for a event the same day...but have had the beer days or even weeks later without issue. I do try and fill the bottle up all the way so I am capping either on or very close to faom to eliminate any oxygen...this has always worked well for me so therefore I have never bothered with other more sophisticated means.

If you are getting too much foam, my intuition tells me too much pressure, either line or in the beer.

 

[Brewday365]

Basic setup is correct: Picnic tap, short beer line, bottle filler with a small #2 fermenter stopper.
Procedure: Make sure stopper allows bottle filler to touch bottom of bottle while still maintaining seal. Drop keg pressure to 1 or 2 psi. Release pressure from keg (very important to release nearly all head pressure). Then fill as normal. At 1/3 of the bottle the pressure will stop the flow and there should be minimal foaming (<1/4").

I've been doing this for two months and when things go poorly it is because I didn't manage keg pressure well. Otherwise, works like a charm.

Some people also like chilled bottles, I cannot see how it could hurt, but it doesn't matter IMHO.

 

[ResumeMan]

Read this: https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f35/we-no-need-no-stinking-beer-gun-24678/

 

[daksin]

Read this: https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f35/we-no-need-no-stinking-beer-gun-24678/

This, plus one thousand. Use it for bottling for comps and never had a comment on carbonation or oxidation.

 

[ResumeMan]

I actually recently acquired this. But the OP said he didn't want to buy new equipment, and the BMBF I linked before works just fine, and you can probably make it out of parts you have laying around, with the possible exception of a cheap stopper.