How long does your bottling take?

[zacster]

I bottled a 5 gallon Hefe today, and from beginning to end it was 2.5 hours. Does it take everyone this long? This is my 15th batch including the ones I did 10 years ago, but it still takes a long time. Even the brew day routine doesn't take this long.

My day included jet washing and sanitizing bottles, 15 22oz bottles, 24 12 oz, boiling the bottling sugar, sanitizing everything else necessary, transferring to the bottling bucket, bottling and capping, then cleaning up. It does not include putting the bottles away, they are still sitting out in the kitchen.

Was I just being too methodical?

 

[HBHoss]

Yesterday I bottled 5 gallons of Scotch Ale and it took probably 2 hours also. I guess that's why some people keg. I know there are ways I can speed things up. I can make sure bottles are clean as I use them and make/buy a bottling tree. I could also get some help.

 

[Rhoman]

If you're looking for a way to speed things up, check your dishwasher for a sanitize function. I throw all my bottles in there after cleaning them, set it to sanitize and forget about them until I bottle.

I guess it takes me about the same amount of time, but a buddy of mine helps me do it and we have a couple beers throughout the process, so its fun - I don't really notice how much time it takes. It's quite a process... I'd like to move on from bottling some of my batches and start kegging some, but I haven't made the investment yet.

 

[Stinkonamonkey]

Yep. About that long.

 

[zacster]

One of these days I'll try the dishwasher. As you say I can just run it through in advance. The sanitizing takes a lot of time since I let them soak for a bit, but needed 3 passes for all the bottles.

One thing to add to my original post, I didn't have any OSH*T moments.

 

[jmartyg]

3 hours with out any help. 1.5 when i can get a buddy to give me a hand. i use the dishwsher trick also. i dont have a 'sanatize' option, but i turn on the element in it. it bakes eveything super hot, but if there is a lable that lands on the element....

this is with 22-23 litres. 60+ bottles. i bottle 24 at a time, then cap them. 24 more, then cap.. bottle the rest then cap.

 

[PseudoChef]

Usually just around 45 minutes. Bottles are sanitized in the dishwasher the night before, and I have canned priming sugar already made up.

 

[eriktlupus]

Usually just around 45 minutes. Bottles are sanitized in the dishwasher the night before, and I have canned priming sugar already made up.

+1 here except for the canned sugar(i do have bottled starter worts tho)

 

[newkarian]

About an hour but my bottles are pre cleaned/sanitized.

 

[thakoolaidkid]

I have my bottles sitting in a cooler of sanitized water at the moment to remove the labels and clean them. I pretty much just add as I drink and change the water every now and then so I will have them ready once it's time to rack 'em. What's the fun in just going to my LHMS and paying for empty bottles when there's a perfectly good liquor store around the corner? ;-)

 

[knowltonm]

What's the fun in just going to my LHMS and paying for empty bottles when there's a perfectly good liquor store around the corner? ;-)

Also, why pay 50 cents a piece empty when you can get free beer in em if you pay $1-$1.25 each

 

[ChshreCat]

Also, why pay 50 cents a piece empty when you can get free beer in em if you pay $1-$1.25 each

I use that method. Plus, I trade with a buddy. He gives me cases of empties and I give him a few bottles back, filled.

 

[thakoolaidkid]

I use that method. Plus, I trade with a buddy. He gives me cases of empties and I give him a few bottles back, filled.

Yeah that's the system I am starting to employ. If everything works out like I want I am going to need a steady supply of empties.

 

[zacster]

I've reached the point where I started recycling bottles again. I have more empties than I could refill. I've been buying a lot of beer in 22oz bottles lately too, mostly Stone Ruination or Vertical Epic, which are much easier to deal with when bottling. I still like to have some 12oz bottles though, you don't always want that much beer.

 

[BenT1]

2.5 hours for me start to finish. I'm only on my 6th batch, but the last three times took that long.

 

[GolgiApparatus]

My bottles go into storage clean and label free, so the night before bottling I pop about 55 of them into the dishwasher, with Oxyclean Free in the vented (non-sealed) pre-wash portion of the dispenser...so the wash and the rinse cycle are just hot water. Next day, rerun just the heated dry cycle (essentially the sanitize cycle on my older dishwasher). In the bottling bucket, I put in about 3 gallons of sanitizing solution. Fill about 12 bottles straight from dishwasher, then dump back into bucket. This cools them back down, ready for bottling, sanitizing the bucket at the same time. I lost my first ever batch to an infection in the bottle. Ever since, I'm super paranoid about it, but haven't had an issue since (30ish batches).

Anyway, aside from the actual dishwasher cycle times, I can bottle an entire batch in about 1.5 - 2 hours. Also, I bottle with the bucket right over the top of the lowered dishwasher door, sitting comfortably in my chair, bottling with the bottles sitting on the door itself. When I'm done, shut the lid, run a rinse and all done.

EDIT: That's total time including washing the carboy, washing everything else used in the process, resanitizing, and drying before storing. The actual bottling/capping is probably 45 to 60 minutes.

 

[Revvy]

Bottling 5 gallons? About 45 minutes...an hour max...

You just gotta dial in your process,....try different things until they work for you, until you've pimped it down to the bare minimum of steps...and practice practice practice...and if it doesn't work for you, then scrap it and change it again...

For example I hated the bottling wand on the end of a hose, with the bottles in beer case method, that most people use..You know, then one shown in Papazian's book where the bucket is on the counter and you sit on the floor and fill the bottles sitting in the cases....well the first time I did that, I lost track of where I was in order, and actually capped about a half dozen empty bottles...as well as spilling a sh*tload of beer because I could really see when the wand was putting the beer to the lip of the bottle....a ton would spill out....

Plus sitting for so long on the floor was bad for my back....

So I kept tweaking my process until I was happy...

I start my priming sugar water boiling before I start sanitizing my bottles with my vinator....after the first case is sanitzed then take it off the stove to let it cool a bit.

I have my bottling wand mounted right on my bucket's spigot...

So I can sit at my dining room table and fill bottles confortably...I prop my bucket on a pot, or fermenter bucket to bring it up to my eye level.

I have a dip tube in my bucket so I get all but about 4 ounces of stuff from my bottling bucket.

Since I'm a lefty I work right to left on my table....I put my two cases of sanitized bottles on the right hand side of the table (on the chair next to me,) I put the vinator on the table to the right of the bucket filled with my bottles caps sanitizing away. then when I fill the bottle I place a cap loosely on it, and move it to the left side of the table...with the bottling bucket in the middle of the table there's room for a case worth of filled bottles on the table on the left side.

When I hit 24 bottles, I stand up, move the empty case to a chair on the left side of the table, then I pick up my capper and cap the first case of bottles, putting them in the case on the chair nearby...Then I grab a beer from the fridge, and sit back down and do the next case of beer....

I can get them all done and the bottling bucket and stuff soaking in oxyclean between 45 minutes and an hour....


I usually start a basic brewing podcast then get started..and I usually hit the end when I'm done bottling.

 

[Grinder12000]

About 1:15 but my bottles are clean before I "go to work" When I get a bottle I wash it immediately.

Bottle day I just fill the sink with One Step and dunk the bottles two at a time for a couple of guzzles and shake out the solution.

MNF is perfect time.

 

[Professor Frink]

Usually just around 45 minutes. Bottles are sanitized in the dishwasher the night before, and I have canned priming sugar already made up.

Same here. The sanitize function on the dishwasher is awesome.

 

[discgolfin]

I use clean 22 oz bottles so: to sanatize..set up..and bottle a 5 gallon batch is about 1 hour...over time you get quick and efficient..

now I keg..so about 5 minutes

J

 

[tom777]

It still takes me about 1 1/2 hours starting with clean bottles. That includes boiling the priming solution through labeling and cleanup.

 

[TeleTwanger]

It takes me 10 minutes to bottle. (give or take 2 hours)

 

[fratermus]

I'd guess about an hour

Some factors that have streamlined my process:

* working on the patio which greatly speeds cleanup (waterhose)
* bottling wand on a short tube, just long enough to join spigot to wand
* vinator
* sanitizer in spraybottle
* super agata capper
* .5L bottles
* boiling the sugarwater while setting up (or canning ahead of time)

 

[shecky]

45 minutes using Revvy's system. If my wife doesn't do the capping, add 15 minutes. But last night I bottled five gallons in 35 minutes. Record time.

Of course, that doesn't include the 15 minutes for clean-up. No big deal there.

 

[Laughing_Gnome_Invisible]

It takes me about an hour for 5 gals. from dirty bottles to finished and cleaned up.

This is where I get my ass spanked though. I still use the 1 litre Mr Beer bottles that I got at Christmas. I even bought some extra a while back because they make the whole process so much quicker...Bigger bottles (Hell, if I open a bottle I will drink at least a litre) Screw tops rather than caps (Never had an issue with bad sealing)

It works for me!

 

[joe6pack]

Very clever Revvy. I'll have to try putting the bottling wand right on the spigot next time. Did it fit right on there, or did you have to adapt it?

 

[Revvy]

Very clever Revvy. I'll have to try putting the bottling wand right on the spigot next time. Did it fit right on there, or did you have to adapt it?

I used about an inch and a half to two inch piece of bottling wand hose ad the bridge connect between spigot and wand...and I used these, to hold it together.

 

[Bach7210]

I bottled a 5 gallon Hefe today, and from beginning to end it was 2.5 hours. Does it take everyone this long? This is my 15th batch including the ones I did 10 years ago, but it still takes a long time. Even the brew day routine doesn't take this long.

Number one reason, in my opinion, for me switching over to kegs. I know not everyone can accomodate such means, but if you can, and have been thinking about it...just do it. You can believe how much better it is.

 

[Bigsnake]

I'm at about 1.5 hours. I reuse bottles but clean them as I use them, then they go on the drying tree, then back in their boxes.

On bottling day as I put bottles into the cleaning solution they get an inspection on the inside for cleanliness in case a dirty bottle snuck in there and a quick spray with hot water from the bottle washer. I had friends who were trying to help and put their dirty bottles with the clean ones. Those were some moldy surprises.

Otherwise, the actual act of bottling, capping, drying bottles, and putting in a box, with the help of a friend, we get it done in probably 30 minutes.

 

[GroovePuppy]

I think my first bacth took about two hours with the help of my glamorous assistant SWMBO. Bucket on kitchen counter, sanitize bottles, shake "dry" and fill on dishwasher door. Capped in three batches.

Of course if you find it's too slow there are places you can pay to have the beer bottled for you. Some of those will also do your wort boil, fermentation, sanitation and clean up. All you have to do is pick up the finished product at the grocery store. Seriously, you have something better to do on the weekend?

 

[beachman]

I bottled 5 gal. yesterday with help of my wife and it took maybe 1 hr 15 min. Last batch I used dishwasher ahead of time and if you don't count that, it was less than 1 hour easy. I think the real key is a second person. With one person filling and one person capping, 50 bottles takes about 10-15 minutes.

 

[Brewmando]

Counting rinsing bottles, transfering to bottling bucket and actually filling the bottles and capping it take me 1-11/2 hours depending on the size of bottles being used. Sat. I bottled a batch and made another in under 4 hours.

 

[zachatola]

im usually at about 1-1.5 hr or so. I usually have all my bottles cleaned and in cases prior. Usually spray star san inside my bottles and start them on the tree, get my water/prim sugar going, then move to San the bottling bucket, add prim sugar, rack beer on top, give a very light stir with the spoon to ensure mixing, and start bottling. I also have a agata capper so that helps a lot too.

 

[zacster]

Since I'm soaking bottles in sanitizer, how long should I do that. I allow 10 minutes to soak. Is this unnecessary? Maybe I can get away with just rinsing them in sanitizer and letting them air dry, since the sanitizer remains on the inside surface anyway?

 

[TeleTwanger]

my last batch I filled my bottling bucket with star san and after soaking the racking cane/bottle wand and hose I drained the star san into each bottle and then emptied them and put them on my sanitized bottle tree. Star san only requires 2 minute contact.

 

[schweaty]

Too damn long! I'm sure its like anything else and that you'll get quicker with experience.

 

[zacster]

In any case, my bottling on 11/2 will be ready to drink on 11/23, the day I return from a long trip, to India! I'm going to need it.

 

[Revvy]

In any case, my bottling on 11/2 will be ready to drink on 11/23, the day I return from a long trip, to India! I'm going to need it.

Oh wow, India?!? I'd love to see, and eat my way through India.

So whatcha going for? And how long?

 

[Beerthoven]

I bottled a 5 gallon Hefe today, and from beginning to end it was 2.5 hours. Does it take everyone this long? This is my 15th batch including the ones I did 10 years ago, but it still takes a long time. Even the brew day routine doesn't take this long.

My day included jet washing and sanitizing bottles, 15 22oz bottles, 24 12 oz, boiling the bottling sugar, sanitizing everything else necessary, transferring to the bottling bucket, bottling and capping, then cleaning up. It does not include putting the bottles away, they are still sitting out in the kitchen.

Was I just being too methodical?

This sounds about like my experience also. I could save a lot of time by not re-washing the bottles on bottling day (I wash them thoroughly before I put them away), but I just can't bring myself to skip this step. My two cats spend a lot of time in the area where I store my bottles, and they are filthy creatures (and I love them dearly).

 

[HoppyDaze]

are there any bottle caps that I should avoid buying. Im just getting back in the game and was wondering if there were any bad brands out there. Good brands?