Keezer Died! Now I have to bottle :(

[Brew_Dude41]

So the $40 CL chest freezer died (and I will get a $50 credit on my electric bill to have it picked up), leaving me with 3 kegs to deal with. I am considering transferring to bottles but have some questions as follows:

First, the temp of the beer is going from 40 F to probably 60-65ish F, will this hurt the beer (all ales-fat tire clone, amber ale, and a MO smash)? Simply, will these skunk?

Second bottling.... The beer temp is raised from the point that they were carbed at. If I attempt to bottle straight from the tap, won't I lose most of the CO2 from the solution and get flat beer in the bottle if I don't add sugar? If it is partially carbed and add sugar, how do I determine the proper amount? I have avoided bottle bombs to this point and wish to continue the streak.

And finally C) should I actually get the sugar levels correct, these were all cold crashed prior to kegging, will there be enough yeast in suspension to do the work required?

Or is there a 4th option not yet explored? That being said, I can't get the new freezer until I get the basement refinished and the new bar built--but that is coming in soon in the DYI forum.

 

[vincentAlpha]

Wrt skunking, you are fine. That happens with exposure to oxygen and short wavelength light. First I suggest you make yourself a simple bottle gun. If you have a bottle filler or racking cane you don't use anymore it can be as easy as getting a #2 stopper and filling bottles. I've been waiting on picking up a freezer or fridge that will work (a rare thing where I am) and have found it pretty easy to bottle and get very little foam. The carbonation is actually pretty darn good though I have adjusted my pressure since the beer is around 60F.

 

[kyle187]

I do not believe anything bad will happen to your beer if it warms up. I accidentally flipped off the surge protector on my kegerator and it warmed into the 60s, no harm done.

Regarding bottling, could you put the kegs in a bucket of ice to cool it, then bottle it just like you would have from the keezer?

 

[passedpawn]

No problem with the kegs getting warmer, but you can't bottle from them then.

Why don't you just get another $40 freezer?

 

[Brew_Dude41]

No problem with the kegs getting warmer, but you can't bottle from them then.

Why don't you just get another $40 freezer?

Thanks everyone.
The plan is to renovate the basement over the next month, and then get a new freezer that will go behind the bar. Until then i don't have a spot to keep the new freezer.
Meantime, i will let them sit, i guess. Better in my mind to put that energy towards the renovation vs bottling.

 

[vincentAlpha]

No problem with the kegs getting warmer, but you can't bottle from them then.

You can bottle fine from kegs in the 60-65F range(my keg room's temp). I've actually just been using a #2 drilled stopper and a bottle filler tube and gotten great results. Since the transfer is done under pressure (once about 1/3 filled anyway) there is very little foaming. Mind you I do have 20' of 3/16th tubing to balance the higher PSI I need to keep carbed but all in all it has gone over fine. I've been considering just filling from my kegs into bottles for the next while until I can get a 2nd hand fridge/freezer without breaking the bank.

 

[passedpawn]

You can bottle fine from kegs in the 60-65F range(my keg room's temp). I've actually just been using a #2 drilled stopper and a bottle filler tube and gotten great results. Since the transfer is done under pressure (once about 1/3 filled anyway) there is very little foaming. Mind you I do have 20' of 3/16th tubing to balance the higher PSI I need to keep carbed but all in all it has gone over fine. I've been considering just filling from my kegs into bottles for the next while until I can get a 2nd hand fridge/freezer without breaking the bank.

Thanks for the correction. I guess I just assumed it would be a great foamy mess. Someday I'll try it, but I've got 2 large beer freezers so I can keep a lot of kegs cool now.