did i just make bottle bombs / gushers?

Hey guys,

I just bottled a batch of raspberry wheat and i must have typed in the wrong thing in the priming sugar calculator. I used enough priming sugar for ~3.2 vols in 4.5 gallons which is what i ended up with.

More than half the batch was bottled in big 1L swing top bottles and they feel super thick, so I doubt they will explode, but I'm worried the level of carbonation will be way too high and they will just foam out when i open them.

I had 4 thicker 500ml bottles sitting around so i bottled and capped those - they dont seem any thicker than regular bottles im worried they might blow.

the rest was bottled in standard bottles and im super worried about these.

Basically if the 1L ones don't explode and they are drinkable then I will be OK with losing the others.

What are the odds of this turning out OK for me?? This was my smoothest brew yet and im really getting the hang of it and i'll be totally bummed if these things blow up or foam out when i open them....

heres a picture of the bottle assortment in case anyone cares

 

What was your final gravity?

 

OG 1.057 FG 1.011

this is approximate because I'm not amazing at reading the hydrometer I guess. it could be a bit off, but was around there. I didnt take a reading tonight I forgot and racked onto the priming sugar before i could take one. but it was 1.011 ish two weeks ago when i transferred to secondary

 

A lot of European wheat beers call for about 3.2 vols. I don't think you have much of a problem.

Looked at a few threads and most think about 3ish is ok. 4 vols would cause big concern.

 

Yes... BEWARE! Send them to me and I'll dispose of them for you.

 

I personally like solid carbonation so I wouldn't worry. Prob not true to style, but oh well. When I carbonated rootbeer, I only got bottle bombs after 3 weeks, so you have at least 3 weeks to get through those small bottles. I wouldn't worry about the Grolsch style bottles.

Good luck!

 

So that makes me feel a lot better. I'm not super concerned with true to style, i think that was out the window long before bottling anyways!

If the dont blow up or foam out then I'm good with it. I can improve next time

 

So no beer for me?

 

If I thought the beer was going to be halfway decent I'd probably send you one. I have my doubts though. Like I said I will be happy if the bottles don't explode

 

Good luck to you man! Your beer will be good and hopefully no bombs for you!

 

If a swingtop blows, put on some protective gear and pop the others open then close them back up. This will vent them to prevent further bombs. Crown-capped bottles can be vented and recapped (with the same cap if you're careful when you vent), but it's more trouble.

 

I've had a few gushers too, haven't we all??, and I found the best bet is to be ready for it, open, and pour carefully into a large glass/mug. Quicker out of the bottle and into a wide mouth glass/mug will reduce the gusher. Possibly be ready to fill 2 glasses/mugs, they will settle down and then you can enjoy!

Cheers!

 

I've had this same problem before. I waited and started to sample the beers after 4 days or so and continued to sample days after until the carbonation level was good then put them in the refrigerator to stop the yeast from making anymore co2. It worked ok but your final beer will be sweeter then intended.

 

Should I have capped the swing top bottles using a regular cap instead of the swing top caps?

I have never used these bottles before and now I'm wondering if you are even supposed to bottle condition in these things in the first place, and if so do most people just use regular caps?

I got all worried about this again today!

 

The swing tops are stronger and will be fine. But you can decide to vent them temporarily after you try out one of the regular ones.

 

I would try one after a week, and if the carbonation is where you want it, stick them all in the fridge. If not, use the carbonation level as a guide to decide when to check the next one. Also, make sure you let them sit in the fridge for at least a couple weeks after they are carbed, that will give the beer ample time to absorb all of the CO2 it can, and will reduce the chance of them being gushers.