Ticking Bottle Bombs

Hey all,
I'm just finishing my first home brewing with a simple 1 gal IPA kit. The two week carbonation period just ended and I've put the bottles in the fridge to chill them.
My question is, should I be concerned about bottle bombs now as the beers chill and carbonation sets? Or has the time passed and will they be less likely to pop now being chilled?
Any input would be great. Thanks

 

If you are even moderate careful...bottle bombs should not be a problem. That being said, if they are in the fridge, I am 99% sure it impossible for them to keep ferementing unless you got some super infection.

 

It's hard to say if your out of the danger zone yet, but like previous comment, if your semi careful you shouldn't have to worry. Specially if it's a kit from a reputable source.

The ones in the fridge I would consider fine. The ones not in the fridge I would consider fine too unless you think you over primed. How much did you use to prime?

 

Thanks for the help. I want to say I used about 1/4 cup of sugar since I only had a gal to brew. For all I know these beers may be flat since I put less sugar.

What concerned me too was that each bottle was filled at different levels (which is typical) and I was worried about the ones filled the most may be too full for the carbonation.

 

It is also possible that you end up with the opposite problem. With my very first 1 gallon batch, the problem I had was not enough carbonation. At the time I was using table sugar. It is harder to dissolve table sugar than corn sugar. You have to heat it up with a small amount of water and then stir it until it has fully dissolved. So part of the reason my first batch didn't get well carbonated was that much of the table sugar at the bottom of the bottling bucket hadn't completely dissolved.

 

1/4 of a cup for a 1 gallon batch seems like a lot and and may produce over carbed brew (~>3.0 Vol CO2) I'd say you do want them in the fridge as that should halt any more conversion. Try one and see what you think! How does the carbonation seem to you? Does the beer taste a little sweeter than you think it should or is it just right?

 

Just popped my first one. Zero carbonation and tastes stale. I'm going to try a second one to see if there is a difference (doubtful).
May have to add more sugar but again, that risks bombs. I guess I'll just have to brew more. Trial and error 😄

 

You could also have had the bottles to cool, in the two week conditioning period. About 70°F is good for conditioning. Sometimes it can take four weeks or longer.

 

I think you really are rushing things here. Two weeks and no carbonation is not uncommon.

You "think" it was a 1/4 cup of sugar for carbonation but no indication of the type of sugar.

Oddly vehement fear of bottle bombs which are rare for those that practice basic sanitation. How did you santize your bottles?

I think you are stressing just way too much on something that should be a relaxing hobby.

Take them out of the fridge and give them more time. Put one at a time in the cool-box and let sit for 24 hours say a week from now. Put the reast in a cheap plastic tote from a big box store just in case you are incredibly unlucky and have a bottle bomb.

 

Several weeks ago I finished a 4 week fermentation that started at 1.048 OG and should have been at 1.013 FG when finished but ended up being 1.020 FG. It was racked to secondary after 2 weeks at 1.020 which means that for 2 weeks in the secondary no further fermentation occurred. I said screw it and hit it with 3.25 oz dextrose dissolved in 12 oz boiling water and bottled. I stacked all 50 bottles into a black plastic storage tote, secured the lid and feverishly checked them every day for the 1st week (i just knew they were gonna blow). After a week, I took one out, carried it like it was a hand grenade with the pin pulled, and stuck it in the frig. That night I ordered my wife and kids to the other end of the house as I closed my eyes, turned my head and popped the top. After a slight hiss and a little fog, I was ecstatically enjoying a home brewed creation of my very own.

Point is, I was scared to death of the dreaded "bottle bomb" that I had read so much about. During the time I was stressing about that madness, it was not a fun hobby. It takes a lot of pressure to blow a bottle. You are more likely to get a gusher after opening than a bomb. Just my thoughts.

 

Certainly dont need to be "scared" of bottle bombs but they can and do happen for various reasons. I've honestly only had two bottles pop ever and that was 2 out of ~48 where all others were just fine. Probably just weak bottle necks...

Yes, 2 weeks probably isn't really enough time for natural carbonation to be complete. I typically find 4 weeks is prime time. So, the OP's brew likely just inst ready yet. A couple more weeks at ~70 degrees should fix that. But... I still think 1/4 cup in a 1 gallon batch is a bit much and I'd get them in the fridge around 4 weeks. That is unless the bottles are of the thicker Belgian style variety...