Beer Gun and flat beer

[theCougfan97]

I just bottled my beer for the first time using a keg to carb and the beer gun to fill the bottles. Every bottle I open is flat. What do you think is the cause:

1. Letting it sit in the keg for 1 month at about 20 psi?
2. Filling the bottles despite their being a great deal of foam? For the foamy beers it took 3 or 4 tries to finally fill it to the top after the foam died back.
3. something else

Back story:

I started by unknowingly over filling my keg about a month ago. I then charged it to about 20 psi.
When I first attempted to bottle beer escaped the CO2 stem. I ran off some beer/foam and fixed that problem.
Then I proceeded to fill my bottles with the CO2 tank at about 12 psi according to the home brew store. Which resulted in pure foam coming out of the beer gun.
Then according to a forum I decided to release any excess pressure in the keg and bottle with the CO2 tank at about 4 psi. I got less foam and it took a long long time to fill the bottles.
So far every bottle I have opened to drink is flat.

 

[ColoHox]

My process for filling with the beer gun:
1. Force carb at few psi higher than desired final level for a month in the fridge. Temperature is important to this process. Prechilling your bottles may help reduce foaming.
2. Vent all keg pressue and set regulator to 4-10psi (depending on the legth and type of beer line). There is a sweet spot where very little foaming occurs.
3. Hit bottle with gas. Fill bottle until beer slightly runneth over, pushing all the foam out. Gas headspace and cap.

If your just dispensing foam, you are releasing most of the carbonation in your beer, especially if it's not cold.

 

[theCougfan97]

I lack the fridge space. I thought I was getting a middle step prior to investing in the kegerator. Is this not possible without a large fridge?

 

[chickypad]

You have no fridge, meaning your keg is at room temp? I've not heard of anyone having success trying to bottle warm. My process is exactly as ColoHox outlined, pre-chill all the bottles in the freezer then bottle with 4 psi and a very long line on the beer gun. There is essentially no foaming.

Additionally, if you are carbing at room temp and 20 psi you are already starting undercarbed - at least under 2 volumes of CO2. You probably want more like 30 psi, which is only going to make the foaming worse.

 

[ColoHox]

Ooh ya...this will be hard without chilled beer. I got my fridge before any of my kegging stuff...craigslist for $50.

 

[deepbluegroove]

I have had mixed results, so being carbonated, others not.

Here is my process:
1. Sanitize the bottles with iodophor solution
2. put bottles in freezer
3. attach blichmann beer gun
4. put some bottle caps in iodophor solution
5. put three beer bottles in a tall bowl
5a. purge keg head space, turn down pressure
6. Fill each one by purging with c02 and then fill to the top. If foam, let foam over a little, come back to fill all the way when foam has subsided. Cap all three, then move on to the next three.

Any other suggestions?
Here are my thoughts:
a. Maybe the beer is not as carbonated in the keg as I think (but how can I tell?)
b. should I cap each beer right after I fill it?
c. Should I have a rubber stopper (like the one for the blow off tube) on the beer gun, so it has counter pressure (thus reduce foaming?)

 

[vNmd]

I have had mixed results, so being carbonated, others not.

Here is my process:
1. Sanitize the bottles with iodophor solution
2. put bottles in freezer
3. attach blichmann beer gun
4. put some bottle caps in iodophor solution
5. put three beer bottles in a tall bowl
5a. purge keg head space, turn down pressure
6. Fill each one by purging with c02 and then fill to the top. If foam, let foam over a little, come back to fill all the way when foam has subsided. Cap all three, then move on to the next three.

Any other suggestions?
Here are my thoughts:
a. Maybe the beer is not as carbonated in the keg as I think (but how can I tell?)
b. should I cap each beer right after I fill it?
c. Should I have a rubber stopper (like the one for the blow off tube) on the beer gun, so it has counter pressure (thus reduce foaming?)

I don't use iodophor so I can't speak to that product, but I use star san like you mentioned in your steps.
I have not put any bottles in the freezer, but I have hears others that do.
I do one bottle at a time.
If I get a little foam coming over the top - I keep going until liquid is level with the top, then cap immediately. My capper gets wet but I don't want to have the bottles opened longer than necessary. I put plastic bags under everything so cleanup is a little easier. If the temp of the keg is low enough I usually don't get a lot of foam until the last of the keg to be bottled. I assume the keg is getting warmer.

As for carbonation: I go by the carbonation charts available on the web. Like others say, I go 3 - 4 ish pounds above the recommended level for the style and keep the temp as low as possible. The common colourful chart everyone seems to use is a slow timeframe. I let mine go for a couple weeks at 3 - 4 lbs higher than listed after giving it a day of burst carbing at 30lbs.