Beer Gun Carbonation Question

[FLYPacNW]

I'm planning to bottle my batch of cider from my SSBrewtech 14G Chronical BME using the Blichman Beer Gun. The cider is holding some CO2 from fermentation, but not enough to call it carbonated at all. The Chronical BME is not pressurized to the extent the Unitanks or Brite Tanks would be. With that in mind, will the Blichman Beer provide enough carbonation on its own to effectively carbonate the cider during bottling? I'm not looking to carbonate to the bright level of champagne, only 'pellitant' or slightly moreso.

A brite or unitank is on the horizon, but it's not in the budget for a few more months. Once it's on property it'll make this a much simpler process.

I definitely intend to run some test bottles first, but nothing beats first hand experience if it's out there.

Thanks in advance!

 

[NTBeer]

No experience with the Blichman beer gun. But I have read enough threads about it to know that it only provides counter pressure to stop foaming while you are bottling. It will not carbonate what you are bottling above the level it is starting at. So if you want additional carbonation, you will need to add sugar to the bottles.

 

[FLYPacNW]

Thank you! That's exactly what I needed to know. I did read a few threads looking for this info, but apparently not enough. Thanks again!

 

[Beermeister32]

I find that increasing the keg pressure will help retain the intended carbonation levels. I use a counter pressure filler, and there is always CO2 losses during bottling.

For example, when kegs are are drank directly on tap, I usually run 9-10 lbs psi. If I decide to bottle the keg, I’ll carbonate the keg to 20 psi. This does a good job of compensating for CO2 losses from bottling.

 

[NeoBrew]

You might be getting the beer gun mixed up with one of these.

https://www.blichmannengineering.com/quickcarb.html
I've never used one, but they are designed to carb up something quickly by recirculating it thorugh a CO2 stone. That is way too much work and equipment for me.

 

[Broken Crow]

I have both the Blichmann Beer Gun V2 and the QuickCarb. The Beer Gun provides neither carbonation nor counter pressure. It is made for use with a fully carbed beer, and then you want it and your bottles as close to freezing as possible to reduce foaming. The C02 trigger is only there for puging bottles before filling. That said, I love the thing and it works perfect for me when bottling from a cold keg. The QuickCarb only provides 80-90% of the carbonation, and even then it takes a couple days at least to stabilise. I love that thing too because a couple days beats a week or two. To bottle with the beer gun straight from the un-pressurized fermenter, you will need to add priming sugar.
If speed is you object and you really want to use your beer gun, an intermediate step to keg and carb first is probably your quickest and easiest route.

 

[FLYPacNW]

You might be getting the beer gun mixed up with one of these.

https://www.blichmannengineering.com/quickcarb.html
I've never used one, but they are designed to carb up something quickly by recirculating it thorugh a CO2 stone. That is way too much work and equipment for me.

That's thing is cool. I'm a gadget head. I could transfer my currently "still" cider from the Chronical BME to the keg, carbonate it, then bottle it. Thanks for sharing this.

 

[kwdriver]

I live at altitude now and had some serious foaming issues with my beer gun then I got serious about fixing the problem. Good luck!

Eliminate Foaming and Ditch Your Beer Gun Forever