Bottles

[toneloke2011]

Almost ready to do my first bottling of English brown ale ,have not even done it yet and already tired to f the bottle drama! I think I'll just get a keg and already have fermentasauras,so bottles will be for birthdays and Christmas lol.I've also heard a lot of borrow stories about bottles .um tgoung to be putting buckets upside down over my bottles to prevent possible bottle bombs from killing maiming and the mess would this be a good idea?

 

[JPBrewLI]

Best to know the volume and add the right amount of primer without trying to push the limits. In bucket with lid/stacked if you're worried

 

[homebrewer_99]

If your beer was done fermenting and you did not over prime there are no issues. I have bottled beer that are years old and have never been refrigerated.

The only bottle grenades I ever experienced were with Root Beer back in 1995.

 

[masskrug]

I place them in a cardboard box, then I store them in a closet. If they do go off, no harm.

 

[toneloke2011]

If your beer was done fermenting and you did not over prime there are no issues. I have bottled beer that are years old and have never been refrigerated.

The only bottle grenades I ever experienced were with Root Beer back in 1995.

Thank you

 

[toneloke2011]

I place them in a cardboard box, then I store them in a closet. If they do go off, no harm.

Thank you

 

[toneloke2011]

Best to know the volume and add the right amount of primer without trying to push the limits. In bucket with lid/stacked if you're worried

Thank you

 

[RPh_Guy]

I have 24 batches bottled of beer/cider/mead/wine. Zero bombs. Some bottles I've had over a year.


Just take basic precautions...
Make sure it's finished fermenting -- gravity reading and patience.

If you want to bulk prime like I do:
Make sure to properly calculate priming sugar -- use a calculator and go by weight.
Make sure to properly distribute priming sugar -- dissolve it first in boiling dechlorinated water, rack on top of it, wait 10-20 minutes, and then gently stir before bottling.

Alternately if you want to prime individual bottles:
Just use the prescribed number of "carbonation drops" in each bottle.

For convenience I use a bottling bucket with a spigot, a bottle washer, a sanitizer sprayer, a bottle wand with tubing, and a fast rack to dry bottles. These gadgets make bottling easy and fun. If I wanted to make labels I would use hanging tags.

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/forum/threads/bottling-tips-for-the-homebrewer.94812/ -- this thread is a good read too.

Cheers

 

[ctb1976]

I have 24 batches bottled of beer/cider/mead/wine. Zero bombs. Some bottles I've had over a year.


Just take basic precautions...
Make sure it's finished fermenting -- gravity reading and patience.

If you want to bulk prime like I do:
Make sure to properly calculate priming sugar -- use a calculator and go by weight.
Make sure to properly distribute priming sugar -- dissolve it first in boiling dechlorinated water, rack on top of it, wait 10-20 minutes, and then gently stir before bottling.

Alternately if you want to prime individual bottles:
Just use the prescribed number of "carbonation drops" in each bottle.

For convenience I use a bottling bucket with a spigot, a bottle washer, a sanitizer sprayer, a bottle wand with tubing, and a fast rack to dry bottles. These gadgets make bottling easy and fun. If I wanted to make labels I would use hanging tags.

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/forum/threads/bottling-tips-for-the-homebrewer.94812/ -- this thread is a good read too.

Cheers

[emoji651]️ Great advice. I would eventually like to keg as well, but once I refined my bottling process can knock out 2 cases in about an hour. I have never had a bomb yet that I know of. I have 4 cases conditioning in the basement that I haven't checked in a few weeks.

 

[toneloke2011]

[emoji651]️ Great advice. I would eventually like to keg as well, but once I refined my bottling process can knock out 2 cases in about an hour. I have never had a bomb yet that I know of. I have 4 cases conditioning in the basement that I haven't checked in a few weeks.

Thankful for all the great advise! just a bit paranoid after my car accident and don't want any of the FAM to be hurt .

 

[TwistedGray]

These gadgets make bottling easy and fun.

I think "fun" is a stretch ... perhaps you mean "efficient"

Nothing fun about bottling, but it is nice to sit in the garage for a half an hour in silence

 

[RPh_Guy]

I think "fun" is a stretch ... perhaps you mean "efficient"

Nothing fun about bottling, but it is nice to sit in the garage for a half an hour in silence

Bottling is easy and comfortable, I get to sample the beer, and I end up with all my hard work nicely packaged. It's fun for me

Which part of the brewing process is "fun" for you?

 

[toneloke2011]

Bottling is easy and comfortable, I get to sample the beer, and I end up with all my hard work nicely packaged. It's fun for me

Which part of the brewing process is "fun" for you?

So much fun to watch my baby yeasts grow big and strong having children and many generations of family of their own. its the only poop and pee I like to clean up lol

 

[TwistedGray]

Bottling is easy and comfortable, I get to sample the beer, and I end up with all my hard work nicely packaged. It's fun for me

Which part of the brewing process is "fun" for you?

Short answer - [for me] post fermentation planning. I don't typically brew what I can buy, and I don't typically buy what I can brew.

 

[toneloke2011]

Short answer - [for me] post fermentation planning. I don't typically brew what I can buy, and I don't typically buy what I can brew.

I also brew what I can't buy ,but in order to ease my boss and best friend into the strong and many flavors I've been buying cold snap and brewing smoother brew and slowly conditioning him into brew that taste like something more than corn and malt lol

 

[shoengine]

Packaging is my least favorite part of the process, and that includes kegging. Very little sensory enjoyment, which I get from milling, mashing and boiling. There is no real thought going into it. Just activity.

Fermentation is fun to watch, at least it was until I changed to stainless. Now I have to use my imagination.

 

[TwistedGray]

Fermentation is fun to watch, at least it was until I changed to stainless. Now I have to use my imagination.

Maybe someone can make a Fermentation Channel like the Yule Log Channel during the holidays.

 

[shoengine]

I think my wife and kids are already sick of me talking about all of the processes going on during the various stages of beer making. This may push them over the edge.

"I want to watch Netflix!"
"Shh, the yeast are working..."

 

[TwistedGray]

I think my wife and kids are already sick of me talking about all of the processes going on during the various stages of beer making. This may push them over the edge.

"I want to watch Netflix!"
"Shh, the yeast are working..."

About time you teach them all a little respect, eh?

I actually like bottles from the sense that they're easy to ship, package, take places, share, and they can be kept in my cold ass garage. I don't need electricity, keggrators, so on and so forth. Another expense I'd prefer to not deal with right now.

 

[toneloke2011]

Maybe someone can make a Fermentation Channel like the Yule Log Channel during the holidays.

Not a bad idea at all actually we could all make a public broadcasting TV show since pbs doesn't exist anymore do brew version of Bob/Brew Ross,and Mr. Brewers neighborhood, or magic brew bus, hops for me street!!!

 

[greyghost]

Bottling is my Zen time.

 

[Mothman]

I do 3.5 gallon batches, and bottle in 650ml bombers, so I only have to fill 17-18 bottles at most.

Easy peasy, it takes me longer to prepare and clean up than it does to do the actual bottling.

If you're "stuck" with bottling, and don't like the process, consider smaller batches, and brew more often. Less hassle on bottling day, and more variety of finished beer.

 

[toneloke2011]

I do 3.5 gallon batches, and bottle in 650ml bombers, so I only have to fill 17-18 bottles at most.

Easy peasy, it takes me longer to prepare and clean up than it does to do the actual bottling.

If you're "stuck" with bottling, and don't like the process, consider smaller batches, and brew more often. Less hassle on bottling day, and more variety of finished beer.

I don't mind it was just worried about explosions I've got children but have since cleaned 2000 square feet of storage basement that I converted from my wife's useless hoard room to my wine / beer cellar already complete with shelves just need to make wine racks for aging and storage plan to utilize my 200 wine and 200 beer capacity and I hear practice makes perfect ! I would love to have a local brew shop here and maybe one day a micro brewery I'm so tired of being a chef people think its an easy job but if done correctly its one of the most stressful and demanding occupations ever lol

 

[Mothman]

I condition my bottles in rubbermade totes, with lids, no worries of bombs... I'm not really worried about it but better safe than sorry.

After a few weeks I move them into cardboard boxes in a cool location. No bottle bombs yet.