Bottling off keg with Last Straw bottle filler... foam city.

[tpizzy]

Pretty self explanatory. I had some success bottling a couple ipas with my first experience using the Last Straw bottle filler. I tried again... not so much. Crazy foam, giant puddles of beer everywhere. I tried:

- Bottling around 8 psi
- Lowering to 4-5 psi
- Bleeding the keg, then bottling with 4-5 psi
- Filling a side glass with foam and getting buzzed


Nothing worked remotely well, and there is a shocking lack of posts about users having the same issues. Clearly, I'm doing something fundamentally wrong. The beer (a coffee stout) pours like a dream from the tap at 10-12 psi.

I did not freeze the bottles prior to bottling; I know that supposedly helps, but I did not have the freezer space.

I'm sure there are some things that I'm missing in the explanation, so feel free to ask further details.

I appreciate any and all advice/suggestions.

Cheers

 

[microbusbrewery]

I've run into similar issues with mine. It definitely seems to work better the colder the beer is, but if you have a beer with a lot of body, it seems to foam no matter what. I haven't tried freezing the bottles yet, so I can't say too much for that method. I also have a counter-pressure filler from Morebeer; I got the Last Straw because it seemed like the sanitizing and cleanup would be easier than the CPF. It is when it works, but I haven't figured out how to make it work all the time. If other folks have figured out some tips/tricks, I'd love to hear them too.

 

[ITV]

I had the same problems, what I did is lower the CO2 pressure to 2 PSI and bleed of the extra pressure in the keg. The pour was much slower which prevented the foaming issue.

 

[Nagorg]

Cant speak for the last straw but I do have the Blichman Beer Gun. I've used it twice and have been very happy. There is foam but I'm not sure it can be completely avoided. I also dont know how to quantify "foam all over the place" so yours may be extreme.

When bottling with the beer gun, foam does overflow the bottle and I allow that to happen until beer spills over instead and then promptly cap it. I do use a pyrex casserole dish as a catch basin for the spillover to keep things contained. When finished, I do have to rinse the beer off the bottle but this really hasn't been a big deal. And the spillover amounts to maybe 12 oz when I'm finished and I drink it so there's no waste!

 

[k1ngl1ves]

I use the Blichmann version. I leave my keg pressure alone. I just use a longer beer line on the gun, and no issues. I put the bottles in the fridge for about 20 minutes, but it's not really necessary.

If your beer is at 10-12 psi, try hooking up a 3/16 beer line that is 10-12 feet long. Should end the foam issues. I coil mine up nicely and zip tie it so it's manageable at about 6 feet (Keep the coiled up part close to the keg connector so the line isn't heavier while you're trying to fill.). Never had an issue since. Almost no foam, and you don't have to play around with pressures. You will lose about half a pint or so to the long tubing, but you'd lose a lot more trying to control foam. Lol!

 

[ITV]

If your beer is at 10-12 psi, try hooking up a 3/16 beer line that is 10-12 feet long. Should end the foam issues. I coil mine up nicely and zip tie it so it's manageable at about 6 feet (Keep the coiled up part close to the keg connector so the line isn't heavier while you're trying to fill.). Never had an issue since. Almost no foam, and you don't have to play around with pressures. You will lose about half a pint or so to the long tubing, but you'd lose a lot more trying to control foam. Lol!

The last straw comes with 10' of 3/16" beer line, most of the first time users I suspect will use the co2 and beer lines that come with the kit. With 10 psi I noticed that the beer came out too fast (compared to the video) which caused a 1/2 bottle of foam. By adjusting the pressure down to 2 psi the beer came out much slower (just like the video) and gave me just enough foam to cap.

 

[k1ngl1ves]

The last straw comes with 10' of 3/16" beer line, most of the first time users I suspect will use the co2 and beer lines that come with the kit. With 10 psi I noticed that the beer came out too fast (compared to the video) which caused a 1/2 bottle of foam. By adjusting the pressure down to 2 psi the beer came out much slower (just like the video) and gave me just enough foam to cap.

Interesting. Are you sure the line isn't 1/4"? The friction in 10' of 3/16 line should be more than enough to slow down the beer at 10psi. Maybe there's some odd difference between the Blichmann and this version.


Glad I bought the Blichmann...

 

[ITV]

Interesting. Are you sure the line isn't 1/4"? The friction in 10' of 3/16 line should be more than enough to slow down the beer at 10psi. Maybe there's some odd difference between the Blichmann and this version.


Glad I bought the Blichmann...

Just checked, 3/16 line. This is my first beer gun and after lowering the co2 I am pleased with the Last Straw. Looking at the pictures of the Blichmann, the main difference I see is that the Last Straw uses a spring loaded tip to let the beer flow out. Maybe there is more restriction then the open tube that the Blichmann has.