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can i use a siphon and my primary for bottling

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jeremybmx10

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Hi, im new at brewing beer. I didn't go all i out i have a primary 6 gal bucket without a spigot and a 6 gal carboy as my secondary. i was thinking after fermentation in my carboy to tranfer back into my primary and use my siphon and the bottling tool thingy to fill my bottles? or would it be better just to buy a bottling bucket? thanks for all the help guys! :D
 
Although a siphon and the primary bucket will work, I agree with Steve. A bottling bucket is much more convenient and you will end up with less trub in the bottles that way.
 
You'll be just fine using your primary and bottling wand to bottle with. In my experience, the wand will leak a lot less than the spigot on a dedicated bottling bucket. As for trub, your siphoning technique and skill, along with proper bottle pouring practice will make the amount of trub in your glass a moot issue. YMMV
 
I have always used a fermenter as my bottling bucket and siphoned into bottles from it. Works fine. I've done about 250 batches.
 
If you bottle from primary you will have to prime each bottle with sugar. PITA. Get a cheap bottling bucket.
 
I am assuming you are fermenting in the bucket, then transferring to secondary for a period of time. Assuming that, the bucket would then be cleaned out, and then sanitized at the time of bottling. When you transfer from secondary back to the bucket, I would just put in your boiled corn sugar in the bottom first. Then transfer your beer into the bucket and bottle as you mentioned. Since you left behind most of the yeast the first time and whatever settled in the secondary as well, your sediment in your bottles should be pretty minimal.

The only thing that is easier with a bottling bucket is you don't have to start the siphon, then keep it from spilling all over the place while you get the bottling wand onto the end of the hose. You can use a turkey baster to start a siphon easy enough.

I recently made a 1-gallon test batch of my Pale Ale, and after transferring it to a 2nd 1 gallon jug, I just bottled the few bottles straight from there with a hose and bottling wand. Worked easy enough. If money is an issue for you, I'd just bottle with the primary bucket.
 
Bottleing buckets have never made much sense to me, especialy doubleing as a primary. Sanitiseing, and then asembling a spigot-- safely, is a pain. The levle of sedimant can vary while the levle of your take off is fixed. The Romans had syphoning figured out two thousand years ago. People should just fill up a bucket of water and practice syphoning if they are haveing problams. It's an important thing to know how to do, and it's not hard to learn.

--Adam Selene
 

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