Fixing bottle bombs

[BitterSweetBrews]

I was gone yesterday helping some friends brew. When I got home I went downstairs into my brewery where I had about 38 bottles, I had filled about a week ago out on a table. I found that four bottles had exploded. It was a mess, liquid and glass was everywhere. Not wanting any more wasted beer I came up with a plan and had to work fast.

To fix the issue I decided to let some pressure out of the bottles by slowly prying up a corner of the crown cap until some co2 was released and some foam escaped. I did this in a tub to catch any released foam. I resealed them with my capper to make sure they sealed again. I did the same thing today for a second time. Tonight I opened up one of the bottles and drank it. When I opened it, it no longer overflowed the bottle and the carbonation was acceptable. Thankfully it tasted good. I think I must have added too much priming sugar.

 

[Brauer]

Get them in the fridge. Co2 dissolves into solution better at a lower temperatures reducing bottle pressure. It should also stop any further fermentation!

 

[pricelessbrewing]

Get them in the fridge. Co2 dissolves into solution better at a lower temperatures reducing bottle pressure. It should also stop any further fermentation!

Common misconception. It will slow down further fermentation but not stop it. Particularly if the yeast is lager or brett as they're much more accepting of low temps than typical ale yeasts.

 

[passedpawn]

Common misconception. It will slow down further fermentation but not stop it. Particularly if the yeast is lager or brett as they're much more accepting of low temps than typical ale yeasts.

Wrong. The yeast will ferment to a point. The resulting pressure is completely dependent on temperature. So, refrigerating the beers is the best plan, and might work.

I'd dump them myself. I have zero desire to save a wrecked batch. What's the point?

 

[pricelessbrewing]

Wrong. The yeast will ferment to a point. The resulting pressure is completely dependent on temperature. So, refrigerating the beers is the best plan, and might work.

I'd dump them myself. I have zero desire to save a wrecked batch. What's the point?

Yes, the pressure is obviously dependent on temperature.

It's my understanding that the yeast will ferment until a true FG is reached as long as they're alive and active. When in the fridge it's my understanding that there is still some yeasts activity occurring, just at a much slower rate. So while it's definitely the best course of action, if you have bottle bombs due to an infection (again, especially brett), or due to bottling too early, placing the bottles in the fridge and coming back in a month or two you might still have bottle bombs due to the ongoing slow fermentation. However if the issue is simply over carbonation due to a miscalculation during priming, you will probably not have to worry about this.

What I would do is put them all in the fridge and throw a party. Make sure you open all the bottles yourself when offering to friends/acquaintances/victims.

I'd love to see that I'm wrong however if that is not correct, as that's the only way we continue to learn. This is just a common topic discussed in the cider forum, as bottle bombs come up due to bottling too early or back sweetening and bottling without pasteurization, and the same threat would apply if bottling was done prior to a true stable FG being reached or an infection. While some people do place the cider in the fridge with some success, many advise not to do so due to the reasons I listed above.

 

[gnef]

To the OP, I know you already handled this, but in the future, please be very careful in the future. I would recommend gloves and a face shield for dealing with things of this sort. Since some have already exploded, you don't know the condition of the other bottles, and just touching one could potentially set it off.

Could you imagine if a bottle went off while you were holding it and looking at it with your face close?

Please consider your safety over saving a batch of beer! I know it is hard, especially given how much time and effort we put in to it, but I have read of way too many stories of people going to the hospital over something in the many years I've been brewing.

 

[passedpawn]

I've had bottle bombs go off a couple of times. Freaked me out completely. After realizing the entire batch was like that, I put on safety goggles, leather gloves and a long sleeve shirt and dumped them all in the sink.

I bottled a lot of beer, so statistically it wasn't a big deal. Still, it's one of the reasons I stopped bottling.

 

[z-bob]

I was gonna say wear goggles and leather welding gloves when you handle them but 'Pawn just beat me to it. Put them in a fridge to reduce the pressure and slow the yeast down to a crawl. They should be safe when cold. Then use 'em up quickly or dump them.

 

[kh54s10]

You need this:

 

[Owly055]

The most important part of this is the post mortem........What happened and why?? How can you avoid a repetetion?

I totally agree with the leather gloves and goggles advice....... If you think coming home to a mess of beer and broken glass is a nightmare, imagine having one grenade in your hand!!

I use only EZ cap flip top bottles which are rated at well in excess of 100 psi, and believe they would not burst before venting, but I'm not interested in finding out!

Dumping the batch is good advice also...but advice most of us are not going to follow, so try this:

Put the bottles in the fridge.....with welding gloves and goggles, then when chilled vent them completely by popping the top and allowing them to go flat for 12 hours or so at room temp with the caps loose. Then recap, and allow them to bottle condition again, opening one every few days....... repeat as necessary. Chilling them will greatly reduce pressure so you can pop the tops without them foaming over as badly.


H.W.

 

[passedpawn]

OP, if you want to see what a bottle bomb can do, go to this thread: https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=423528&highlight=bottle+shower

Here's a picture for you from there:

 

[BitterSweetBrews]

Well, after I had let the pressure off the bottles twice I left them alone for the past week. I would have put them in the fridge or keezer if I had the space. I did cover them with a towel, just in case. There were no more bombs.

I chilled a couple of them today and had them tonight. They were well, but not over, carbonated. They didn't overflow the bottle, but I poured them into glasses pretty quickly. I got about a 2 inch head on the first part of the pour which dissipated within a couple minutes. Most importantly, it tasted great (it was a nice stout so it was a little young). I would have had a hard time pouring it all down the drain.

All in all, I thought this was pretty successful.

With regards to the gloves and glasses, that would have been a great idea and I will remember it if it ever happens again. I should have thought about that. I was careful not to move them around much and I did have reading glasses on most of the time.

I know I must have added a little too much priming sugar. I had an 8 gallon batch I had split 5/3 between two yeasts for experimentation. I didn't secondary and I must have over estimated the volume in the 5 gallon portion when I added the priming sugar. The 3 gallon portion didn't have any issues. Maybe I'll keg it next time, if I have one available.

 

[BassElement]

I realize this is a pretty old thread, but for the first time ever I had a couple of bottles explode out of my 5 gallon batch. I definitely bottled too early, I thought FG was stable after 3 weeks but it wasn't. Live and learn! I just popped and re-capped 30 or so bottles, this thread definitely helped me get through it.