G L A D - I - B O T T L E !!!

[dwhite60]

https://www.foxbusiness.com/markets/beer-may-lose-its-fizz-as-co2-supplies-go-flat-during-pandemic

This could get ugly.

 

[eric19312]

Dang that would suck

 

[bracconiere]

well, i'll find out in ~4 months....still got somewhere around 8 pounds in my 20#'r....

 

[VikeMan]

Supply is definitely decreased, but so is demand to some extent. For example, brewpubs aren't using anywhere near their normal levels of CO2. If people would just stop buying soda... It will be interesting to see how it works out.

Form a homebrew perspective, you can carbonate with sugar in kegs and reserve CO2 cylinders just for pushing. And right now I have a beer fermenting, with the CO2 output routed to a keg (with a spunding valve), so the keg will be purged naturally before filling via closed xfer.

 

[Jayjay1976]

From a homebrew perspective, you can carbonate with sugar in kegs and reserve CO2 cylinders just for pushing. And right now I have a beer fermenting, with the CO2 output routed to a keg (with a spunding valve), so the keg will be purged naturally before filling via closed xfer.

Great post, got me thinking. Even if you ran out of gas for dispensing it should be possible to harness the pressure from an actively fermenting batch (in a keg) for serving finished beers. Split the gas out from the fermenting keg with a tee; one side goes to a secondary regulator and a manifold to control serving pressure, and a spunding valve on the other side to limit total pressure. Would be a great incentive to keep on brewing

 

[bracconiere]

Great post, got me thinking. Even if you ran out of gas for dispensing it should be possible to harness the pressure from an actively fermenting batch (in a keg) for serving finished beers. Split the gas out from the fermenting keg with a tee; one side goes to a secondary regulator and a manifold to control serving pressure, and a spunding valve on the other side to limit total pressure. Would be a great incentive to keep on brewing

honestly if i found myself without co2, i'd brew a barley wine and drink it uncarbonated.....


edit: or maybe make some cyser....

 

[Yesfan]

Glad I bought that 2nd 20lber a few weeks ago.......

 

[Robert65]

I'm now purging my kegs with fermentation gas, doing a closed gravity transfer, and I always spund to carbonate anyway. So now the only thing I need bottled gas for is dispensing, and pulling gravity samples from the fermentor. With somewhere approaching 15 lbs on hand, I'm good for a long, long time. I was doing pressure transfers and liquid purging kegs, but had been meaning to switch to these less wasteful ($$) purge and transfer methods, and the news of a tighter supply finally motivated me. Thank you, you damned coronavirus!

 

[Jayjay1976]

Glad I bought that 2nd 20lber a few weeks ago.......

I'm really wishing I had another 20# on hand.

 

[S-Met]

honestly if i found myself without co2, i'd brew a barley wine and drink it uncarbonated.....


edit: or maybe make some cyser....

One of the last cysers I made and carbed in the keg kept a charge for about 75% of the keg.

 

[Yesfan]

I'm really wishing I had another 20# on hand.

If you can, I'd do it. The business I use for my co2/propane refills has a kid with an immune deficiency. To maintain the social distance thing, I just did the payment over the phone and when I pulled up, he had my propane tanks ready. All I had to do was swap them out and I was on my way home. No contact, no worries.

I had a 5lb with the intent on using it for just pressure transfers and as a back up when the main one happened to go out on a day my supplier was closed. Before this pandemic really took off, I traded my 5lber in for the 20. I should have done this when I first got into the hobby as a 20lb tank will last me almost a full year.

 

[Jayjay1976]

If you can, I'd do it. The business I use for my co2/propane refills has a kid with an immune deficiency. To maintain the social distance thing, I just did the payment over the phone and when I pulled up, he had my propane tanks ready. All I had to do was swap them out and I was on my way home. No contact, no worries.

I had a 5lb with the intent on using it for just pressure transfers and as a back up when the main one happened to go out on a day my supplier was closed. Before this pandemic really took off, I traded my 5lber in for the 20. I should have done this when I first got into the hobby as a 20lb tank will last me almost a full year.

I'd go out and buy one today but we're tightening our belts until this nightmare is over. My whole company is taking an unpaid day off per week for at least the next three months and it could get worse after that if this crisis isn't over by then. I mean I can justify $20-30 here and there for brewing ingredients so we don't run out of beer, but all equipment purchases are on hold for now.

 

[Yesfan]

I'd go out and buy one today but we're tightening our belts until this nightmare is over. My whole company is taking an unpaid day off per week for at least the next three months and it could get worse after that if this crisis isn't over by then. I mean I can justify $20-30 here and there for brewing ingredients so we don't run out of beer, but all equipment purchases are on hold for now.

Totally understand that. Hopefully this passes sooner than later. I'm off next week for the same reasons, and though it's paid, I got too dependent on the OT I was making the last 6 months. That was a huge cut I wasn't ready for. My company is going to make sure I get two weeks of full pay if it has to go that long (so far one week). If it goes 3 weeks or more, my funds will really be hurting.

 

[bracconiere]

LOL, my scale dropeed a couple of 10ths of an ounce on my co2 tank, and i just hooked up a couple cornies yesterday....was trying to figure out if i have a leak, keeping an eye on it, but wanted to find out how many grams displaces 12floz's....had this thought for co2..


https://www.ebay.com/i/110869336854...r5f6Iam0RYm7a9DSDna9OQuyMXRWDHc0aAmEeEALw_wcB


that and a couple gallons of muriatic acid!! i'm sure one of you smart people could devise a way to just have a sealed container, and add the acid drop wise, with the co2 going to the kegs....


(my scale was at 45lb's 4.2oz's last night and now it's at 45lb's 3.3oz's, usually i only lose an ounce a day pouring 10, and even carbing 4 kegs....going to lube my posts, and hope it's not the PRVs))

 

[Sebastian Weetabix]

As long as my yeastie beasties want to do their their thing, who am I to interfere?

We have a lot in common.

I may fart louder, but they fart a lot more often!

 

[Jayjay1976]

Totally understand that. Hopefully this passes sooner than later. I'm off next week for the same reasons, and though it's paid, I got too dependent on the OT I was making the last 6 months. That was a huge cut I wasn't ready for. My company is going to make sure I get two weeks of full pay if it has to go that long (so far one week). If it goes 3 weeks or more, my funds will really be hurting.

Hang in there, fingers crossed.

 

[Wayne1]

No problem on CO2 availability or high prices here in Denver.

I called my local supplier this morning and asked about a 20 lb swap. They said come on by.

I drove down, stood 6 feet from the store, swapped bottles, paid and was on my way in less than 5 minutes.

Still the same price as the last time I swapped bottles

 

[VikeMan]

That's some cheap CO2.

 

[bracconiere]

No problem on CO2 availability or high prices here in Denver.

I called my local supplier this morning and asked about a 20 lb swap. They said come on by.

I drove down, stood 6 feet from the store, swapped bottles, paid and was on my way in less than 5 minutes.

Still the same price as the last time I swapped bottles

That's some cheap CO2.

that's the mile high city right? so you're closer to the source? lol


edit: i see it's from "way to grow", lol

 

[seatazzz]

My 20# tank has been on since 12/14/2019 (I put a label on it to remind me) and still has plenty left. Got the 5# tank exchanged before the insanity set in, so I'm set for quite a while. I'm still working two jobs so not decimating the hoppy goodness in my kegs as fast as I thought I would. Favorite LHBS still has tanks for exchange too if I run out. My only worry now is propane.

My 2nd job is in a pharmaceutical warehouse; first couple weeks after the shelter at home order kicked in, all of our customers ordered the crap out of everything. Now, not so much. Expecting furlough from main job any day now.

 

[Wayne1]

I am not sure about closer to the source, but there is a program underway to capture waste CO2 from brewery fermentation and use it for cannabis production: https://www.craftbeer.com/news/brew...o-capture-and-reduce-greenhouse-gas-emissions

I mention in another CO2 thread, the cost to fill a 700 lb dewar on site in a brewery was $0.20 a lb. The gas company has to be making a profit even at that price. Smaller tanks do have more labor cost but somehow a small chain of five organic gardening and hydroponic supply stores manage to survive selling CO2 at roughly 1/4 the price of the gas suppliers.

 

[matt_m]

Glad I switched to 20lb tanks in December. Looks like even with heavy brewing I will get 5-6 months off a tank including using non-carbonation uses like purging kegs, fermenters and blowing glycol out the chiller coils on my conicals. My daughter swapped out one of my 20lb tanks at my local gas supplier yesterday. Price was the same as back in December.

From what I'm reading here, I should see what the grow shop around the corner charges. I'm paying about 2-1/2 times what @Wayne1

 

[Edward's Beer Cellar]

Interesting cross over about CO2 shortages on a NASCAR blog today. Author is tying CO2 shortages to reduced driving and demand for ethanol for fuel.

How NASCAR Can Help Prevent a Beer Shortage

How NASCAR Can Help Prevent a Beer Shortage

- I too only bottle - so no worries here

 

[Dr_Jeff]

All this makes me feel good about having five full 20# bottles on hand, in addition to what is in the three kegerators.

 

[Yesfan]

Interesting cross over about CO2 shortages on a NASCAR blog today. Author is tying CO2 shortages to reduced driving and demand for ethanol for fuel.

How NASCAR Can Help Prevent a Beer Shortage

How NASCAR Can Help Prevent a Beer Shortage

- I too only bottle - so no worries here

Interesting. The thing with the article that bugs me is the comparison of corn vs 'grain' (isn't corn also a grain, depending on its time of harvest?). The thing I come away with is I guess it's the amount of co2 produced per batch. Like with homebrew, a barleywine is going to produce more co2 (and alcohol) than a 5% pilsner. What about distillers? How much could they capture, if they have the means (blog never mentioned distilleries)? A lot of them are making sanitizer so if their production has went up because of that, it would be interesting to know if they are able to close the gap any. Again, that's if they are able to capture co2.

So I guess, you can say the moonshining and racing relationship has come full circle. NASCAR has it roots in bootlegging. Now in order for our beers to stay fizzy, we need more races.

PS: bottling still sucks.