Bottling day help

[Agentgonzo]

At €0.033 per cap (€1.32 per 40 bottles/20L) I wouldn't be bothered but great to know if I'm ever stuck!!!

I bought some spares of someone over a decade ago. I think >1000 caps. I am still working my way through them!

 

[Rugby Fan.]

I bought some spares of someone over a decade ago. I think >1000 caps. I am still working my way through them!

Just checked, at 1000 pieces they're only 2.2c per piece :-)

 

[MashBag]

I make it a policy not to buy things I already have

 

[evil.soup]

I think I am set for life since I ha e 200 new and maybe 500 or more used ones...May be a shame to spoil my fish bowl display though lol

 

[MashBag]

To be honest, mine come from the same place as my bottles, I have never bought any.

 

[Bzee]

I get 40 grolsch bottles and a hop spider to fit into the dishwasher put it on a 1 hour 55 c cycle. Come back add the sterilised bottle tops. Put hop spider in fv with syphon and fill bottles up with beer and prime with a funnel and spoon. Takes under an hour from when the dishy beeps to say bottles are clean.

 

[MashBag]

Hmm. Or does the dishy bleep to say its finished?

 

[LordDaveM]

My first ever bottling day is approaching ...... or the fermentation has stalled !!!! not been brave enough to peel the lid off yet and take a SG reading.

I've read a lot about various bottling methods but I have a question that doesn't seem to get a mention ......

I'm using plastic 500ml beer bottles and I've been using a heat belt to keep the temperature constant.

Am I best letting the fermented mash cool before bottling (this would be a room temperature of about 14 deg, it's a cold house) ?

Or just transfer to bottles at the fermented temp' of 18 to 20 deg ?

I'm thinking, if transferred warm as it cools the plastic bottles will contract, but the secondary fermentation gas will expand in the contracted bottle without exploding !?

Or am I over thinking this ?

Thanks

 

[fluketamer]

not sure if mentioned before but double bottle wand halves the time it takes to bottle. also i second no rinse sanitizer. lastly brew smaller batches - jk
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/threads/double-barrel-bottling-now-twice-as-fast.257264/
from the sister site

 

[dad_of_jon]

My first ever bottling day is approaching ...... or the fermentation has stalled !!!! not been brave enough to peel the lid off yet and take a SG reading.

I've read a lot about various bottling methods but I have a question that doesn't seem to get a mention ......

I'm using plastic 500ml beer bottles and I've been using a heat belt to keep the temperature constant.

Am I best letting the fermented mash cool before bottling (this would be a room temperature of about 14 deg, it's a cold house) ?

Or just transfer to bottles at the fermented temp' of 18 to 20 deg ?

I'm thinking, if transferred warm as it cools the plastic bottles will contract, but the secondary fermentation gas will expand in the contracted bottle without exploding !?

Or am I over thinking this ?

Thanks

FWIW - I bottle at ambient temp in the house which can be 20-26c usually. this will mean when storing beer down the shed in summer there is less risk of expansion causing pressure as the headspace (lets say 20mm) in the bottle has been at similar temps. if you were to bottle at 14C with 20mm headspace then store in the shed in summertime you have less headspace due to expansion. plus remember that more co2 is in the beer at lower temps and now that would be coming out of solution at a higher temp to create a double whammy of thermal expansion plus co2 not remaining in the beer.

I cannot however vouch for the difference in the flavour of the beer the different approaches would make because I'd never bottle below 20c UNLESS I knew I was going to drink all the batch before the warmer weather came.

some of my brews have to ensure 2 summers down the shed.

 

[sifty]

You're over thinking it.

I've bottled at 20 degs, plus at 3 degs after a cold crash, then chucked em in a warm fermentation fridge at 20 degs. They handle it ok...

 

[MashBag]

Yup. Overthinking. Warmer gets secondary going faster obvs