Plastic or glass bottles

[DavidDetroit]

the News

I've gone off the news completely. I don't miss it one bit. If there's anything important I need to know like a recall on a certain brand of LME, my wife will tell me. I was getting pretty worked up over here with you-know-who in the you-know-what house.

 

[Druncan]

Hi, If you know Gin drinkers (hic) get yersel some mt 1 litre tonic/bitter lemon/ginger beer bottles. Been up-cycling them for years for my samples and overflow. As @dad_of_jon says you can check carbing and easily see if the Gyle has cleared and very light weight. Keep in the warm dark to protect first then fridge before quaffing and if they get skanky looking recycle!
Got glass flip tops for posh occasions though and now ecofass kegs, still like my 1l plastic up-cyclers Yet another 46l done tonight, to add to the 185l stock just to get me through F'n brexit,, and @Slid yup, helps protect my sanity,, but not my liver @terrym ,,, Now back to sanitisation with choons rocking!

 

[cushyno]

In my experience glass bottles are way better than plastic. Though some plastic bottles differ in their ability to keep my beer fresh. I swear that the cheaper plastic bottles I have aren't as good as the Coopers ones, even though there wasn't much difference in price. I'm sure the cheaper bottles have some oxygen permeability as the beer tastes oxidised quicker.

 

[Chippy_Tea]

I swear that the cheaper plastic bottles I have aren't as good as the Coopers ones,

Coopers bottles have a barrier to help stop oxygen ingress obviously cheap bottles that are not designed to hold beer wont have the same.




Coopers Pet Bottles ( Ox-Bar ) 24 x 500ml

Coopers PET bottles are sold in packs of 24 with caps. They are reusable, lightweight and shatterproof.
Oxygen Baring ( Ox-Bar ) These can be re-used a number of times but will not last forever

Remember the slogan, "Good things come in glass" This slogan is also true for your brew but finding good quality glass beer bottles is a very difficult task for the new home brewer. Now PET plastics technology has evolved to a level which allows home brew to be stored effectively.
Coopers PET bottles are;
reusable, lightweight, easy to clean, shatterproof, U.V. protective, Oxygen Baring

 

[HarryFlatters]

I've got a mix of Grolsch and random Amazon flip top glass bottles and Cooper PET, they're both fine as far as I'm aware. For whatever reason, I like to put stout into the glass bottles and lager and wheat beers into PET.

I've no idea why.

 

[An Ankoù]

Perhaps too much of what I say is tongue -in-cheek. But then I look at the News and realise that it may be the only hold I have on sanity.

That's about my take on life, too.
Don't want to go down Marvin's (TPA) route if that can be avoided.

 

[An Ankoù]

Coopers PET bottles are;
reusable, lightweight, easy to clean, shatterproof, U.V. protective, Oxygen Baring

Youngs do them, too. They take crown corks and the crowns come with them. £9.95 for 24. I got some from BrewUK out of curiosity. They seem to work. Carrying a crate of beer is much lighter.
Incidentally I've got half a dozen 500ml Perrier bottles which I use over and over again. I'm astonished that after possibly 20 uses, the screw on caps continue to seal perfectly.

 

[Mastersmithson]

Youngs do them, too. They take crown corks and the crowns come with them. £9.95 for 24. I got some from BrewUK out of curiosity. They seem to work. Carrying a crate of beer is much lighter.
Incidentally I've got half a dozen 500ml Perrier bottles which I use over and over again. I'm astonished that after possibly 20 uses, the screw on caps continue to seal perfectly.

I'll have s butcher at those, thanks!

With cleaning the bottles, do we use the sterilising chems or can we just feel the dishwasher and put it on high heat?

Alsooooooo, how do these look?

https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?mpre=https://www.ebay.co.uk/ulk/itm/271222053634

 

[An Ankoù]

I'll have s butcher at those, thanks!

With cleaning the bottles, do we use the sterilising chems or can we just feel the dishwasher and put it on high heat?

Alsooooooo, how do these look?

https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?mpre=https://www.ebay.co.uk/ulk/itm/271222053634

They're glass bottles. Don't look very heavy weight, but should be ok with care. Dirty bottles are easy to clean: just chuck them in a bucket of bleach solution then rinse in the morning. Once clean- keep them clean. I don't know if you can get 50 or 60 bottles in a dishwasher, but it doesn't seem like an efficient method to me.

 

[melhaer]

I think the dishwasher is too hot and plastic bottles would be deformed.

However I am washing glass bottles - 20 - in the dishwasher and it is perfect, fast and easy.

I am buying plastic bottles 1 liters from a local supplier in Sofia, Bulgaria - 30 euro cents per bottle. Once the bottle is opened and the cap is ruined do you think I can use it again?

I usually bottle some beer in swing top bottles to save from capping, some beer in normal glass bottles for friends as I don't want to pass my swing tops, and some beer in PET to use it when travel for a weekend or vacation and don't want to cary glass.

 

[terrym]

I think the dishwasher is too hot and plastic bottles would be deformed.

However I am washing glass bottles - 20 - in the dishwasher and it is perfect, fast and easy.

I am buying plastic bottles 1 liters from a local supplier in Sofia, Bulgaria - 30 euro cents per bottle. Once the bottle is opened and the cap is ruined do you think I can use it again?

I usually bottle some beer in swing top bottles to save from capping, some beer in normal glass bottles for friends as I don't want to pass my swing tops, and some beer in PET to use it when travel for a weekend or vacation and don't want to cary glass.

Don't use hot water to clean your PET bottles. Cold mains water and sterilizer are fine for cleaning.
Any PET bottles that have held a fizzy drink can be used for beer, and then re-used. I use PET bottles that have previously held tonic water or mineral water and they keep pressure and because they are pressurised are unlikely to get oxygen leaking in during the normal three or four months I keep my beer, in spite of what others would have you believe. I have kept beer in a PET bottle for 12 months and it was neither oxidised or depressurised.

 

[Mastersmithson]

I hear capping keeps coming up, does it have a negative effect or is it just more effort.

 

[An Ankoù]

I am buying plastic bottles 1 liters from a local supplier in Sofia, Bulgaria - 30 euro cents per bottle. Once the bottle is opened and the cap is ruined do you think I can use it again?

In what way is the cap ruined? Isn't it just a screw on cap?
I've used Perrier bottles over and over again. I'm amazed they continue to seal and that I've never had a failure, but there it is.
I've just got some Youngs PET beer bottles that take a crown cap. I'm assured they can be used over and over again, too. With a new cap, of course. I got them out of curiosity and I'm pleased that a crate of beer is now so much lighter to carry. How many times they can be recapped I don't yet know.

 

[melhaer]

In what way is the cap ruined? Isn't it just a screw on cap?
I've used Perrier bottles over and over again. I'm amazed they continue to seal and that I've never had a failure, but there it is.
I've just got some Youngs PET beer bottles that take a crown cap. I'm assured they can be used over and over again, too. With a new cap, of course. I got them out of curiosity and I'm pleased that a crate of beer is now so much lighter to carry. How many times they can be recapped I don't yet know.

When opened first time it is splitted in two - the top, which is the cap and a small bottom part, like 2 mm, and that's why I am not sure if I need to find a brand new never used cap, or I can still use this?

 

[melhaer]

I hear capping keeps coming up, does it have a negative effect or is it just more effort.

I would prefer to use swing tops or PET, but I also bottle with normal bottles and caps to give some beers to friends, as I want to save swings for myself.

Yesterday I just found that some crap caps flatted like 5-6 beers form one of my last brews Same brew different caps are untouchable, but these new are may be too soft...and this is also one of the reasons not to like capping:)

 

[An Ankoù]

When opened first time it is splitted in two - the top, which is the cap and a small bottom part, like 2 mm, and that's why I am not sure if I need to find a brand new never used cap, or I can still use this?

Easy to test. Empty one of the bottles and half fill it with something fizzy like lemonade. Put the cap on. Shake it up a bit until the bottle becomes rigid. If it holds its pressure it'll be ok for beer.

 

[Llamaman]

When opened first time it is splitted in two - the top, which is the cap and a small bottom part, like 2 mm, and that's why I am not sure if I need to find a brand new never used cap, or I can still use this?

The 2mm strip is a tamper-evident seal.
It’s of no use for homebrew for personal consumption. I cut them off after the first use as they just get in the way.

 

[Hopperty]

I think the dishwasher is too hot and plastic bottles would be deformed.

However I am washing glass bottles - 20 - in the dishwasher and it is perfect, fast and easy.

I am buying plastic bottles 1 liters from a local supplier in Sofia, Bulgaria - 30 euro cents per bottle. Once the bottle is opened and the cap is ruined do you think I can use it again?

I usually bottle some beer in swing top bottles to save from capping, some beer in normal glass bottles for friends as I don't want to pass my swing tops, and some beer in PET to use it when travel for a weekend or vacation and don't want to cary glass.

how do you get them to stand upside down ?

I often stick 2 or 3 in but it always seems a bit precarious (makes a good job of cleaning them though)

 

[Gerryjo]

The questions you ask are on par for a new brewer any beyond.
Flip-tops are something to consider. You can fill with one hand and close with the other making them faster than capping or twisting on. I've never had a leak because I make sure the gaskets aren't worn. The rubber gaskets have to be replaced periodically. I consider the 1/2 liter size a bonus.
I'd like to hear from someone who is experienced with pressure barrels to give the pros and cons on them. My perception from this forum is that PBs are not all that reliable, need tweaking to work properly or, at least, are high maintenance.

I have one pressure barrel which when I first used it it leaked something terrible and it was brand new.Run a few checks on gasket due to overtighten but have no issues since.
I have fitted an S30 so as I can carb from the gas bottle using an airline I adapted but shall shortly be changing that to a ball lock gas post and a pressure gauge so as not to go above their max rating of 15psi.

 

[DavidDetroit]

pressure barrel

Thanks for the info.
I only bottle and therefore have just a passing knowledge of kegs and even less on pressure barrels. I haven't seen any mention of pressure barrels on the sister site (Homebrewtalk) though PBs are regularly mentioned here. Why not just use kegs or just use PBs? PBs and kegs do nearly the same thing as far as I can tell. Is it just that PBs have a different purpose or something like that?
I could give the pros and cons of bottling vs kegging since I've read so many threads on the subject, but what would you say are the pros and cons of a pressure barrel, itself, or even PBs vs steel kegs?