Big Flea Posted January 1, 2013 Share Posted January 1, 2013 I must be the worst 1st time brewer ever! Got my 1st kit for xmas and started to bottle today. In my wisdom I have put my PET bottles in the dishwaser. They have disformed and shrinked in size! Were I came from we usally say a "BOER MAAK n PLAN" (a farmer makes a plan). Luckily there was alot of emty wine bottles after xmas and I used them to bottle my brew. Hope it will still work. Will do my second brew tomorrow, a APA. What tips and tricks is there? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hairy Posted January 1, 2013 Share Posted January 1, 2013 I must be the worst 1st time brewer ever! Got my 1st kit for xmas and started to bottle today. In my wisdom I have put my PET bottles in the dishwaser. They have disformed and shrinked in size! Were I came from we usally say a "BOER MAAK n PLAN" (a farmer makes a plan). Luckily there was alot of emty wine bottles after xmas and I used them to bottle my brew. Hope it will still work. Will do my second brew tomorrow' date=' a APA. What tips and tricks is there?[/quote'] Ha ha [biggrin] Welcome aboard Big Flea. At least you won't (hopefully) do that again. Hot tap water is usually fine but, as you have learned, the dishwasher is a touch too hot. I don't know much about wine bottles; are they designed for carbonated drinks? If not keep an eye on them. Also, just to make you feel better, you aren't the first person to disfigure their PET bottles in the dishwasher and it isn't a first brew unless you stuff something up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick Posted January 1, 2013 Share Posted January 1, 2013 I must be the worst 1st time brewer ever! Got my 1st kit for xmas and started to bottle today. In my wisdom I have put my PET bottles in the dishwaser. They have disformed and shrinked in size! Were I came from we usally say a "BOER MAAK n PLAN" (a farmer makes a plan). Luckily there was alot of emty wine bottles after xmas and I used them to bottle my brew. Hope it will still work. Will do my second brew tomorrow' date=' a APA. What tips and tricks is there?[/quote'] Hi there BF, as long as the bottles were sanitised and seal ok, you should be right. Just make sure that you prime with the right amount of sugar or carb drops or you could have problems with exploding bottles. You also need to make sure that fermentation has finished or you can have the same problem. Were you sure fermentation was complete? Its only been a week. One way to make sure is for you to take SG readings 24 hours apart, if they are the same, you will be good to go. This is very important mate. I would avoid the dishwasher or any soapy detergent, that could flatten your beer if not rinsed properly. There are heaps of threads on this subject that will help. Check out the FAQ's on this site, that will be a good start for you and will give you answers to most newbie questions. Good luck with the APA, its a great kit beer[biggrin] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Flea Posted January 1, 2013 Author Share Posted January 1, 2013 Halo Hairy & Nick, Thank you for the advice. S.G reading was the same for last two days 1,014. Made double sure that bottles are clean and use correct carb drops per volume and sealed them properly.[pinched] Only had to get rid of 5 origanal PET bottles due to disformation. Will wait now and see what happens. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 1, 2013 Share Posted January 1, 2013 on the upside...least you can tell the doc youve cut down on ya drinking lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 1, 2013 Share Posted January 1, 2013 Hello Big Flea & welcome to the forum. In regards to bottling your beer in wine bottles... I was told by someone many years ago, that the grade of glass used in bottling sparkling wines (Champagnes) is required to be of a certified standard to be able to withstand the pressure build up inside the bottle due to the carbonation of the wine. [rightful] I am not sure that the bottles used for flat wines are required to meet those same standards. That tells me that most likely, a flat wine bottle has an increased chance of weakening under the pressures brought on by the process of carbonation. Thus it has more potential to explode. One of our other forum members, or indeed our forum moderator "PB2" may be able to shed some more detailed facts about the actual strength of the glass used in flat wine bottles & whether they are suited to bottling beer in them. I personally wouldn't use them for the reasons I've stated. I'm fine with being corrected on my view here. [cool] Anthony. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick Posted January 1, 2013 Share Posted January 1, 2013 I am not sure that the bottles used for flat wines are required to meet those same standards. That tells me that most likely' date=' a flat wine bottle has an increased chance of weakening under the pressures brought on by the process of carbonation. Thus it has more potential to explode.[/quote'] You are most likely on the money lusty, the best thing to do with the wine bottles BF, is to put then in something secure for a couple of weeks. Hopefully they will be fine, plenty of non refillable stubbies are pretty thin[roll] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Otto Von Blotto Posted January 1, 2013 Share Posted January 1, 2013 One way to make sure is for you to take SG readings 24 hours apart' date=' if they are the same, you will be good to go. [/quote'] It should be noted that this may not always be the case due to stalled fermentations occurring. Most of the time, you're pretty right, but if you get two SG readings the same and they are higher than what the FG is expected to be then I wouldn't be bottling it because it may not be finished, which of course can lead to bottle grenades. [ninja] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mattrox Posted January 1, 2013 Share Posted January 1, 2013 Sparkling wine bottles "should" work well. They use crown seals in a bottle ferment of sparkling wines then freeze the frothy top at the end of this, Then they open the crown seals and purge the froth then cork, or something similar to that anyway. I have thought of using these to bottle up part of a brew and if it turns out special I can make a label and take to friends for dinner etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Otto Von Blotto Posted January 1, 2013 Share Posted January 1, 2013 I've used glass Coca-Cola crown seal bottles before, I figure if they can handle the pressure of that then beer should be a piece of piss (so to speak), the only problem is, they're clear. [pinched] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Canadian Eh!L Posted January 2, 2013 Share Posted January 2, 2013 I would say there would be more of an issue with the corks popping or if they are twist caps then the pressure most likely will leak out over time. Either way I don't think the bottles with explode.[unsure] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LordEoin Posted January 2, 2013 Share Posted January 2, 2013 I use normal twisty top wine bottles for elderflower champagne and they're fine. Corked wine bottles can be a problem though as the pressure will slowly push the cork out. Provided you didn't over carbonate you shouldn't have any problems, but best to keep them somewhere where they wont do damage if they do pop, just in case. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 2, 2013 Share Posted January 2, 2013 I use normal twisty top wine bottles for elderflower champagne and they're fine. Corked wine bottles can be a problem though as the pressure will slowly push the cork out. Provided you didn't over carbonate you shouldn't have any problems, but best to keep them somewhere where they wont do damage if they do pop, just in case. Ah the good lord your a fan of elderflower ever tried it in beer? Here is a video i watched a few years back seems interesting. http://www.basicbrewing.com/index.php?page=february-24-2010---elderflower-ale-and-elderberry-mead Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PB2 Posted January 2, 2013 Share Posted January 2, 2013 Normal flat wine will push a cork out of the bottle if the pressure builds up - learnt this the hard way when I left a couple of bottles in the back of a rental hatch-back during a hot day [roll] ...and yes, most wine bottles have very thin walls, too thin for carbonated beverages. As the secondary fermentation progresses: I would expect the corks to push out gradually, not at all because of a leak or become projectiles [sideways] Champagne (style) bottles work well as a vessel for beer. The crown seal, referred to as a tirage, is larger than the normal beer bottle seal and most good brewing or wine stores should carry the seals and the capper (or at least the tirage bell). Bottle FAQ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Flea Posted January 2, 2013 Author Share Posted January 2, 2013 Wow, thank you for all the replies! This must be the first forum I ever belonge to and get all this good advice. Cheers! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AdamH1525226084 Posted January 2, 2013 Share Posted January 2, 2013 Champagne (style) bottles work well as a vessel for beer. The crown seal, referred to as a tirage, is larger than the normal beer bottle seal and most good brewing or wine stores should carry the seals and the capper (or at least the tirage bell). Been wondering about that PB2, with Christmas drinks in champagne style bottles, and noticed the bigger tops. The standard bench capper won't work? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick Posted January 2, 2013 Share Posted January 2, 2013 Wow' date=' thank you for all the replies! This must be the first forum I ever belonge to and get all this good advice. Cheers![/quote'] there are a lot of very experienced brewers here and you will always get good advice, you will see who they are over time. But most of us are just trying to make decent homebrew and have a laugh on the way. Anyway welcome BF, it is a good forum community to be part of. Nick Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hairy Posted January 2, 2013 Share Posted January 2, 2013 Wow' date=' thank you for all the replies! This must be the first forum I ever belonge to and get all this good advice. Cheers![/quote'] there are a lot of very experienced brewers here and you will always get good advice, you will see who they are over time. But most of us are just trying to make decent homebrew and have a laugh on the way. Anyway welcome BF, it is a good forum community to be part of. Nick And if PB2 takes the time to comment and offer advice then make sure you listen to it [rightful] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AdamH1525226084 Posted January 2, 2013 Share Posted January 2, 2013 And if PB2 takes the time to comment and offer advice then make sure you listen to it [rightful] Didn't you or someone say his availability depends on when the cricket is on? [lol] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hairy Posted January 2, 2013 Share Posted January 2, 2013 Yeah but there is always a lunch and tea break. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Otto Von Blotto Posted January 2, 2013 Share Posted January 2, 2013 I wish my availability could depend on when the cricket was on, I'd only work an hour a day! [lol] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NewtownClown Posted January 3, 2013 Share Posted January 3, 2013 Champagne (style) bottles work well as a vessel for beer. The crown seal, referred to as a tirage, is larger than the normal beer bottle seal and most good brewing or wine stores should carry the seals and the capper (or at least the tirage bell). Been wondering about that PB2, with Christmas drinks in champagne style bottles, and noticed the bigger tops. The standard bench capper won't work? The bench capper itself works but the standard bell wont seal TIRAGE caps. A TIRAGE BELL is, as PB2 replied, available at good home brew stores. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PB2 Posted January 4, 2013 Share Posted January 4, 2013 It's lunch on Day 2 at the SCG [biggrin] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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