Newbie Bottling Question

Never used them but I would feel confident they would work. When I bottle I try to use as many 12oz bottles as possible as it gives me the most opportunity to see how the homebrew is coming along without committing to 22-25oz.

 

It seems to me that the 750s don't accept standard bottle caps. They are a bit larger in diameter. I ran into this with some funkwerks bottles.

 

My motto... "If it doesn't fit, just push harder!"

 

Try them empty first. Haven't had the new gi bottles yet, but I know what you are talking about. A lot of seven fifties have a larger cap size which requires a larger bell...but some american seven fifties have a standard cap size. I would try them empty first and if they grab tight, you should be good. Welcome to your new obsession! Cheers!

 

This advice may prevent some real heartache. By all means practice before your precious beer is ready, even if using standard 12 ouncers. Once you think you have it down . . . fill a bottle with club soda or tonic and cap it. See how it holds pressure for a couple of weeks.

 

GI bottles have worked fine in the past for me. Watch the bottle neck design (all brands, not just GI), some are different, some work better than others, and some don't work at all.

Bombers make bottling faster, but 12ozers make sampling and giving away bottles easier. I use some of both every time. You need at least a few 12ozers for testing if it's ready.

More important than any of that is cleanliness. My standard is to rinse multiple times with hot water (shake well). Then dry upside down till completely dry. Then cover the top with a square of tinfoil until bottling day. This keeps bugs/dust out. If there's anything stuck in the bottom of the bottle, it's rejected. If I need a bottling brush to get a bottle clean, then it's too dirty in the first place, and is rejected.

Green flash's bottles are the best. SN also great (love the stubbies). Others work fine too. I haven't found a standard bomber I didn't like yet.

A bottling tree isn't necessary, but it's hugely helpful. Once I got one I wondered how I lived without it in the first place.

 

Most breweries use 750's that require a larger crown than the standard 12 oz bottles. The home-brewing shops usually carry 750's that that take a standard crown, but most of the breweries don't use those. All the 22 oz bottles I've run across do use the standard crown though.

 

I love using 12 oz stubbies as they fit perfectly in the dishwasher (longnecks too tall)... Set on high temp for sterilization and I've yet to experience an infected bottle...

 

You'll know if it caps or not. It'll just go on smooth. Stay away from stubbies, Sam Smith pint style, and from 750 mil bottles and you should be fine with just about any other crown cap (no threads on it)

Edit: For some reason my capper just chews up stubbies. I just gave up on them. You could test one if you want.

 

Don't be afraid to recap if you feel it is not tight enough or goes on weird. It is way better to be safe than sorry. The 750s are great for highly carbed beers like tripels and other Belgian styles, so it is worth investing in the larger crown if you are into those styles. I just don't think anything beats the keg for me though. Easy and always there for me no matter how full I want my glass!

 

OP: note that the standard (26mm?) capper won't do these.

 

I'm just getting in to homebrewing, haven't bottled anything yet but will next week. I have been saving many bottles and I have been thinking the Green Flash ones would be good since they were designed to handle more pressure. But I am also a little worried they might just make more dangerous bottle bombs if I do mess something up. Are these a good idea for a beginner to use or should I avoid the potential super powerful bottle bomb for now?

 

Only way you can really screw that up is to use too much priming sugar for bottling.

Check out this link. http://www.brewersfriend.com/beer-priming-calculator/

You'll be fine... Relax, don't worry. "Make" a homebrew! or have someone else's homebrew.

 

What GeckoPunk said. RDWHAHB.

Which bottles you use isn't very important. How clean those bottles are is VERY important. See my post earlier in this thread.

The green flash style bottles do seem to be a bit stronger, which comes in handy when bottling because it's possible to break the bottles while capping. It doesn't happen very often if you're careful, but every once in a while I still break one.

The amount of pressure they can hold should not be relevant if you weigh your priming sugar with a gram scale (or use pre-weighed bags of sugar). If you weigh it correctly you won't over-carb.

 

this is what i do, once i am satisfied that the bottles are clean enough, i put them in the dishwasher on high temp and run one or sometimes two cycles if i have the time before bottling, works like a charm