Bottling Bag?

[HerbieHowells]

Getting ready to bottle my first batch over the weekend, assuming I can empty a few more bottles this week. I have viewed the very helpful bottling guide in the sticky section above, and I understand that I am probably trying to build a better mousetrap here, but I have an idea stuck in my head and I have to ask. Suppose I was to go to the local Army/Navy store and get one of those plastic collapsible five gallon water jugs with spigots on the caps. I wash and sanitize the bag and spigot, add my priming mixture, and then siphon in my beer. I then screw on the spigot cap, attach a hose to the spigot, and a bottling wand to the hose. Have I created a simple, easy to store bottling bucket, or am I asking for my beer to oxidize or go spilling out all over my floor?

 

[Kaz]

I don't know about the spilling. The first thing that pops out at me is difficulty in sanitizing. The folds and nooks and crannies in the bag would/could be difficult to get into and run the risk of some bugs staying stuck in there.

 

[Revvy]

The second ting that jump up at me is that it might only hold 5 gallons, and not allow you to put exactly 5 gallons into it with spilling or dumping. It doesn't leave you much room if 5 gallons is to the brim of the bag. With a rigid sided bucket it actually holds more than 5 gallons if you're careful not to slosh.

I mean it's worth a try. Part of this hobby is about experimentation.

The other issue is that most of us have gotten away from the hose to bottling wand thing, because being able to sit up, at right in front of the raised bucket is easier than sitting on the floor manipulating a wand on a hose.

 

[IrregularPulse]

I think you're complicating a simple bottling bucket for the purpose of being different. Plus, in a bag, I'm not sure how great of a swirling motion you'd get while siphoning the wort on the the priming solution to mix it up.

 

[Homercidal]

If having an easy to store container for bottling is important enough to risk infection, or to mess with what I would think would be more trouble to clean and use, then by all means, give it a shot.

 

[HerbieHowells]

So it is your position, Homercidal, that the "bottling bag" would have a higher risk of infection. Is that for the reasons stated up thread, or do you have a different theory?