Cheap swing top bottles used - are they ok or should i rebottle?

[edward service]

Hey gang,

Have I totally cooked it? First brew - I have made a delightful smelling and tasting pale ale brew from a grain recipe from a friend. After three weeks in primary fermentation I was struggling to find time to bottle, for some reason had an obsession to bottle in glass and as my local brew shop was closed I went to Kmart and got some of these swing top guys.


https://www.kmart.com.au/product/1l-clip-top-bottle/2410303


Only after bottling did I research and realise that the quality of the bottle is critical and that these bottles may either (a) not be able to hold the gas and not carbonate properly or (b) bottle bomb.


Any advice? Should I transfer to new bottles and risk oxidising the brew? Should I wait and just see what happens?


I have used two coopers drops per liter (a little less than recommended) and it is pretty cold in Melbourne atm so shouldn’t be going too nutso.

 

[Jag75]

Well since you already have them filled I would put them inside a box or something to protect incase of bottle bombs. I wouldn't use clear bottles in the future if I were you , unless you do a Mexican Lager and want to skunk. Or skunk any beer at that. You could spray starsan on the lid to see if they leak . What I'm more fascinated by is the fact that Kmart is still around lol.

 

[El Nino]

Should be fine but second the not using clear bottles. And yeah if you're worried about bottle bombs, put them in a container. I usually put all my bottled beers in a cooler for about 5-6 days until they're ready. If they explode they have a couple layers of plastic to get through (though thankfully hasn't happened yet).

A good number of people use flip-tops for the convenience, but I hear over time they stop sealing as well. Just keep an eye on them and you should be fine though. But after enough uses (depending on the quality of the caps), you'll have to replace them.

To make bottling a little more convenient, you could also use bombers (22 oz bottles). I've been buying 22 oz beers lately to build a collection of bombers, basically halves the amount of bottles you need to clean, fill, and cap. Also perfect size for drinking, since I'm the type of dude that can't only just have one, but two (or one bomber) is fine

 

[Kharnynb]

I've used similar bottles for cider, they should hold carbing fine, unless you went for overboard on priming sugar.
Other than that, clear bottles are annoying because you have to keep em in a box or such all the time to not skunk.

I tend to buy half liter beer flip-top bottles "used", but tend to keep a bunch of new rubber gaskets for exchanging.

El nino, there is no point in replacing the bottle when all you have to do is exchange a 5 cent gasket.

 

[HB2 HughBHomeBrew]

Well since you already have them filled I would put them inside a box or something to protect incase of bottle bombs. I wouldn't use clear bottles in the future if I were you , unless you do a Mexican Lager and want to skunk. Or skunk any beer at that. You could spray starsan on the lid to see if they leak . What I'm more fascinated by is the fact that Kmart is still around lol.

Yep. Ditto on the beer advice and the Kmart comment. Kmart - who knew!

 

[BrewnWKopperKat]

FWIW, a bottle bomb picture: https://www.homebrewtalk.com/forum/threads/fixing-bottle-bombs.341768/#post-4286136

 

[MaaZeus]

Contrary to the naysayers here, there is nothing wrong in using clear bottles as long as you keep them away from sunlight. Which most of us probably do, in a closet or a fridge.

Anyway, those cheap clear bottles are usually meant for water, juice or wine and therefore made from rather thin glass which cannot stand a lot of pressure. I would be careful around them, hell I would probably transfer them to cheap PET soda bottles ASAP if you do not have access to better stuff in short notice.

 

[Hoppy2bmerry]

You’ll be fine, unless you have purchased a defective bottle, and they just aren’t made for pressure.
A year or two ago Trader Joe’s recalled a ginger ale in a swing top because some reportedly exploded. (Bottles made for that purpose) There are many threads “debating” this topic. I also know of a Pepsi delivery guy that had a crate of glass bottles and one blew, injuring his hand badly enough that he lost it. Theses occurrences happen rarely, but for the safety of ourselves, family and friends, we must follow best practices.

Oh, and welcome to the forum!

 

[Jag75]

When it comes to bottle bombs , is it only the first week that's the crucial time or is it until its cracked open ? I wonder if at first it's high pressure but then settles down after a week or so

 

[MaxStout]

When it comes to bottle bombs , is it only the first week that's the crucial time or is it until its cracked open ? I wonder if at first it's high pressure but then settles down after a week or so

Once a certain volume of the gas has been produced by the yeast it's there to stay until you open it. Some of the CO2 will go back into solution if you chill them, so putting them in the fridge will reduce the pressure somewhat (and the fridge will provide protection if any of them do burst). That would make a mess inside the fridge, but that's better than getting hit with glass shards.

 

[Hoppy2bmerry]

When it comes to bottle bombs , is it only the first week that's the crucial time or is it until its cracked open ? I wonder if at first it's high pressure but then settles down after a week or so

Some of my brews continue to carbonate over time, they don’t taste or smell contaminated to me, so it is possible they weren’t quite done fermenting at bottling or I have read something to do with calcium (unfortunately I don’t recall the details) that could be the cause. Anyway, my capper would leave a depression, so if I see it bulging I know it’s going in the over carbed direction. I refrigerate it , open it over the sink, and drink it— so far so good.