Have you seen the new aluminum bottles by Ball?

@TwistedElkBreweryLakeCityPA

7 ай бұрын

I have seen them online but have not tried to fill them. I don't think they would work with this counter pressure filler. They are really cool though!

Can you clarify if you need to manually shut off the fill at the right fill height or does the fill stop itself based on a blocked vent so you can take your time to close liquid supply and disconnect? Do you vent off counter pressure before removing bottle? Thanks.

@TwistedElkBreweryLakeCityPA

5 ай бұрын

This is a fully manual set up so you do have to shut the fill valve when liquid reaches the top. If you don't catch it right away it's not detrimental, it will just push beer out the PRV. You can vent off pressure before removing bottles if you want, but I don't find it necessary. Actually when you got it running smooth out of the BT at the right temp and pressure, you will want to release the bottle fast to help get a little foaming action so you can cap on foam and purge that air pocket off the top. This system does take a little practice to perfect it.

@etzeln

3 ай бұрын

@@TwistedElkBreweryLakeCityPA This is exactly what I was wondering regarding ability to cap on foam. Is it simply the speed at which you pull it off the filler that will produce foam at the end? Any other tips to get foam - faster fill? Have you ever tested DO and TPO to see how efficient this system is at keeping oxygen out?

@TwistedElkBreweryLakeCityPA

3 ай бұрын

@@etzeln Foam control can be a bit tricky on this system and has to do with many factors. C02 Volume plays a big role, if you overcarb the beer it can be very difficult to bottle because it will foam too much. Too little carb can make it harder to induce foam and you also end up with an under carbonated finish product. It will take a few batches to dial in your system process. I am planning a video soon dedicated to carbonation so keep an eye out for that one. Here is some other tips: 1. Increasing the fill speed (adjusting the pressure relief valve) will help induce foaming a bit and decreasing speed will help if you are getting too much foam. 2. TEMPERATURE is really important here. I like to get my BT at 32 before packaging. Cold beer less foam, warmer beer more foam. 3. BT head pressure plays a big role. I like to package at about 17-18 psi which helps keep co2 in solution. 4. If you have a good carb level, cold BT, and proper pressure and need to induce foaming to fill headspace then one trick I've done is pulling the bottle off fast and setting it down a little harder before capping. You can also give the bottle a little shake before you pop it off. I did have some bottles tested a long time ago for D/O and they were pretty good but I don't remember exactly what the numbers were. This is going to depend greatly on the operator and how well you perform the bottling session. This is the downside of this system but I have used this for over 2 years with great results before moving to my canning machine. I hope this helps you out!