Newbie question about Brubox, bottling etc

[adamjth]

Hi,

Been lurking here for a while as I have been thinking about brewing and I just ordered the BruBox London Bitter Starter Kit(+Bavarian Wheat Beer) to ease my way in whilst I am saving bottles up and persuading my missus that I will not make a complete mess of the kitchen/calm her misgivings about storage space. If I make a success of the Brubox I might buy some kit but in the meantime I am wondering if it is possible to bottle up the Brubox beer in regular bottle as oposed to serving up draught style from the container? Also as I start to save up bottles are there any particular bottles I should avoid i.e most of mine empties are like regular english beers like Thumper, Speckled hen, Spitfire, Bishops Finger etc. Also can anyone recc' a good crown capping tool on a budget? Is this one any good:- http://www.thethriftyshopper.co.uk/brew ... -Caps.aspx


thanks (and if any of the infos I have asked is already out there please point me to it)

Adam

[Garth]

if you're getting a two handed capper avoid anything with an odd neck, Wychwood, Batemans etc, they can be capped but with great difficulty, try Hop and Grape for cheaper two handed, or ffor a tenner more than that one you have linked to, a bench capper (they will cap anything)

as for bottles themsleves, avoid anything made from clear glass, such as some of those you've mentioned, UV light can damage beer and make it taste off, brown glass can protect against this, also the thicker the glass the better, some bottles seem to be wafer thin these days to save on materials and transportation costs.

here is a thread about some of the better types of bottles to use. http://jimsbeerkit.co.uk/forum/viewtopi ... =6&t=29385

[bigdave]

Seems as were on bottling, Ive got some budweiser bottles at home, are they ok to use (theyre not on the list)?

[Garth]

Personaly I'd avoid thinish bottles like that, they still hold the same kind of carbonation, whether artificial or created in the bottle from a secondary, it's just there are stronger bottles out there that can take a bit more knocking about. I've dropped empty thick bottles on the garage and tiled kitchen floor and they've bounced. I doubt whether a Bud or likewise bottle would do that. When they are full they break regardless of thickness........!

I suppose if you did overprime or have a lot of yeast making loads of CO2, having a thicker glass bottle may stop an explosive bottle bomb.