We are planning a small get together of vaccinated friends and one told my wife she has been saving bottles for me for a year. I'm scared what that is going to look like.
Used wine bottles
- Thread starter Ivywoods
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Now that is discipline!
I have 4 cases of wine I made for my niece, who lives in another state. In return she has 5 cases of empties for me ... when we eventually see each other again, I'll be doing a lot of soaking!
EDIT: Last year my future daughter-in-law got 5 cases of used bottles from the free section of Facebook Marketplace, including 2 cases of beautiful blue bottles from a local meadery. It took a week elapsed time, but I got them done months before bottling.
Not all bottles were clean, so I flushed them all with hot water, then soaked in Oxyclean in hot water. Most glues release from heat as well as chemical, so usage of hot water makes a difference. All bottles got a a bottle-brush treatment and passed a visual inspection. [I visually inspect again before bottling.]
I normally use Bordeaux bottles, but purchased 2 cases of Chardonnay bottles yesterday, as I'm making wine for the upcoming reception. With tax those bottles were $30/case ... soaking used bottles is financially effective!
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Best, cooking sprays, they are formulated with lecithin (solubility agent with hydrophobic and hydrophilic ends) which means they are easy to get off the clean bottle, as a runner up, olive oil contains a lot of interesting molecules that are soluble.
Scooter68
Fruit "Wine" Maker
Wine making is not something I am doing year round 'actively.' I typically start several batches in the summer time or early fall. I will sometimes start a few batches mid-winter (From wine bases) The rest of the time I'm just overseeing the aging process and planning for the bottling time.
So typically when I am "Fired Up" in wine making mode, is the best time for me to gather bottles. Also during our once a month trips to our recycling center I take some time to browse through the bins of glass bottles. For me the best days seem to be Saturday, Sunday, Monday, And Tuesday. Days after greatest consumption of wines when people are cleaning up afterwards. Funny thing is I have tor resist the temptation to pickup the strange or oddly shaped bottles that appear now and then. Best find was 10 bottles of the Cote Des Roses bottles shaped like a rose with a GLASS STOPPER. That's a whole story in itself I posted hear about a year ago or more.
So typically when I am "Fired Up" in wine making mode, is the best time for me to gather bottles. Also during our once a month trips to our recycling center I take some time to browse through the bins of glass bottles. For me the best days seem to be Saturday, Sunday, Monday, And Tuesday. Days after greatest consumption of wines when people are cleaning up afterwards. Funny thing is I have tor resist the temptation to pickup the strange or oddly shaped bottles that appear now and then. Best find was 10 bottles of the Cote Des Roses bottles shaped like a rose with a GLASS STOPPER. That's a whole story in itself I posted hear about a year ago or more.
I have found that some, but not many, labels will come off after soaking in water, but many will not. For those, I rub some olive oil on the outside and let it set overnight. I might need to re-apply the olive oil a few times. With that method, some labels peel right off, others can be removed without too much trouble. Then I use a plastic putty knife to scrape off the rest of the glue and clean with soap and water.
If I can't remove the labels that way, I recycle the bottles. In a few cases with bottles I really wanted I scraped the labels off and removed the glue with naphtha (lighter fluid). That part I will only do outside because it has a strong odor and is highly flammable.
I may have to try oxyclean. It seems that a lot of people are using that.
If I can't remove the labels that way, I recycle the bottles. In a few cases with bottles I really wanted I scraped the labels off and removed the glue with naphtha (lighter fluid). That part I will only do outside because it has a strong odor and is highly flammable.
I may have to try oxyclean. It seems that a lot of people are using that.
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OTOH, if the gummy area on the bottle is the same size as my labels, or smaller, I put my label over the gummy area.
I use 2T of B-Brite in a fermentor-sized bucket filled with bottles and hot water. I leave it for 1-5 days. Tried keeping a heater on it to keep the water warm, also tried switching with new hot water. I've also used running hot water as I scraped with a 6" wide putty knife but the hot water made the glue gummy. Using a scouring pad would cause the gummy glue to stick stick to it.
So, weighing time and effort, I now soak them in the hot/turning to cold water solution for at least 1 day, then leaving bottle cold, I scrape lengthwise with a rocking (or sometimes sawing) back and forth motion and 90% of the labels come off in one piece with the glue. Any residual glue I scrape the length of the bottle and almost never use a scouring pad. The bottles are glue-free when I'm done.
I agree with others that some bottle labels will be floating in the bucket when I'm ready to deal with them, and of the ones you have to scrape some come off easily while on the same bottle (like @Scooter68 said) the second label I'll have to work at. Finally, wondering if B-Brite might be very similar to Oxyclean? No ingredients listed on the container.
So, weighing time and effort, I now soak them in the hot/turning to cold water solution for at least 1 day, then leaving bottle cold, I scrape lengthwise with a rocking (or sometimes sawing) back and forth motion and 90% of the labels come off in one piece with the glue. Any residual glue I scrape the length of the bottle and almost never use a scouring pad. The bottles are glue-free when I'm done.
I agree with others that some bottle labels will be floating in the bucket when I'm ready to deal with them, and of the ones you have to scrape some come off easily while on the same bottle (like @Scooter68 said) the second label I'll have to work at. Finally, wondering if B-Brite might be very similar to Oxyclean? No ingredients listed on the container.
Scooter68
Fruit "Wine" Maker
If you have the patience you can also try putting hot water in the bottle and keeping the label (s) dry. Some will peel off cleanly from a warm/hot bottle. If not, then you can put them into the sink, bucket or cleaning container to soak.
My goal is to not ever (To reasonable extent at least) use anything on the outside of the bottle, that I wouldn't use to clean the inside. Just not worth the headache of trying to make sure that the paint thinner, goo-gone or whatever isn't lingering inside that bottle. Some folks don't mind using it, but between the cost of the stronger adhesive removers, the trouble to apply and clean them off and the risk, I'd just rather return those bottles to recycling bins and find others with easier label removing requirements.
My goal is to not ever (To reasonable extent at least) use anything on the outside of the bottle, that I wouldn't use to clean the inside. Just not worth the headache of trying to make sure that the paint thinner, goo-gone or whatever isn't lingering inside that bottle. Some folks don't mind using it, but between the cost of the stronger adhesive removers, the trouble to apply and clean them off and the risk, I'd just rather return those bottles to recycling bins and find others with easier label removing requirements.
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When I first started making wine from kits a read an article on line about the process. It was before I found this forum. In the article he talked about bottles. The comment that stuck with me was "If you cannot collect 30 empty wine bottles you may want to find a different hobby." I rarely buy bottles. It's just my nature to repurpose.
balatonwine
The Verecund Vigneron
Caught my finger once in one of my bike disk breaks when it was up on the bike stand for repairs. It neatly sheered off the top of my finger.
Yes. Everyone: Be careful. And aware. Around issues as already stated, but also around any rotating machines, tools, or other things. And there are a lot of those rotating things in wine making, especially during the crush, but not limited to that time.
But even non-rotating things -- my left glove is full of cuts now from trimming vines, as I hold the canes in my left hand, and the cutter in my right hand.
But even non-rotating things -- my left glove is full of cuts now from trimming vines, as I hold the canes in my left hand, and the cutter in my right hand.
I keep my pruning shears sharp and always end up with a bloody cut during harvest. The most annoying part of cut hands is you cannot do any work in dirt or water.
[QUOTE="CDrew, post: 782621, After just a few years, it will reach equilibrium and I'll only need to buy enough to replace give-away bottles.
[/QUOTE]
Ha hav I have a rule if I give a bottle away. I always tell my friends they can keep the wine but I want the bottle back.
[/QUOTE]
Ha hav I have a rule if I give a bottle away. I always tell my friends they can keep the wine but I want the bottle back.
berrycrush
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Oven 250 F 15 minutes, peel off label, wipe off glue with WD-40, wash in dishwasher.
And that works for you? I gave upHa hav I have a rule if I give a bottle away. I always tell my friends they can keep the wine but I want the bottle back.
It does for me. Bottle not returned, no more wine! It's been about 98% effective.
June Cerrito
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I use hot water and Washing Soda. I fill the bottles with hot water and submerge them in a bucket of hot water with a handful of Washing Soda. Seems to work for most bottles and it is non toxic. Washing Soda can be found in the supermarket next to detergents. In a pinch, baking soda can be used, just use more of it.
New wine bottles by the case are about $1 per bottle.
Old bottles with paper labels- I simply soak the bottles, on their side so not much water is needed, and the labels pretty easily are scrapped off with a butter knife. I finish up with a scotch brite pad. No chemicals. Maybe a little dish soap.
Bottles with plastic-like labels - way too much effort, cost, chemicals needed to get those labels off. They go directly to the recycle bin.
Used, empty, but dirty bottles- Too hard to thoroughly clean. I don't take a chance with mold, bacteria, etc. They go directly to the recycle bin.
Again, new bottles are pretty darn inexpensive.
Old bottles with paper labels- I simply soak the bottles, on their side so not much water is needed, and the labels pretty easily are scrapped off with a butter knife. I finish up with a scotch brite pad. No chemicals. Maybe a little dish soap.
Bottles with plastic-like labels - way too much effort, cost, chemicals needed to get those labels off. They go directly to the recycle bin.
Used, empty, but dirty bottles- Too hard to thoroughly clean. I don't take a chance with mold, bacteria, etc. They go directly to the recycle bin.
Again, new bottles are pretty darn inexpensive.
Scooter68
Fruit "Wine" Maker
ErikM Said "New wine bottles by the case are about $1 per bottle. "
Let me know where you find them at that price including tax and shipping. Lucky to find $1.50 (Green/Amber/Clear flat bottom) Unless you are buying a number of cases - Typically discounts don't start until you hit 5 cases at a time.
Agree with plastic labels and bottles with trash in them but just dried wine - not a big deal.
Let me know where you find them at that price including tax and shipping. Lucky to find $1.50 (Green/Amber/Clear flat bottom) Unless you are buying a number of cases - Typically discounts don't start until you hit 5 cases at a time.
Agree with plastic labels and bottles with trash in them but just dried wine - not a big deal.
yes it works. I am very stingy with my bottles. I used to clean used ones but got tired of washing them so now I buy new $13.99 a dozen here on sale, and clean my bottles as soon as I empty them. I place them upside down in cases, ready for sanitizing them before bottling. I figure the cost isnt bad for a one time purchase.
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