When is a bottle/jug full?

[marktripp]

So how "full" do people fill the plastic jugs? I've notice filling a gallon to the top like I do is an extra 8oz. Is that just the way it is or do people just put 1gallon in?

[Daves Maple Farm]

My quarts are full at the neck, but we also fill the neck..nothing like a full bottle to make a person happy.

[Russell Lampron]

I fill the jugs to the bottom of the threads.

[5050racing]

7545I fill to the bottom of threads when hot also to prevent mold forming with to much air space,last year had a few mold and was told that's why.

[Run Forest Run!]

5050, that's some gorgeous liquid gold right there! Great job!

I fill to the bottom of the threads too. I was surprised how much the sap shrinks down once it cools off.

[Cake O' Maple]

I measured my glass quart jars last year using water, and was convinced i was giving 1/4 c more syrup than a quart. Until I filled some more, and noticed that although I filled to the ridge at the bottom of the threads, when it cooled it was almost to the bottom of the neck. So I poured water in to that level and measured...you already know it measured a quart.

So it would make sense that a gallon would appear to take 8 oz more, as 1/4 c is 2 oz., but I'd wager that once it cools and the syrup contracts, it's only a gallon.

[5050racing]

Thanks, took my time filtering and bottling but it's easier when you filtering a gal or 2 or 3.just jarred 6 8oz jars from the filter after last nights 3 gal bottling.I think this week is going to be clean up time after I boil 65 gal I have stored from Sunday,Monday,8 gal of sap today.

[marktripp]

My gallon is so full it has a rounded bottom and won't sit flat.

[buck3m]

I researched this out a couple of years ago after seeing how many variables there were. To quote the post I made on Mapletrader at that time:

"One gallon of maple syrup at 67º Brix weighs about 11.2 pounds...Weight measures are more accurate and repeatable than volume measures." (Cornell)

http://www.nnyagdev.org/maplefactsheets/CMB%20205%20Replacing%20Table%20Sugar%20with%20Map le%20Sugar-1.pdf

"Maple syrup; legal weight and measure" means the legal weight of a gallon of maple syrup shall not be less than 11.07 pounds and the legal measure thereof shall be 231 cubic inches (128 fluid ounces) at 68 degrees F. Whenever maple syrup is sold by the gallon, quart, pint, or gill, or multiple fraction thereof, it must be sold according to that legal weight and measure." (Vermont)

http://www.leg.state.vt.us/statutes/fullchapter.cfm?Title=09&Chapter=073

Maple syrup Gallon net weight (pounds) 11.02 (USDA) http://www.ers.usda.gov/publications/ah697/ah697.pdf

Using the high figure of 11.2 pounds (11 pounds and 3.2 oz, or 179.2 oz) a full gallon (128 FLUID oz) should weigh 11 pounds 3.2 oz plus the weight of the container.

A half gallon should weigh 89.6 oz, or 5 lbs 9.6 oz., plus container.
A quart should weigh 44.8 oz., or 2 lbs, 12.8 oz, plus container.
A pint should weigh 1 lb, 6.4 oz, plus container
A 12 fluid oz bottle should weigh 16.8 oz, plus container
An 8 oz (1 cup) bottle should weigh 11.2 oz plus container
A 4 oz container should weigh 5.6 oz plus container

If the last three sizes seem contradictory, it's because a fluid oz is a measure of volume, and the quoted weights are in pounds and ounces.

[gmcooper]

My gallon is so full it has a rounded bottom and won't sit flat.

Mark you need to fill your gallon with it setting flat on the bottom to get the proper fill level. If you hold the jug by the handle while filling it the hot syrup and weght of it will soften and distort the shape of the jug with out support under the bottom. If you have a shelf to sit the container on while filling out of your bottling tank getting the correct volume will be much easier. There is nothing messier than a customer opening an over filled gallon and have a couple ounces of syrup run all over their table or counter. I have been there many years ago and they can be quite unhappy.

[to100]

I was confused on volume of containers also. A glass Mason quart is not 32 fluid ounces but ounces of weight. I think the jar weight +/- 32 0z. or about 4 fl oz less or about a pint less in a gallon. If it is for gifts or personal use who cares, but for sale then label?

[happy thoughts]

A glass Mason quart is not 32 fluid ounces but ounces of weight.

I don't think that's right. A quart size mason jar should hold 32 fluid ounces of water. Whether or not it does can be checked easy enough with a glass measuring cup made for measuring liquids. Don't use the markings on the side of the mason jar as I've never found them to be even close to accurate.

32 fluid ounces of syrup at 66 brix should weigh slightly more than 44 ounces. A gallon of 66 brix syrup weighs 11.02 pounds (176.32 oz by weight). Higher density syrup will weigh more.

Whatever they hold, the more completely you fill them the better so there is as little head space as possible on cooling. That leaves less air for mold to grow. I leave about a 1/4 inch from the top when packing syrup at 185 ish.

[wnybassman]

I filled this bottle this morning, and right to the bottom of the threads. It's the larger 750ml maple leaf bottle. This is what it looks like a few hours later........

http://i152.photobucket.com/albums/s163/wnybassman/maple/3-31-2013_zps6c94a689.jpg

[michiganphil]

Mark you need to fill your gallon with it setting flat on the bottom to get the proper fill level. If you hold the jug by the handle while filling it the hot syrup and weght of it will soften and distort the shape of the jug with out support under the bottom. If you have a shelf to sit the container on while filling out of your bottling tank getting the correct volume will be much easier. There is nothing messier than a customer opening an over filled gallon and have a couple ounces of syrup run all over their table or counter. I have been there many years ago and they can be quite unhappy.

Second that.

Even with quarts and pints... if you take too long to fill it, you will notice that when you set it down to cap it, it's more full than you thought. The hot syrup softens the plastic and distorts the jug. Over filling can even build enough pressure to pop the caps off, not just make the bottom bulge.

[LawnSite]

so my question is....last night I bottled 1/2 gallons....couple are distorted...sucked in...I did not bring up to threads but did add more than 64 ozs. Have'nt had this happen before. What went wrong ?

[happy thoughts]

so my question is....last night I bottled 1/2 gallons....couple are distorted...sucked in...I did not bring up to threads but did add more than 64 ozs. Have'nt had this happen before. What went wrong ?

I don't use plastic jugs but thinking that if the syrup is very hot you may have enough shrinkage to cause that kind of sucking in on cooling. It sounds like a negative pressure vaccuum. Any idea how hot you're filling? And when you measured the 64 oz was that hot syrup or the level to where 64 oz of cool syrup (or water) would come to? Fill level should be to at least where 64 fluid oz of room temp liquid would reach. Maybe try lowering the temp, say to 185 ish and be quick about getting it bottled and capped so the temp in the jug doesn't go below 180*F by the time the jug is capped. You should get less shrinkage with a lower bottling temp. I don't think hdpe2 is rated for over 190*F in the first place but you might want to check on the max temp for your particular jug.

[LawnSite]

Jugs are the norm. Picked up from local maple syrup distributor/producer. I always target 175 - 190 degrees. Bootling process is very quick. Minimal heat loss.
Always turn jugs over for sterilization process. I'm thinking maybe the level added, eventhough over 64 ozs., may have been a tad low. Perhaps I should go right up to neck of bottle. Again any thoughts and suggestions are very welcome.

[happy thoughts]

Jugs are the norm. Picked up from local maple syrup distributor/producer. I always target 175 - 190 degrees. Bootling process is very quick. Minimal heat loss.
Always turn jugs over for sterilization process. I'm thinking maybe the level added, eventhough over 64 ozs., may have been a tad low. Perhaps I should go right up to neck of bottle. Again any thoughts and suggestions are very welcome.

Don't go too low on the packing temp. Minimum recommended temp for safe packing *when the cap goes on* is 180*F. Again, I don't use plastic jugs but did see the comment above about breaking the seal, popping the cap if over filled. That makes sense to me especially with plastic which can distort at high temps. But keeping a minimum of head space is also important for long storage. The purpose is to minimize air in the container which can allow mold to grow. You probably want to fill to somewhere in the neck, even if just above where it starts. I'd aim for a happy medium.

[LawnSite]

Perfect. Thanks for all the feedback. Much appreciated.
Nothing fancy about my fill process...guess it comes down to consistency.
Again...thanks

[gmcooper]

so my question is....last night I bottled 1/2 gallons....couple are distorted...sucked in...I did not bring up to threads but did add more than 64 ozs. Have'nt had this happen before. What went wrong ?

Lawnsite, You need to fill up to the threads leaving just a small space at top. do not worry about the volume of hot syrup you put in the jug as it is the cold volume that matters and if you fill to the proper level when hot you will be ok when cooled. If you leave too much air space as in underfilling you will also get more shrinkage with the container causing the sucked in appearence.

[michiganphil]

Jugs are the norm. Picked up from local maple syrup distributor/producer. I always target 175 - 190 degrees. Bootling process is very quick. Minimal heat loss.
Always turn jugs over for sterilization process. I'm thinking maybe the level added, eventhough over 64 ozs., may have been a tad low. Perhaps I should go right up to neck of bottle. Again any thoughts and suggestions are very welcome.

Most of the plastic jug manufacturers do not recommend inverting the jug. The plastic is relatively thin, and will transfer the heat through the neck of the bottle and cap very quickly sterilizing the cap without inverting. A lot of people report leaky jugs when inverting because the plastic softens enough that the threads don't hold the cap tight.

When bottling, fill to the base of the threads (level with the top of the handle), cap quickly, and leave it on the counter to cool.

[Rhino]

For the last week i have been bottling my plastic jug supply, (quarts,pints,halfpints). I take the temp in the heater up to 200 degrees and start to filter, The whole batch is done before the temp goes under 190. I tip the jugs on their sides more so to check for leaks because of bad installing of the cap or bad threads to begin with. Nothing scares me more then to not be able to see inside that jug when i sell it and see if it never sealed and the customer ends up with mold on top when they open it up. I usually find about 3 of each size or so per year because of faulty threads, years back i used to try another cap thinking it was me or my help but it always turned out to leak again and waste another cap. As far as filling i fill to the top or a hair under, the same with glass. I see at some markets people selling quart glass and it's way down the neck and looks like someone had a pancake breakfast with that bottle already. Never can figure out why they would go through all the work and end up with a bottle that looks like that?? I know if they open a quart jug and the level is way down the neck they wouldn't be to happy either. Return customers is what i am after at all our markets.

[lpakiz]

I fill my glass containers as full as possible, right up to the very top of the neck. I leave no more than 1/16 inch of space. A couple hours later, syrup is down about 3/4 inch. I might be giving some away as far as measure, but that can be recouped by adjusting the price to reflect the extra syrup given.