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Hypothetical Beer Shipping Question...

avengethisavengethis Everyone, Registered Users Posts: 1,193
I know you are not supposed to ship alcohol through USPS and I in no way will be doing this, however if somebody wanted to...Who has had luck doing it and what sort of packaging where you using?

Comments

  • Bob LukenBob Luken Everyone, Registered Users Posts: 3,664
    Hahahaha :D Shipping alcohol by USPS? Nobody does that :l
  • kuzi16kuzi16 Everyone, Registered Users Posts: 14,471
    i have shipped liquids in glass with a metal cap a few times.
    of course only one bottle at a time. what i did was wrap the bottle in either cloth or news paper, then put that in a Zip-Loc bag. that was then placed in the shipping box with more newspaper and/or bubble wrap.

  • rsherman24rsherman24 Everyone, Registered Users Posts: 2,711
    Wrap the bottle in bubble wrap, and tape to make sure the ends are not exposed or can slide out. Put in a box with shipping peanuts or paper so they don't bounce around. Tough to get many in a box, but they are usually safe.
  • brianetz1brianetz1 Everyone, Registered Users Posts: 3,898
    i have shipped in large flat rates several times. just wrap the hell out of it with good bubble wrap and you should be fine.
  • jgibvjgibv Everyone, Registered Users Posts: 5,996
    kuzi16:
    i have shipped liquids in glass with a metal cap a few times.
    of course only one bottle at a time. what i did was wrap the bottle in either cloth or news paper, then put that in a Zip-Loc bag. that was then placed in the shipping box with more newspaper and/or bubble wrap.

    +1

    beer bottles are pretty dang thick, i've had UPS deliver beer of the month samplers to me before (from merchants). full cases of 24 bottles in a big cardboard box and the only packing materials inside were cardboard dividers between the bottles. no bubble wrap, no packing peanuts, nothing. but the box was the perfect size for the bottles and they could not move around....


    just thinking out loud here....
    but (3) 12 oz beer bottles seem like they'd be the perfect size to fit into a gallon ziploc bag.
    hmm & i'd bet you could wrap 1 sheet of bubble wrap around each bottle too before placing it in the bag and still be able to "zip it" shut. might be overkill but if you're worried about the zipper popping open, packaging tape across the top of the ziploc should probably keep it nice and tight.
    of course you'd want to fill up all extra space in the box, bubble wrap/packing peanuts/crumpled paper/etc.

    now a couple other general "good shipping" practices:
    empty space in the box is your biggest enemy. if something can rattle around inside the box it's more likely to get broken; you do not want things to shift inside the box, this is true for *anything* you ship, so make sure it's surrounded on all sides by packing materials.
    also someone on here had a nice tidbit (forget who it was) but they said something along the lines of "pack the box so that you'd be comfortable dropping it off your counter onto the floor....that's the type of beating you should expect a package to get while in transit with "normal" shipping services."


  • The KidThe Kid Everyone, Registered Users Posts: 7,842
    Ok, I just shipped a bunch of booze and ran into a issue. Few differences,, what I shipped was (10) .750 l of booze. I wrapped each bottle in bubble wrap, and enclosed 3-4 bottles in a good sturdy box with more filler, peanuts, wrap, newspaper etc. so I had 10 bottles in 3 sub boxes enclosed in one big box. By my estimation this was foolproof.
    ENTER UPS
    every 3 bottles (.750l) weighs aprox 11 lbs, so 10 bottles including box, pkg material, etc weighed aprox 38 lbs. This is too much weight for the UPS/USPS to handle CAREFULLY. I dont enclose bottles in plastic bags cause I figure if anything breaks, its cutting through the plastic anyway.
    I dropped off at UPS store and asked the small gal if she wanted me to put the box anywhere, she said no. Last I saw of it.
    I checked the tracking number and this is what I saw

    Oakland, CA, United States 13/01/2015 4:52 Departure Scan
    13/01/2015 2:29 Origin Scan
    13/01/2015 0:43 Your package was damaged in transit. We will notify the sender with details. /
    All merchandise is being delivered UPS will notify the sender with details of the damage

    United States 12/01/2015 20:20 Order Processed: Ready for UPS

    Needless to say my heart skipped a couple beats, I didn't know what I would get on the other end. Hell I wasn't sure if all of it would be confiscated. So all I could do was wait.
    When I picked up the pkg, it was a different box, when I opened the box, my 3 smaller boxes were gone, what I found was each bottle repacked in a homemade cardboard sleeve. Some bottles still had bubble wrap some did not. Also inside the box was the heavy duty brown paper as filler. I quickly began my inventory, I was one bottle shy, only 9 bottles. Thankfully after sifting through everything I realized the bottle lost was a Vodka which was the lowest priced item out of all shipped. I could live with that. So I hope my story helps. What I would do differently next time is lower the weight of the box to only 25lbs max. I would still pack bottles in bubble wrap and smaller boxes. I really don't know how they broke the box, it was solid, Hit it with a truck?? Dropped it off a loading dock??? I suspect everything was repacked due to a bottle being cracked and leaked, but I didn't smell anything? IDK. Was just happy I received 9/10. I probably wont file a claim ;o)
    One more thing, I took the really high end htf stuff with me on my return flight. 5 liters is allowed. YRMV
    (Just came up with a thought, one could place smaller interior box inside a contractor grade plastic bag, this way any broken glass stays inside box and bag will probably contain liquid.)
  • The KidThe Kid Everyone, Registered Users Posts: 7,842
    dup, not sure how I got three, out of one post,,lol
  • The KidThe Kid Everyone, Registered Users Posts: 7,842
    rsherman24:
    Wrap the bottle in bubble wrap, and tape to make sure the ends are not exposed or can slide out. Put in a box with shipping peanuts or paper so they don't bounce around. Tough to get many in a box, but they are usually safe.
    This is what I did/do
  • The KidThe Kid Everyone, Registered Users Posts: 7,842
    FWIW I make sure the pkg goes ground.
  • BrianakBrianak Everyone, Registered Users Posts: 227
    Make sure there is no movement in the box. Also make sure you are not sending beer to a cold climate as it will freeze and rupture.
  • ejgormanejgorman Everyone, Registered Users Posts: 891
    I bubble wrapped the hell out of it and did the drop test (drop from shoulder height onto a hard surface) before putting it in a box. If you're at all hesitant to do the drop test, apply more bubble wrap and repeat.
  • bandyt09bandyt09 Everyone, Registered Users Posts: 3,762
    Go to the PO or USPS.com and get yourself some of the Mylar USPS Priority Mail bubble envelopes. Put bottle in envelope and seal. If packing more than one bottle, after putting and sealing them in envelopes, tape them together so they become one unit. Pack in box with newspaper and peanuts, either the packing or roasted variety work great :). Take a used cigar tube and put a heavy nail or a few small screws in it and place it on top of the box before sealing (the rattle sound will be louder that the sound of swishing liquid).

    This, of course, is hypothetical..........................
  • Rob1110Rob1110 Everyone, Registered Users Posts: 1,454
    I ship FedEx ground and pack it like it's going to be going through world war 3. Lots of bubble wrap. That being said, I've shipped countless packages, many with several bottles and have never had one break.
  • 90+ Irishman90+ Irishman Everyone, Registered Users Posts: 7,868
    I did this purely as a mock up and only to help illustrate the point in no way shape or form did I actually mail this....

    image

  • The KidThe Kid Everyone, Registered Users Posts: 7,842
    90+ Irishman:
    I did this purely as a mock up and only to help illustrate the point in no way shape or form did I actually mail this....

    image

    Not to Knock your mock up, but based on my recent experience Id get that yellow bottle off the sidewall and add more bubble wrap.. good luck
    One more note, Bandy mentioned a very clever aspect, with the sloshing.. add something that rattles, nails in a cigar tube,,m&m's in a peanut can.
  • 90+ Irishman90+ Irishman Everyone, Registered Users Posts: 7,868
    The Kid:
    90+ Irishman:
    I did this purely as a mock up and only to help illustrate the point in no way shape or form did I actually mail this....

    image

    Not to Knock your mock up, but based on my recent experience Id get that yellow bottle off the sidewall and add more bubble wrap.. good luck
    One more note, Bandy mentioned a very clever aspect, with the sloshing.. add something that rattles, nails in a cigar tube,,m&m's in a peanut can.
    I am definitely doing the can thing and it's kinda hard to see but there is a layer of protection between the bottle and the side, it's not visible but I have put something there thanks for noticing the danger though would hate for anythin to brek if I were to actually ship that.
  • amz1301amz1301 Everyone, Registered Users Posts: 1,287
  • avengethisavengethis Everyone, Registered Users Posts: 1,193
    amz1301:
    Came across these the other day. Looks like they'd work pretty well.

    http://www.uhaul.com/MovingSupplies/Boxes/Kitchen-moving-boxes/Wine-Shipping-Kits?mid=169
    I might have to go look and find those. If I where to ever try and ship something through the postal service.
  • jgibvjgibv Everyone, Registered Users Posts: 5,996
    ok so .... hypothetically .... a MFRB with 3 bottles and some smokes has the hypothetical potential for a problem.

    even if you do the bubble wrap/ziploc bag method for the bottles....it's hypothetically possible that one of the bottles (maybe like the one in the center of the bag) could break and cut the ziploc, leaving your box a little soggy. (d'oh).

    so maybe try doubling up the ziplocs or something, or just use a bigger box (never heard of any hypothetical problems with LFRB) extra packing materials, etc. to avoid any hypothetical problems with the smaller sized boxes.



    also, uline has a few different "bottle" specific shipping materials available: http://www.uline.com/Grp_237/Wine-Shippers-and-Supplies
  • 90+ Irishman90+ Irishman Everyone, Registered Users Posts: 7,868
    Well as the resident liquor broker lately (haha wow that's kinda sad) I will say that the old adage of K.I.S.S. Is really the best approach. Oversized boxes so that you get lots of space between the outside of the box and the precious cargo, bubble wrap and then a Shizza load of recycled plastic bags. Never had a problem and I've shipped a lot just in the past few months and shipping out more Friday again. Simple solution, lots of space, oversized box and lots of grocery bags.
  • rsherman24rsherman24 Everyone, Registered Users Posts: 2,711
    amz1301:
    Came across these the other day. Looks like they'd work pretty well.

    http://www.uhaul.com/MovingSupplies/Boxes/Kitchen-moving-boxes/Wine-Shipping-Kits?mid=169

    Pretty cool. I just dropped a LFRB off today. Lots of bubble wrap, tape, and paper. Keep everything as far away from the sides/top as possible. Cross your fingers. I forgot about the cigar tube to cover the sloshing sound. Was glad the counter lady did not hear so well.
  • 90+ Irishman90+ Irishman Everyone, Registered Users Posts: 7,868
    rsherman24:
    amz1301:
    Came across these the other day. Looks like they'd work pretty well.

    http://www.uhaul.com/MovingSupplies/Boxes/Kitchen-moving-boxes/Wine-Shipping-Kits?mid=169

    Pretty cool. I just dropped a LFRB off today. Lots of bubble wrap, tape, and paper. Keep everything as far away from the sides/top as possible. Cross your fingers. I forgot about the cigar tube to cover the sloshing sound. Was glad the counter lady did not hear so well.
    I feel sorry for the poor SOB who is getting this dropped on his skull.... Oh wait I think I know who it is so never mind hahahaha
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