Does anyone know of a way to best avoid oxidation when bottling and not kegging one's beer?
Could I flood each bottle with CO2 prior to filling?
avoid oxidation?
Moderator: slothrob
avoid oxidation?
Flooding the bottle with CO2 is very effective and possible with most counter-pressure bottle fillers such as Phil's Counter-pressure Bottle Philler made by Listermann Mfg.
Under normal circumstances the standard spring loaded fillers are acceptable to most homebrewers keeping in mind that once the first ounce or so of beer is in the bottle the tip of the filler is submerged.
An added technique is to rest the cap on the bottler after it is filled and while the other bottles are being filled - allowing the priming sugar to produce a slight bit of CO2 to fill the air space in the head of the bottle before the cap is crimped on.
One must determine what is practical under the circumstances.
Under normal circumstances the standard spring loaded fillers are acceptable to most homebrewers keeping in mind that once the first ounce or so of beer is in the bottle the tip of the filler is submerged.
An added technique is to rest the cap on the bottler after it is filled and while the other bottles are being filled - allowing the priming sugar to produce a slight bit of CO2 to fill the air space in the head of the bottle before the cap is crimped on.
One must determine what is practical under the circumstances.
Another
Another help is to purchase oxygen absorbtion caps. They are supposed to aid in the trapping of the oxygen that is left in the bottle. flodding the bottle is a good practice and must be done when counterpressure bottle filling. les foam overs.
how to fill bottle with CO2 prior to bottling
Would it work if I just "fill" each bottle with CO2 and then proceed with bottling the beer as normal. I do use the Phil's filler, but do I need some extra setup to fill with beer and CO2 simultaneously or can I do the CO2 and then the beer since CO2 is heavier than air?
Bottle Filling
Yes, that would certainly work. To gain the greatest benefit you will want to be careful (slow, methodical) because the CO2, though heavier then air, will spill easily (image a very light weight liquid 
For instance, simply drawing the bottle filler out of the bottle will bring some of that CO2 with it. Moving the uncapped bottles around or even a slight draft in the room could have some effect. I think you've got the idea.
For instance, simply drawing the bottle filler out of the bottle will bring some of that CO2 with it. Moving the uncapped bottles around or even a slight draft in the room could have some effect. I think you've got the idea.
little late
the amount of oxydation caused during and after bottle filling is minimal, I doubt you could tell the difference between one filled normally and one filled with C02. The method of leaving the bottles until some C02 is created by fermenting is...well... you don't want to leave them uncapped that long. The act of filling the bottles releases residual C02 out of suspension and creates a barrier layer on top of the beer. The oxygen eating caps??? I don't believe it, never have. Sounds like a way to spend more money