FlyGuy's T-siphon: a $3 replacement for an autosiphon

Very nice. Just got back from lowes, making one now and will use shortly!

Used it last night, and screwed it all up. Ended up leaving about 6 beers worth in the primary because I was just pissed. Got suckback that went down to the keg a couple times, hose curled, couldnt control its depth, end kept coming up and losing the siphon, amp didnt work causing massive air to get into the beer going into the keg, overall disaster, I probably should have practiced more first.

I have some copper romex that I washed, sanitized and coiled around the end of mine. It sticks out a little bit in order to keep the tip off the trub, mostly. It keeps the tube decoiled (straight) Makes it work optimally for me. I have to be careful with dryhopped brews clogging it and making for a time consuming frustrating evening.

Time to keep the thread going!!

I made one of Flyguy's T-syphons today to rack some wine. Created one heck of amount of aeration for whatever reason. However, once I put my thumb over the end of the "suck" tube the aeration completely stopped and the syphon became full strength.

Also, I would suggest getting some small length of metal tube, such as a keg drip tube and then fasten it to the end of the hose going into the new destination vessel by way of a stainless steel hose clamp. This will prevent the hose from curling and/or floating.

Going to try and find some type of a three-way ball valve to use instead of the hose pinch and think that will take care of the need to stick my thumb on the hose. More later if/when I succeed.

Robert

Would love to see some 'action pictures' please!

I had a plastic hose clamp on mine but it broke. Now I just fold the tube and put a small spring clamp on (harbor freight kind) to hold it once a siphon is started and it works great.

This figures... I just used my newly bought autosiphon! I was going to rant and rave about how 'kick a$$' it is! How it transfered from my primary to secondary in just a few minutes...

Then I run across this thread! Of course, I'm going to have to try it...

This comes in handy for my 3/8" SS racking cane.
Would this work w/ silicone tubing?
I've never used silicone but was thinking about making the switch away from the vinyl stuff.
Would the silicone just fold up on itself when you sucked on it? Or is it not quite that flexible?

DustBow said:

This comes in handy for my 3/8" SS racking cane.
Would this work w/ silicone tubing?
I've never used silicone but was thinking about making the switch away from the vinyl stuff.
Would the silicone just fold up on itself when you sucked on it? Or is it not quite that flexible?

Click to expand...

I use silicone for my siphon tubing and this method works very well. No problems with colapsing, etc.

-TH- said:

I use silicone for my siphon tubing and this method works very well. No problems with colapsing, etc.

Click to expand...

sweet, thanks.
add one more item to the shopping list

you have got to be an engineer... awesome!

I made one several months ago, I think for my first batch of beer. I had to use two hose clamps though, one on the part that goes to your mouth and the other below the T to prevent all the suction from just drawing in air from the vessel you're racking to.

I just pinch the hose below the T until siphon gets going. I've got a clamp on the mouth end though.

I love this idea. However, when I initiate the siphon, there is some air space in the tube right below where it connects to the racking cane. The air bubble eventually goes away as the siphon continues, but I am wondering if I can do something to ameliorate this unwanted aeration. I tried sucking harder to get more flow, but to not avail.

Is this just an unavoidable issue because the internal diameter of my hose is bigger than the racking cane? I am using a 3/8" stainless steel cane and 3/8" silicone tubing.

I am a newbie to homebrewing and siphoning.

Thanks,
Matt

One other question:

I can get the t-siphon going when the outlet end is inserted in water so no air comes in during the suck.

When I try to do the pinch below the 't' technique, no success. Any suggestions?

Thank you,
Matt

I remember seeing this years ago and thinking it was swuft. In the meantime I've broke three Autosiphons. In fact I'd forgot about it for so long that it didn't immediately register that this was an old thread until I was halfway though it. Mayhaps I'll get around to trying this someday and by then I'll forget about it again and think it was my own idea.

matts said:

One other question:

I can get the t-siphon going when the outlet end is inserted in water so no air comes in during the suck.

When I try to do the pinch below the 't' technique, no success. Any suggestions?

Thank you,
Matt

Click to expand...

Pinch harder, fold the tube, or get a second plastic clamp for the lower tube.


Using this setup the other day I noticed once started, if the upper tube isn't clamped it pulls in quite a lot of air. Do you think leaving it unclamped and using the cane to transfer the wort to the fermenter prior to pitching yeast would be a good way to aerate it?

mrbippers said:

Pinch harder, fold the tube, or get a second plastic clamp for the lower tube.


Using this setup the other day I noticed once started, if the upper tube isn't clamped it pulls in quite a lot of air. Do you think leaving it unclamped and using the cane to transfer the wort to the fermenter prior to pitching yeast would be a good way to aerate it?

Click to expand...

I actually had the lower tube folded over sometimes, pinched others, no dice. I tried at least twenty times. I am using 3/8" silicone tubing with a 3/8" stainless racking cane. This tubing is really easy to pinch off, yet it doesn't collapse at all under pressure. I am not sure what is wrong with my setup.

EDIT: I figured out what was wrong: no hose clamp and air was getting sucked in where it connects to the racking cane.

I know this is years after the original post, but where do you buy the T?

Any big box hardware store.

weirdboy said:

One thing that springs to mind that would solve both the "getting the siphon started" issue as well as the "air pocket" problem would be instead of just a regular t-connector, use a three-way valve. I did a quick search online and found these n

Click to expand...

Something along similar lines http://www.usplastic.com/catalog/item.aspx?itemid=23369&catid=489 and http://www.usplastic.com/catalog/item.aspx?itemid=24234&catid=489

A mini check vale will allow some beer to come into the "suck" tube but once you stop you won't have the possibility of contaminating the beer. The vacuum will keep the valve closed while it's suctioning the liquid out.

An old thread I know, but for those with air bubble issues, just pinch the tubing where you have the bubble and it will go away. IF you are getting the air from the mouth tube, clamp it off and raise the end up so beer seals it off.

I just built this yesterday. Mine was $4+, because I bought 12 ft. of 3/8 tubing. I currently use my bottle filler on the priming branch, as it is self sealing, and I couldn't get a checkvalve at Lowe's.

I tested it on a sinkfull of water, transferring to a pot on the floor. I pinched the outlet, sucked on my bottle filler until the water passed the t, and it worked like a charm! I had a good, strong stream, with no hassle and no loss of pressure.

Flyguy, you are becoming my go-to source for great, useful, practical, affordable DIY projects. I salute you.

cool,subscribed ! nice work,ill use my old auto for sours

just wanted to agree with everyone else and say awesome. will be looking for the tee to make my own. thanks

Anyone know the maximum operating temp of the vinyl they make these T connectors from? I'll see if I can look it up, but wondering for some other purpose if they can withstand boiling.

I like the idea, but don't you have to clamp the bottom hose to get it started? It seems like air would just come up from the open end of the bottom hose when you sucked on the middle hose.

Yes. I just pinch it to start, then let go. Easy peasy.

Great idea. I will giv it a shot, i like the idea cuz it reduces the chance of contamination. i will get the tee for my nex batch!

rather than using a T, why not just use one tube and attach a smaller or bigger tube to the end to suck on. Once the syphon is up close to the attached tube, just clamp it, remove the piece you had your mouth on and then remove clamp to start syphon.

ODI3 said:

rather than using a T, why not just use one tube and attach a smaller or bigger tube to the end to suck on. Once the syphon is up close to the attached tube, just clamp it, remove the piece you had your mouth on and then remove clamp to start syphon.

Click to expand...

I just sanitize a turkey baster. Take my standard racking cane and hose. Stick the racking cane in the wort, and the sanitized turkey baster in the end of the hose. Squeeze all the air out of the baster before you put the hose on it.

Then let the turkey baster suck the wort up the racking cane, and pull the baster off before the wort gets that far. It's easier than the auto siphon, and much easier to clean.

Forgive me if the answer is in the thread, I am having trouble with the new search finding good results, my question is where can you find the "cheap plastic hose clip". Is there another name for it? I have struck out at the big box hardware stores and amazon. Thanks!

I couldn't find one either, so just fold the tubing back on itself and keep it crimped with a rubber band or a big paper clamp.

Just saw this and what a marvelous idea. I lost the little cap that goes on the end of my autosiphon and now it's useless. I'm going to steal the racking cane part out of it and use the T piece as well as some more tubing. Should work! Thanks guys, this forum NEVER lets me down! :rockin:

good call

Has anyone tried adding the check valve to the tube you suck on? I think this sounds like a perfect idea.

Also I have some SS tube left over from another project, so I was thinking of cutting it to a length that would fit down to the bottom of both my carboys and bottling bucket to attach to the new vessel hose via a hose clamp. This would solve the issue of the tube curling.

That would put my racking cane cmoing out of vessel a.. using the T siphon w/ check valve to create flow into vessel b with SS tube.

Thoughts?

dougf said:

Used it last night, and screwed it all up. Ended up leaving about 6 beers worth in the primary because I was just pissed. Got suckback that went down to the keg a couple times, hose curled, couldnt control its depth, end kept coming up and losing the siphon, amp didnt work causing massive air to get into the beer going into the keg, overall disaster, I probably should have practiced more first.

Click to expand...

I couldn't even get the siphon going.
Absolute disaster.
I pinched the end that goes into the bottling bucket, sucked the T portion, then let go of the bucket end
while pinching the T-portion I had applied suction to.
Nothing.
The next time the fluid only went into the T and the fermenter end.
Using 3/8 ID hose, large binder clip, and followed all recommendations for relatively short lengths.
The feed end is connected to a thin racking tube.

Then I tried several times to start a siphon the old fashioned way with the racking tube with 3/8 ID hose.
No go.

Ended up pouring the beer through a metal screen coffee filter
into a Mr. Beer bucket.
Twice.
Thank goodness I have two of them.
I will fill the bottles from the Mr. Beer containers.


I'm buying an autosiphon!

I was looking for a regular auto siphon in my country, but with no luck. I found only plastic telescopic tube with hose for 10$, which I bought. But I needed to start siphoning somehow. I found this thread and wanted to create this great T solution, but I could not find anywhere proper T piece. So I came up with another solution, same as with turkey baster mentioned few posts before and it is working great and so easy to use and clean. But guess what? Nobody sells turkey baster in my country! But I found great substitution, which you can find in drugstore or in medical supplies, called Ear syringe ball. The great thing is that you can attach any hose size. Just get proper ballon size to suck enough air in one attempt. And it is also super cheap, just 3$!

Ok, I hate starting a siphon when racking. I always seem to have a bit of air trapped at the top of the cane that draws into the wort.
This is a great idea for starting a full draw in the hose, but I think it could be better yet.
What if you used a 3-Way Ballvalve instead of the Tee? Like:

http://www.usplastic.com/catalog/item.aspx?itemid=30669&catid=438
That way once the flow passes through the BV, it can be turned to flow to the carboy and prevent any risk of contamination.
I'm gonna haveta getme one to try it out...

P.S. The nose sucker above looks like it might work also, but what if you had something like a fuel line priming bulb? -The check valves may be a bit of a ***** to sanitize...

Someone mentioned it in an above reply, but someone should make a short youtube video demonstrating the method of starting the siphon. I think I get it, but it would help others understand the construction and method used in starting it. This would be a great way to show off all of the adjustments other people made such as the 3 way valve and turkey baster method. I used the word "method" in every sentence. I want to say method again.

Method.

Love the idea, by the way. Will be trying this soon. Sooooo sick of my auto-siphon.