Will my auto-siphon troubles oxidize my beer?

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DonutMuncher

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I bottled today using an auto-siphon, and on many occasions, I was just pumping air into my beer.. I don't know if this is a common problem, but I kept having issues getting a good solid siphon going.

So, I probably pumped at least 20 times where air bubbles were injected into my beer in the bottling bucket. Is this going to cause oxidizing?

And is this a common problem with the auto-siphon.. sometimes taking a bunch of pumps to get the siphon going on its own?
 
The yeasty beasties will probably eat up all the oxygen when they start eating the priming sugar. I wouldn't worry about the oxidation too much.

Is the siphon pushing air out the bottom into your bucket? If so you need to buy a new one because the check valve has failed. You shouldn't have that much trouble getting it started so you might want a new one either way.

Or did you have the bottling wand attached to the siphon? If so there was no where for the air trapped downstream to go so it went the path of least resistance out into your beer. In this case you need to start the siphon and use a clamp to hold the liquid in the line after it starts. Then attach the bottling wand. Either that it make sure the tip is pressed down when you start the siphon so the air can escape.
 
Well when I first started the auto-siphon, it started up like a champ. But after about a minute, the siphon suddenly stopped. And when I re-pumped a few times, it was having a hard time getting going, and was causing bubbling of the beer in the bottling bucket.

Usually after a handful of failed pumps (and adding air bubbles to my beer), it would start siphoning normal for a little while again. This process repeated a few times until I got it all siphoned.
 
You may have an air leak somewhere that is breaking the siphon. I'd try to see if you can figure out what's going on with some water before you brew again. Maybe soapy water to see if any bubbles form due to leaks?
 
Thank you, DonutMuncher, for asking a question I was wondering about. I also had a problem of the hose reaching the bottom of the secondary just fine when the auto-siphon was in the down position, but when I raised it to pump, it raised up off the bottom and thus got a little of aeration that way too.

Sounds to me though, based on Ryush's advice, it's just a question of practice. :)
 
I had an auto siphon that the seal between the cane and the outer tube was not good and it would draw in air when I tried to siphon with it. I solved the problem by taking a sanitized turkey baster and squirting a small amount of wort above the seal. Worked great after that. No bubbles.
 
No problemo, Kanth :mug:

Thanks for the advice everyone. I guess I'll practice on some water buckets and try to isolate the problem.. it could be that my tubing isn't snug on the cane and could be drawing in air, or perhaps there is a leak.
 
Is your tube that connects the auto siphon piece snug,if not you may need to clamp it. Otherwise you may have just had some trub gunk clog your flow a little. Or like someone mentioned you may have a damaged valve where air is leaking from.If your tube fits on your siphon pump piece too easily then you need a smaller tube that fits tighter.I tried using a bit bigger tube once and had problems so i just used my origional older one until i got the right size for a new one.
 
I have had issues with excessive trub/break/lees/pulp clogging the pick-up end of the siphon and breaking the seal.

I've tried wrapping a sanitized hop sock aroud the end when this has happened with very limited success.
 
If you are using your auto siphon, I assume that you are racking to secondary or bottling bucket - which means that fermenation is done, which means that yes, you are running the risk of oxidation. This problem gets worse as the beer ages (gives a wet cardboard taste)... drink it faster than yo might have otherwise. :)

I have had similar problems with my auto siphon, but luckily, I was practicing with water when I discovered the issue. If you pour a little sanitizer solution on top of the plunger, it makes a nice seal, and the issues you describe will probably go away.

Note - I am assuming you are using a no-rinse sanitizer that won't hurt the beer if a tiny amount gets in it. If not, use sanitized water instead.
 
I have had similar problems with my auto siphon, but luckily, I was practicing with water when I discovered the issue. If you pour a little sanitizer solution on top of the plunger, it makes a nice seal, and the issues you describe will probably go away.

Hmm, I'll have to try that. I also noticed bits of debris in the black tip on the end of the siphon tube, not sure if that can affect things. I'll try clearing that out too.
 
I played around with my auto-siphon for about 20 minutes using water and figured out the problem.. and figured I'd chime back in.

The auto-siphon was pulling water from the bucket just fine, with no bubbles in the cane. The bubbles were being added in the tubing that connects to the auto-siphon. So it appeared the 3/8'' rubber tubing wasn't snug enough with the 3/8'' siphon, no matter how much tweaking I tried to do to make it snug.

I found that pinching the tubing to the auto-siphon while starting the pump created good flow with no bubbles. Once the flow got going, continuing to pinch the tubing to the siphon meant no bubbles whatsoever. Letting go of the pinching allowed a few tiny bubbles to start occuring. All-in-all, way better than what was happening to me on bottling day.

I've read here that I could try 5/16'' tubing with the 3/8'' auto-siphon to get a pretty tight fit, but I think it'll be ok for now by just the pinching method.
 
I thought I ruined a nice batch of cascade pale ale with my auto siphon. I never strained the hops out of my wort and after sitting 3 weeks in the primary, I had a hell of a time racking to a bottling bucket. Air bubbles, hop gunk, everything. I eventually dumped what was left in my primary (about a gallon) into my pot that I used to boil the priming sugar (sitting for a while now uncovered and not sanitized) and from there into my bottling bucket, trying to leave most of the gunk behind. Thought for sure this batch was done, beer splashing all over the place, air bubbles through out the whole siphon process from hops getting stuck, etc.

Best beer I've ever made, even after only 2 weeks in bottles. Probably because I boiled 1 oz of hops for 30 min in the priming solution, but nothing in my process oxidized/ruined the beer. I thought for sure this batch was gone.
 
I'm with OSU...you'll be fine. I did the "traditional" gravity siphon with sanitizer on my first batch...it stopped after about 15oz, so I also simply poured the beer from the carboy into the botlles...it was such a mess, and like OSU...it was simply delicious.

Even when I got an auto-siphon for the next 3 or 4 batches, I would siphon up all the beer until it bubbled/gurgled out...no issue with oxidation.
 
Yea when I got my first auto siphon I ordered it online and got 1/2 inch tubing to go
with my 1/2 inch auto siphon. Bubbles galore. You have to get the next size down tubing
and you won't have any problems. Although I have broken a few canes trying to get the tubing
off my weakened plastic auto siphon. If they only made an all stainless auto siphon:).
 
I played around with my auto-siphon for about 20 minutes using water and figured out the problem.. and figured I'd chime back in.

The auto-siphon was pulling water from the bucket just fine, with no bubbles in the cane. The bubbles were being added in the tubing that connects to the auto-siphon. So it appeared the 3/8'' rubber tubing wasn't snug enough with the 3/8'' siphon, no matter how much tweaking I tried to do to make it snug.

I found that pinching the tubing to the auto-siphon while starting the pump created good flow with no bubbles. Once the flow got going, continuing to pinch the tubing to the siphon meant no bubbles whatsoever. Letting go of the pinching allowed a few tiny bubbles to start occuring. All-in-all, way better than what was happening to me on bottling day.

I've read here that I could try 5/16'' tubing with the 3/8'' auto-siphon to get a pretty tight fit, but I think it'll be ok for now by just the pinching method.

I had the same problem with the connection between cane and tube. Now I put a cable tie over the connection and pull it snug - that stops the air leakage. It's a lot easier than pinching the connection during siphoning.
 
I had the same problem with the connection between cane and tube. Now I put a cable tie over the connection and pull it snug - that stops the air leakage. It's a lot easier than pinching the connection during siphoning.

Yeah, good idea. I was thinking about using some type of tie to keep the seal tight.
 
i used a rubber band for the one or two times i had this problem before i got the 5/16" tubing. now it's just one less thing to worry about
 
Even when I got an auto-siphon for the next 3 or 4 batches, I would siphon up all the beer until it bubbled/gurgled out...no issue with oxidation.

This is one thing that really annoys me about an auto siphon, the bubble/gurgle at the end of the siphon creates a perfect situation for oxidation. It took me a few tries in the beginning before I figured out how to stop the siphon without creating this mess and I'm much happier now, but theres almost no way of sucking out every drop of beer without running into that problem.
 
I had the same problem with the hose not fitting tight enough on the cane. I installed a small hose clamp and that cured the problem.
 
I have a question...everytime i open my fermentation bucket am i slowly ruining my batch? im going to open 48 hrs after i notice the airlock has stopped..take a reading then wait two days only to open again to take another reading. If im good ill rack into secondary..after a week or two i'll take an final reading then into the bottling bucket it goes...? thanks for any input
 
If you are worried about oxidation, I would leave it in the primary for the two weeks you were planning on having it in the secondary.

Even if you want to secondary, I wouldn't start checking the gravity as soon as the bubbling stops, I would give it 10-14 days before I started checking.

Just my opinion.
 
I tried 5/16" tubing, but it wouldn't come off of the racking cane once I got it on - broke the cane trying to get the tubing off. Some folks just leave it on permanently, but I prefer to take it off for cleaning.

I take mine off every time.

Don't push the tubing onto the cane so far, 1/2" is more than enough. It's tight enough that you're not going to get any air. This makes it MUCH easier to get off.

To get it off, just run it under hot water and grip the cane as far to the tip as possible so you don't break it. Then you just wiggle the tubing and it loosens right up.
 
I take mine off every time.

Don't push the tubing onto the cane so far, 1/2" is more than enough. It's tight enough that you're not going to get any air. This makes it MUCH easier to get off.

To get it off, just run it under hot water and grip the cane as far to the tip as possible so you don't break it. Then you just wiggle the tubing and it loosens right up.

+1 to the hot water. It softens the tube. It also works on the other end of the job, making it easier to get on the cane.
 
I tried 5/16" tubing, but it wouldn't come off of the racking cane once I got it on - broke the cane trying to get the tubing off. Some folks just leave it on permanently, but I prefer to take it off for cleaning.

I take a pair of scissors and cut about a half inch slit in the end of the tubing, makes it much easier to get on and off.

(I know I'm reviving a very old thread but tonight I had to use a hose that was too large for my auto siphon and had bubbles, so I was searching the forums to see how big of an issue this will be. Tomorrow I'm going to go get some 5/16")
 

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