Question on syphon I bought

[kenmc]

Hi,
I recently bought a syphon which came with a plastic bung through which the syphon tube runs, and a small little tube beside this which the instructions say to blow through to start the syphon off.
I would have thought that this would be a bad idea, given that there'd be so many germs introduced to the beer from blowing into it!.
Any thoughts? would it be better than sucking on it for example??? haven't used it yet, but just so that I know when i need to....
Cheers
Ken

 

[Janx]

We've used those to push beer around with CO2...I agree blowing on it doesn't seem like a great idea.

I prefer to get my siphons going by filling the tube with sanitized water. The auto-siphons seem like a good sanitary solution too.

 

[homebrewer_99]

I've used the water in the tube to start my siphoning for years, but I recently acquired the auto-syphon and HIGHLY recommend it.

 

[hawktrap74]

i bought an auto-siphon and wondered how i got along without it. its so simple just pull up the rod then push down and bam flowing like hormones on a prom night.

 

[kenmc]

this was the only syphon i could find over here really... will keep an eye out for an auto one. in the meantime I'll start it with water!

 

[uglygoat]

i take a swig of something strong, whisky, brandy, vodka, swish it around and spit it out and use my mouth. have done it this way for just about every rack i've ever done....

 

[Janx]

Yeah I have a buddy who mocks my use of water and just uses his mouth. He seems to have good luck.

At this point I just have my system, and it's pretty darn easy. Whatever works for you is the name of the game.

 

[Tony]

i bought an auto-siphon and wondered how i got along without it. its so simple just pull up the rod then push down and bam flowing like hormones on a prom night.

Best thing Ive bought is the auto-siphon! Excellent!!!

 

[OBX]

i bought an auto-siphon and wondered how i got along without it. its so simple just pull up the rod then push down and bam flowing like hormones on a prom night.

I have an auto-siphon that came in the kit I bought along with the racking cane. I used the racking can and have not opened the auto-siphon because I could not see how I could easily attach it to the side of my fermenting bucket. The racking cane has a little red clip to hold it in place on the fermenting bucket and above the muck at the bottom. The auto-siphon looks like something designed to be used in a carboy - which I don't yet have. How do people support it without letting it touch the yeast cake on the bottom, or do you?

 

[hawktrap74]

they have little filter in it on the bottom( the black piece at the end) plus i have a big spring clamp used for woodworking that i hold to the side of the bucket with. i dont know how good the filter is on the siphon so i just watch the hose to see when im starting to bring grud up then i kill it.
i read up on the siphon and it only filters whole hops.
so clamp it 3 inches above the bottom.

 

[D-brewmeister]

Hi,
I recently bought a syphon which came with a plastic bung through which the syphon tube runs, and a small little tube beside this which the instructions say to blow through to start the syphon off.
I would have thought that this would be a bad idea, given that there'd be so many germs introduced to the beer from blowing into it!.
Any thoughts? would it be better than sucking on it for example??? haven't used it yet, but just so that I know when i need to....
Cheers
Ken

I use a similar sort of carboy cap thing, with two nipples, one for the cane and one to blow into. First of all, it is definitely better than sucking on the hoses, your mouth isn't in contact with surfaces that the beer will flow through. As far as worying about blowing into the carboy, I would imagine that as long as you don't accidentaly spit in there or something, there should be little risk. I seem to remeber somone saying that since co2 is heavy it will form a blanket over the top of the beer. If so, I doubt that the air you force into the top of the carboy will come into contact with the beer itself (that is if your carboy has been kept closed, and all the air has been displaced by co2 from fermentation).

 

[tnlandsailor]

The little plastic thingy on the bottom isn't so much a filter as just a cap to keep the very tip out of the yeast cake. It doesn't filter worth a flip, but it helps. I use strictly carboys, and to keep the tip just below the surface of the beer I put a plastic zip tie around the big body tube semi-loosely so that it can slide up and down. The tail of the zip tie holds the body of the siphon up at the mouth of the carboy and you can slide the body down as the liquid level drops during siphoning. Not sure what you would use on a plastic bucket. Maybe a custom bent piece of coat hangar would work?

As an endorsement, I don't know how I ever got along without the auto-siphon. These things are great and very simple to use. Makes things a lot easier and you can even lose your siphon half way through and get it going again without batting an eye. A "really-should-have" not a "must-have" piece of equipment.

Prost,