Using a pump to rack beer?
- Thread starter cschwan
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BarleyWater
Well-Known Member
You want to avoid oxygenation at all costs. If you can use your pump without introducing ANY oxygen into the line, I don't see a problem.
Funkenjaeger
Well-Known Member
Well for one thing, many of us ferment in carboys or buckets without spigots, in which case getting a pump primed isn't so straightforward.
The biggest problem I can see is that when racking you want to avoid disturbing the trub. Pumping would increase the flow rate which may cause you to stir up (and thus suck up) more of the trub.
Personally, I don't think it'd be worth it, at least for 5 gallon batches - the time savings of the faster transfer would probably be nullified by the time you'd have to spend cleaning the pump afterward. Perhaps if you were doing MUCH larger batches it could be worth it, but even then, I'd think that simply moving to larger-diameter racking tubing would be an easier way to cut your racking time way down.
The biggest problem I can see is that when racking you want to avoid disturbing the trub. Pumping would increase the flow rate which may cause you to stir up (and thus suck up) more of the trub.
Personally, I don't think it'd be worth it, at least for 5 gallon batches - the time savings of the faster transfer would probably be nullified by the time you'd have to spend cleaning the pump afterward. Perhaps if you were doing MUCH larger batches it could be worth it, but even then, I'd think that simply moving to larger-diameter racking tubing would be an easier way to cut your racking time way down.
DutchK9
Well-Known Member
An auto siphon is basically a manually priming pump and is easy and cheap.
not to mention having to sanitize the inside of the pump pretty thoroughly...
auto-siphon wins.
or if you do want a more automated method, people will use CO2 to 'push' start a siphon. just stick a racking cane thru the carboy cap, and then run CO2 into the blowoff hose...pressure pushes beer up the cane, adn then gravity takes over a few seconds later and it completes like a normal siphon.
auto-siphon wins.
or if you do want a more automated method, people will use CO2 to 'push' start a siphon. just stick a racking cane thru the carboy cap, and then run CO2 into the blowoff hose...pressure pushes beer up the cane, adn then gravity takes over a few seconds later and it completes like a normal siphon.
