Straining Bags

How many straining bags do you all have? I only have 1 and I'm using the 1 that I have right now to contain the figs right now and the bag looks "funky". I know that I will have to replace it and get another one. I'm thinking that I should have about 5 on hand. How long do the straining bags last? How do you clean/sanitize your straining bags?

lol, i have 15...they do look pretty funky after use.
they last a long time, i use the 5 gallon paint strainer bags from home depot.there cheap and strong.
I wash in washing machine with a little bleach and air dry them.
I soak in one step and squeeze, before i use them in wine.

jamesngalveston said:

lol, i have 15...they do look pretty funky after use.
they last a long time, i use the 5 gallon paint strainer bags from home depot.there cheap and strong.
I wash in washing machine with a little bleach and air dry them.
I soak in one step and squeeze, before i use them in wine.

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lol @ 15 !!!!!!! WOW !!!!!!!

Oh goody on the washing machine tip. How much are the strainer bags at Home Depot. My wine shop sells them for $2.00.

Guess I'll be needing more straining bags. (but not 15 - LOL)

I have 1 which my wine shop sold for $12.

Which is why I have a box of stocking, I soak in one step, use and toss in the compost when done!

I get mine for $3.96 for 2 at Home Depot. Use the same type of thing James is.

I do the same as James and D.J. and I have bout 10

elmer, you have a box of stockings.

i use 3 sometimes in a batch of 6 gallon...i split the fruit up...its hard to squeeze a bag that weighs 15 lbs...

I have a couple packs of 2 of the paint bags. I buy them, use them, and toss them. They are cheap. There's more labor, water and soap in keeping them than in just tossing them.

jswordy said:

I have a couple packs of 2 of the paint bags. I buy them, use them, and toss them. They are cheap. There's more labor, water and soap in keeping them than in just tossing them.

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Wha t???????????? You are not sneaking them into the wash for you wife to wash them?

I use Mc Master filter bags which are plastic I believe and come in different size micron sizes as well. I use 800 micron and the part # is 98295k77
they are approx 5 dollars each - and well worth it as I still have my original 2 and its been 5 years or so since I originally purchased them.

Take a look at my facebook page pics and it shows it in use - great idea and a big time saver !!!

vacuumpumpman said:

I use Mc Master filter bags which are plastic I believe and come in different size micron sizes as well. I use 800 micron and the part # is 98295k77
they are approx 5 dollars each - and well worth it as I still have my original 2 and its been 5 years or so since I originally purchased them.

Take a look at my facebook page pics and it shows it in use - great idea and a big time saver !!!

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Yep, McMaster has all micron sizes. I used to work in a paint factory, and we filtered all paints through these bags before running them into 55-gallon drums. A 100-micron bag is about as small as you need for wine, but they have them so small it is actually like a final filtering if you run your wine through it. Thing is, the gravity of paint in a 20,000 tank is much more push through those bags than wine from a fiver.

Julie said:

Wha t???????????? You are not sneaking them into the wash for you wife to wash them?

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For a buck eighty each? Toss 'em. The divorce would cost me more.

jswordy said:

For a buck eighty each? Toss 'em. The divorce would cost me more.

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Here in town, they are even cheaper at the actual paint stores, rather than at Lowes or Home Depot. Also, they have the one-gallon and five-gallon sizes.

Always sanitize the bags before you use them, regardless of where you got them.

I'm with jswordy, use 'em and pitch 'em. Whats left in the bag gives me the heebies, ain't no way I'm opening the bag.

lol, cedar swamp there aint no snakes in the bag..jeesh

I ain't skeered of snakes...just that stuff left in the bag.

I used a knee high stocking. A box of brand new knee-highs is $5-7. That's less than fifty cents per bag. And I also soak in one step before using.

Bet if you tried the paint strainer you'd never look back. It's so much easier to line the bucket with a strainer and stir it occasionally vs cramming fruit into pantyhose and squeezing it every day.

I used to just keep 2 and wash them and they would last about a year or 2 before If chuck them. For anyone who fishes for striped bass they make great eel bags to tie to your waist also. Do not use them for bait and then ferment wine unless you like eel wine! LOL.. Glad you brought this up as I need a new one for a bait bag again as the slime builds up from those eels and I don't think I can sneak them in the laundry! Hehehe