Almost Bullet-proof Vacuum Pump

[ShaunDanz]

Not sure how many of you are using vacuum pumps for racking and bottling but it's an investment that I cannot live without.

I purchased the All in One pump two years ago and recently was racking an 18 gallon batch of wine into three 6 gallon carboys when suddenly the doorbell rang. I didn't shut the pump off for some reason when I went to answer it. I returned to find that the pump was now sucking the wine into itself. Shortly after that incident, I decided to bottle some wine and it was taking much longer than normal, so I knew I needed help.

I emailed Steve at All in One and asked if I could buy a new pump. He suggested that instead I ship mine to him so he could inspect it. He noticed the wine in the pump right away but was able to replace the seals, etc. He shipped it back with new hoses and a pressure relief valve. I also purchased the new racking device that wasn't available when I made my original purchase.

I'm happy to report that my old pump is like new again -- and at a fraction of the price of buying a new pump. My wife will never have to know about this small doorbell mishap. Shhhh...

Thanks Steve!

 

[dralarms]

Steve is a stand up guy.

 

[vacuumpumpman]

Shawn
I am glad that I was able to help you out.There wasn't any need to buy an entire new pump. This is one of the advantages of building the pumps yourself rather than outsourcing all your parts.

 

[ehammonds]

Wow. Think I need to buy one of these. But, I use a combo of better bottles and glass carboys. Not sure if it will work.

 

[vacuumpumpman]

Wow. Think I need to buy one of these. But, I use a combo of better bottles and glass carboys. Not sure if it will work.

Yes it can definitely work !


this was taken from my website under FAQ'S
http://allinonewinepump.com/faqs/

How to incorporate a BB with the Allinone -
Over the years I have figured out how to incorporate the plastic BB carboys with the All In One. You can always pull from a BB or an open container – whether you are transferring, bottling or filtering – you do have to go into a glass container in order to withstand the vacuum pressure otherwise it will collapse. I have talked to many customers who have both types of carboys and this is what I recommend.

Transfer from BB to glass to remove CO2 and sediment. The glass carboy should be higher than the BB for the next time you transfer; you can start a small vacuum, only to get the gravity to work for you and then turn off the pump. This way there is still no lifting heavy carboys !!

 

[ShaunDanz]

My vacuum pump has made the bottling process so easy that I have my 12 year old son bottle with me. I've bottled over 1500 bottles this way in the last two years.

One thing that I didn't realize when I bought the pump was how much CO2 it would remove. After I realized this, I opened most of my old bottles of wine and poured them into carboys and degassed them and then bottled them again.

The next thing I need to invest in is the filter option. Even after aging my wine in the carboy for a year, I still find sediment in the bottle after another year.

This is turning into an elaborate hobby. Hehe!

 

[ehammonds]

Thanks. Good to know.