Build me a lab

[BeerAlchemist]

So far I am pretty well focused in on the Vinmetrica for SO2 unless someone has a better idea that keeps in that price range. But, I still need other lab equipment. I haven't found anything on the search so please help me figure out what I need to start my wine lab, particularly towards the glassware, burets, pipettes, graduated cylinders and the like and what size capacity should I be looking for.

Right now I have a couple hydrometers, a pH meter, a 2L and 250ml erlenmeyer flask for my brewing and a reloading powder scale accurate to 1/10 of a grain (.006 grams) that I dual purpose as needed as it also reads in grams.

So, that's it, tell me what I need to have in my lab to do all the basic testing and run bench tests???

 

[Runningwolf]

Scales are very important. I bought one on Amazon that is very small that will measure down to 100th of a gram for about $15 (great for meta and other small measurements). Then I got another one that will weigh up to several pounds and accurate to the 10th of a gram. The third one I have is for measuring sugar. I got it at Bed Bath and Beyond for around $50. It has a stainless cover that doubles as a bowl. It is digital and reads in grams or ounces. I highly suggest the first and third scale I mentioned.

I just purchased 6 1000ml erlenmeyer flasks for starting yeast cultures in. I reccomend an entire set of graduated cylinders from 10ml up to 1000ml. I buy these in plastic as they are a fraction of the price. The one I use all the time is the 100ml. When making blends, it makes it very easy to convert the ratios to your batch.

Pipettes of all sizes up to 25ml. Make sure you get a pipette filler that will let you slowly release the fluid.

The Vinemetrica is a fantastic instrument.

Something I did that works well for me. I bought a craftsman roll a round tool box (just the bottom half, $200) to keep the majority of the stuff in. I made sure it had a drawer deep enough for my larger beakers and a very shallow drawer for things like the pipettes. I bought simple plastic containers from Walmart to keep stuff organized like testing chemicals. This was a fantastic investment for me. I can roll it wherever I want, like out of the way.

The majority of my lab equipment came from Cynmar Corporation. They are on line.

 

[BobF]

There are never enough beakers ...

What Dan said ...

I recently added a magnetic stirrer and an acrylic/ptfe buret for NaOH.
http://morewinemaking.com/view_product/12041//Fermentap_Magnetic_Stir_Plate

http://www.cynmar.com/ProductDetail/15024009_Acrylic-Buret-Wptfe-Stopcock-25ml

Inexpensive, but way more accurate than the syringes I was using and no worries about NaOH/glass. You'll also need a stand and clamp. I got a zeroing kit for the buret as well. The stiff tube that goes in the top of the buret is a little short, but in practice it's not a problem. This keeps the buret sealed at the top and makes filling a simple process - squeeze the bottle.

A set of 250ml flasks w/stoppers for bench trials.

I use .1N HCl for standardizing NaOH. Yes, it is a secondary standard, but stable and prolly more accurate than I can measure kph. I get from a shop that supplies it to wineries in the area.

I mix my NaOH from 1N. 1N NaOH is also very stable until diluted.

I use the morewine A/O setup for SO2. I've found that I can use rule-of-thumb SO2 additions up until bottling time. I measure SO2 and add if necessary at the last racking prior to bottling.

The same shop I get the HCl from has 75% phosphoric acid that I dilute as needed for A/O. No hazmat fees for shipping - the last purchase was ~$13 for a liter. A lot of folks love the vinmetrica - I've never used one (came out after I got A/O setup). If I switch over in the future, I'll have to get over my aversion to single-source, propriety sources for consumables.

My pH meter is the MW102.

Use care with the acids and NaOH. They are pretty nasty, especially the higher concentrations.

Also, you can never have too much distilled water and baking soda on hand

 

[JohnT]

Wolf,

Where did you get your flasks?

 

[Runningwolf]

I bought them from Presque Isle wine cellars. They're great for yeast starters. Today I was doing bence trails for a blend and they are really useful for that also when it comes to swirling them to mix in enough sugar for a sample. My bench trails are mixed in 100 ml cylinders for accuracy of amounts then I add it to the flask for the sugar addition.

 

[BeerAlchemist]

I just purchased 6 1000ml erlenmeyer flasks for starting yeast cultures in.

Much fancier than my collection of canning jars

Pipettes of all sizes up to 25ml. Make sure you get a pipette filler that will let you slowly release the fluid.

What type of filler? I was looking at the thumbwheel ones; however, read some reviews that said those aren't good for titration.

 

[BeerAlchemist]

I recently added a magnetic stirrer and an acrylic/ptfe buret for NaOH.

I have a stir plate that I built for yeast starters for brewing...I haven't got to the point in my book getting into lab details so am still putting things together in my head, what do you use the stir plate for in winemaking, just easier titration?

Didn't know about the NaOH and glass reaction, just looked that up, thanks.

 

[BobF]

Yep, the mag stir plate is for titration.

 

[Runningwolf]

I forgot to mention the stir plate. Yes I use it.

I use the thumb wheel pipette filler. For titration I use the zero burret.