Inert Gases

[ShawnDTurner]

Good morning ladies and Gents

Do either of you use gas ( not the bodily kind) to top off headspace in carboy or use it to displace air prior to bottling? If so, what are your thoughts on this procedure, as well as type gas used and where did you purchase?... Cheers

 

[Runningwolf]

I use argon gas for topping off if I'm a bit short. I try to always be topped up and not use it. I never use it for bottling.

 

[rezod11]

Good morning ladies and Gents

Do either of you use gas ( not the bodily kind) to top off headspace in carboy or use it to displace air prior to bottling? If so, what are your thoughts on this procedure, as well as type gas used and where did you purchase?... Cheers

Had to laugh at the visual this gave

 

[Tyroneshoolace]

I few guys in my club use CO2 to purge airspace in the top of the carboy. They use their c02 tank with a wand dealie to dispense the gas into the carboy.

 

[mmadmikes1]

I use CO2 as well to top off carboys. I have never used it when bottling. CO2 is heavier than o2 so it will set on top of wine in a layer

 

[GreginND]

CO2 is generally not a good idea as it can be dissolved into the wine. Not a good thing after spending effort to degas it.

Argon is heavier than air also which is why it is commonly used.

 

[ShawnDTurner]

I would imagine argon is expensive to purchase?

 

[Runningwolf]

Honestly no mater what gas you go with, it's going to be an expensive initial investment. After that it's not so bad regardless of what you use. As I posted earlier, I only use it when I have to for a carboy thats a little light. I only have a small tank and I just used it up for the first time in three years. It'll cost about $20 to refill.

 

[CowboyPhil]

Co2 added by adding enough chips or dry ice to a carboy to get the 'smoke' to the top of the carboy. Make sure all bubbling of dry ice has ceased then recap

 

[JohnT]

I know that I might upset some folks here, but IMHO, the use of inert gas is "a pound of prevention for an ounce of cure". In other words, I feel that it is a lot of money and time with very little benefit.

It is far better to top off your containers then it is to try and use inert gas to prevent air contact. Here I why I feel this way...

- if you keep your containers topped off, then there is very little air left in the container. The ratio of air to wine is very, very small and is not much of a worry.

- If you do NOT keep your containers topped off, then I will assume that you are left with a large air pocket. If you are using a standard fermentation trap, you need to keep in mind that the container will "breath". Any gas in the container will expands and contract due to temperature and atmospheric pressure changes. In short, even if you top off with inert gas, the "breathing" will eventually expell the gas in favor of air. In short, that inert gas will give you a false sense of security.

If you are going to use inert gas, then you should also be sealing your containers to make them air-tight so that no air can get in or out. This is the only way to trap the gas within the container.

That being said, think of the money you need to invest. A tank, the gas itself, a truly sealable container, and any fixtures needed to port the inert gas from the tank into your container.

I still say that it is far better to keep the containers full. Go buy some wine if you need to!