Auto Siphon Fix

[hardworkin]

I use the Auto Siphon to transfer my wines from bucket to carboy and carboy to carboy. I use a vacuum pump to filter my wines. I know there are many people that like the Auto Siphon and, probably just as many that don't.
After cleaning the siphon, I use a air compressor to blow the water out of the tubes. I come to find out that I blew out the flapper in the siphon which caused it to no longer work.
Luckily, I read on another forum that a quick fix to the broken Auto Siphon is to place a sanitized marble or sanitized dime in the large tube of the siphon. This will act like the missing or damaged flapper.
It works. I tried both.
I just wanted to pass along my findings to everyone else on this forum. It may save buying a replacement like I had already done.

 

[richmke]

I use an auto siphon to move from bag to pail. After that, the vacuum pump handles everything else (pail to carboy, carboy to carboy, carboy to bottle).

 

[hardworkin]

I would use the vacuum pump for other things, but it requires more tubes to clean, and the well that I have doesn't allow me the luxury of using a lot of water.
I just thought that I would provide the means for a cheap/quick repair for anyone with a faulty auto siphon.

 

[vacuumpumpman]

I would use the vacuum pump for other things, but it requires more tubes to clean, and the well that I have doesn't allow me the luxury of using a lot of water.

Not sure what you mean by more tubing to clean - ?

I will clean and or sanitize all my tubing like I am transferring a carboy or filling a bottle. It literally takes no more than 750 ml of fluid to do this entire process,

How are you cleaning your tubes ? and how much water are you using ?

Curious because I am also on a well -

 

[hardworkin]

I clean mine in the kitchen sink. I'm sure that there are ways to use a vacuum pump that require a small amount of water or sanitizer, but I still prefer to use the auto siphon in certain steps of the wine making process.

 

[Runningwolf]

After cleaning the siphon, I use a air compressor to blow the water out of the tubes. I come to find out that I blew out the flapper in the siphon which caused it to no longer work.
Luckily, I read on another forum that a quick fix to the broken Auto Siphon is to place a sanitized marble or sanitized dime in the large tube of the siphon. This will act like the missing or damaged flapper.
It works. I tried both.

I own all three sizes of the auto siphon. I would not want to be without them I think they do have an important role in my wine making where I would not want to bother setting up a vacuum pump.

I have not ever had an issue like yours but I never heard of that fix either.Thank you for sharing that great bit of information.

 

[winojoe]

I run hot water through my autosiphon to give it a quick rinse before cleaning. Blew out the flapper on the big one by turning on the water to high. Fortunately, the flapper was not damaged. Just a pain in the butt to get it back into place.