Cellar Craft Degassing

[RJB]

Hi to all... I just saw a posting over on the WE forum, suggesting *not* to reverse direction if degassing with a drill-mounted stirrer. I have the type of stirrer that has two hinged paddles at the bottom, which rotate out at 90degrees to the shaft, as soon as the stirrer starts to rotate.

I have made 7 CC kits to date, and tried to follow the directions every time. On each occasion that I stirred, I did it for the suggested length of time, but I *did* reverse direction every 30 seconds. All but one of the kits are now bottled and the wines appear to be clear. However, they are not old enough for serious drinking, so i can not comment on their quality =:O

Some questions:
1 - is the suggestion re not changing direction of rotation valid? or did I totally misunderstand the posting?
2 - what are the side effects of insufficient degassing? Would it be obvious?
3 - is it possible to "overdegass"? (is that even a word...)


thanks in advance
Bob

 

[djrockinsteve]

The direction isn't important. What is important and somewhat of a trick is to work the paddle but not to introduce more air into the wine. I myself degas as I rack to my carboy and then taking my spoon to it for a good stir. The remainder will exit over time.

If you do not degass or insufficiently your wine may take longer to clear. You may need more sulfite to prevent oxidation with all that air in your wine. When bottled and air pressure changes you may have bottles explode. In addition when you open a bottle you may find your wine is carbonated.

Degassing is an important step in good wine making.

 

[Wade E]

When I use my drill mounted stirrer I always change directions. The only reason I can see is that its probablya lot of stress on the stirrer itself. Ive had my Mix Stir for eight years and I replaced the blades once about 1 1/2 years ago. I dont use it much for degassing now as I mainly use a vacuum pump which does a way better job but until then the stirrer was the only option that worked at all. The vacuum works way better though!!!!

 

[RJB]

Great, thanks for the responses guys. Some questions re the vacuum pump:
1 - what does it consist of, and how do you "hook it up" to the carboy?
2 - where do you get em?
3 - roughly what do they cost?

thanks again
Bob

 

[roblloyd]

Great, thanks for the responses guys. Some questions re the vacuum pump:
1 - what does it consist of, and how do you "hook it up" to the carboy?
2 - where do you get em?
3 - roughly what do they cost?

thanks again
Bob

If you look in the classifieds section you will see some stickys on top with posts from Wade with what he has available and lots of pictures. Prices vary depending on if it's new or used and the model. Talk to Wade he won't steer you wrong.

 

[Flem]

But you'd better act fast. I see where he is going out of business.

 

[RJB]

Okay, here is my take on what has been said. If I continue to degas using a drill-mounted stirrer, I should
1 - stir steadily for at the least the specified period of time, typically 2 minutes.
2 - okay to change direction of rotation,
*however*
3 - do NOT stir the wine too close to the surface, as this creates surface turbulence which can introduce O2 into the mix, while the objective is simply to remove the CO2.
thanks again
Bob

 

[roblloyd]

That sounds right.

I still recommend the vacuum. Much easier and it works 100%. No guessing if you didn't do it enough. Plus you can use it to filter and rack and bottle.

 

[RJB]

Thanks Rob, and everyone, for the advice.

I'm considering the vacuum pump option, but gotta count the pennies -for the first time in 20 years I owe the IRS some tax bucks, thankfully not too much =:O

Bob

 

[roblloyd]

Thanks Rob, and everyone, for the advice.

I'm considering the vacuum pump option, but gotta count the pennies -for the first time in 20 years I owe the IRS some tax bucks, thankfully not too much =:O

Bob

Depending on how you manage your money that's a good thing. I can do better with my money than the govt sitting on it because I overpaid. It is like getting a bonus when you get a refund though.

I'd talk to Wade and tell him your budget. Maybe he can keep you in mind for one that fits your range when he has a used one. Not sure he has a watchlist though.

 

[RJB]

Vacuum Pump Recommendations

Hi to all

Can anyone make recommendations re a suitable vacuum pump setup for the CC kits? I understand Wade had some but looks like he has sold out of them.

Opened a bottle of CC Viognier yesterday, at 4 months. Did not realize it was meant to be a "sparkling" wine =:O
I suspect that may be a consequence of the Flavour Pack, nonetheless it is pretty obvious to me that my wines could use more degassing.

thanks in advance for any tips

Bob, Maple Valley, WA

 

[roblloyd]

Not sure on the quality of them but Harbor Freight has them at a reasonable price. If you don't mind used ebay.
Also Valley Vintner carries them with all the other stuff you'd need.

You'll probably get better recommendations but this would be a good start for your homework.

 

[robie]

Stirring the specified amount of time is nothing more than a minimum. You should stir until the CO2 is gone! Depending on the temperature of the wine at the time, it could take a lot longer than that minimum.

When I go to our home wine makers' club meetings, there are sometimes a couple dozen wines there from many different members. It is not uncommon to taste that many of the wines still have CO2 in them.

Young wine can be tart for sure. However, much of that tartness may turn out to be nothing but yucky, bitter CO2.

After you have stirred, always test the wine to see if there is still CO2 present. If still present, stir some more.

 

[jelina]

I always change directions. The only reason I can see is that its probablya lot of stress on the stirrer itself. Ive had my Mix Stir for eight years and I replaced the blades once about 1 1/2 years ago. I dont use it much for degassing now as I mainly use a vacuum pump which does a way better job but until then the stirrer was the only option that worked at all. On each occasion that I stirred, I did it for the suggested length of time, but I *did* reverse direction every 30 seconds.

 

[Stefani]

If you do not degass or insufficiently your wine may take longer to clear. You may need more sulfite to prevent oxidation with all that air in your wine. When bottled and air pressure changes you may have bottles explode. In addition when you open a bottle you may find your wine is carbonated.
Degassing is an important step in good wine making.

OK When I'm bulk aging do I need to add the Sulfate or should it be added before bottling?

 

[djrockinsteve]

You need to keep adequet amounts of sulfite in your wine when aging and when you bottle as well.

When you bottle the amount may vary depending upon the acidity of the wine

 

[diggerdan17]

I saw an add in wine maker magazine for a vacuum degasser that hooks to an air compressor to pull a vacuum on a carboy. According to the inventer this device will pull about 22-24 mercury and is the cats meow for getting co2 out of a carboy full of wine.

Anybody try it yet?

Its called the Gas Getter ( I have no affiliation)

I ordered 1 for 75 bucks and as I already own a suitable size compressor this is the cheapest and easiest way for me I suspect.

I will let you guys know if it works as well as it is advertised too when it gets here next week.

Digger

 

[Wade E]

You can get used or new ones on Ebay and 99% of thse pumps are way better then the ones youll get at Harbor Frieght and even Valley Vintner. Thiose are not hospital grade units meaning they are not made to run or longe periods of time without over heating or even burning out and are made very cheap and also dont come equipped to hold a hydrophobic filter or even the overflow canister that you need to have inline! Below are a few complete package I would buy myself if I needed one! The first one is a great unit that I have actually bought meaning the unit and the seller and I would buy from him all day long and its a heavy duty great unit!!!! The last one is very cheap and is a great unit but is missing hoses in which you can get also on here or through a place I get all my stuff, if you go that route let me know and Ill hook you up with the name and link to the hose you need.

http://cgi.ebay.com/SUCTION-UNIT-AS...824?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item53e835f128

http://cgi.ebay.com/GEN-MED-ASPIRAT...545?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item2eb6583c59

http://cgi.ebay.com/DRIVE-18600N-HE...369?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item33692fc0f9

http://cgi.ebay.com/Schuco-vac-S-130p-Aspirator-/150625958186?pt=BI_Pumps&hash=item231201b92a

http://cgi.ebay.com/Medlines-Vac-As...255?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item20b9c41e57

http://cgi.ebay.com/Medline-Vac-Ass...384?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item5199804558

http://cgi.ebay.com/Brand-New-Open-.../120746903811?pt=BI_Pumps&hash=item1c1d138903

http://cgi.ebay.com/INVACARE-ASPIRATOR-MODEL-IRC1135-/320724757273?pt=BI_Pumps&hash=item4aacaf6b19

 

[daugenet]

I saw an add in wine maker magazine for a vacuum degasser that hooks to an air compressor to pull a vacuum on a carboy. According to the inventer this device will pull about 22-24 mercury and is the cats meow for getting co2 out of a carboy full of wine.

Anybody try it yet?

Its called the Gas Getter ( I have no affiliation)

I ordered 1 for 75 bucks and as I already own a suitable size compressor this is the cheapest and easiest way for me I suspect.

I will let you guys know if it works as well as it is advertised too when it gets here next week.

Digger

I saw the gas getter and then made one for about $20 It works very well overall

 

[rhoffart]

You can get used or new ones on Ebay and 99% of thse pumps are way better then the ones youll get at Harbor Frieght and even Valley Vintner. Thiose are not hospital grade units meaning they are not made to run or longe periods of time without over heating or even burning out and are made very cheap and also dont come equipped to hold a hydrophobic filter or even the overflow canister that you need to have inline! Below are a few complete package I would buy myself if I needed one! The first one is a great unit that I have actually bought meaning the unit and the seller and I would buy from him all day long and its a heavy duty great unit!!!! The last one is very cheap and is a great unit but is missing hoses in which you can get also on here or through a place I get all my stuff, if you go that route let me know and Ill hook you up with the name and link to the hose you need.

How deep of a vacuum do you feel comfortable pulling on a carboy? The pump I just received today has an adjustable vacuum control. I really don't want to implode a carboy ...