Photos of your winemaking setup

[Macuser]

I'd love to see photos of everyone's winemaking setup. I'm trying to reorganize my basement to dedicate a space for winemaking equipment, fermenters, carboys, etc. Any photos would help give me some inspiration.

 

[NashChic]

I use a corner of my basement laundry room. It's not fancy, but it works out well. I also have a closet in there (not in the pic) that's great for my extra carboys, bottle tree, corker, misc goodies (like kits on deck) etc.

I'm curious to see other people's spaces as well =)

 

[Gr8zins]

Just had to expand my operation to acommodate Chilean juice for the first time. I am just about maxxed out on my carboy capacity. I actually have a few more that have been lent out to a couple friends. Maybe that's a good thing. Using one forth of my basement. Chilean wine has just been racked to secondary. Picked up from Presque Isle last weekend.

 

[rob]

Gr8- not sure how to say this, but are you sure that is sturdy enough?

 

[Arne]

Never figured out pics, but this winter I gained 16 ft. of counter space in the basement. Made the framework out of 2X4's, bought cheap counter tops from a big box store. Not quite done yet, got everything up then decided had to take it all down and insulate the walls. Double shelves all the way along above the counters. Only thing is bottom shelf is too low tolet a carboy fit under with an airlock. They have to sit out a bit from the back wall, but the frame is sturdy enough it doesn't matter. Now when I do have to lift a full carboy which isn't very often, only have to set them back about waist high. Much nicer than before. Getting nicer outside, kinda loosing interest in indoor work, but will finish next winter for sure. Arne.

 

[Rocky]

Gr8- not sure how to say this, but are you sure that is sturdy enough?

When I saw the picture, Rob, that was my first thought, too. Quick calculation, though, says the load on each of the four buckets is about 100 pounds. I know that I have stood on those buckets and I am over 200 pounds.

 

[JohnT]

Yup,

Looks a little frightning to me.

I would put the board on the floor and get rid of the buckets. If that bench were to tip over for some reason, you will experience the worst red tide ever!

 

[seth8530]

Yeha, what John said lol. I would not be worries so much about the wood or the buckets giving out but more of the tip over risk.

 

[dangerdave]

When I started making wine in August 2011, I converted a portion of our basement laundry room into my Lab. There's a thread showing the conversion, here: Danger's Lab

 

[Macuser]

Thanks for the pics. Very impressive, Danger!


I'd love to see how others are set up.

 

[jswordy]

 

[FABulousWines]

Good one, Jim!

 

[dangerdave]

All I need is one strong McGillicuddy and my Lab will be complete!

 

[Gr8zins]

The wood is a 12 foot long solid piece of pressure treated Douglas Fir at 1 1/2 inches thick. On those buckets I think it would support a football team . This is actually a temporary fix during fermentation to get the carboys off the cold cement floor while finishing out secondary. I feel like it was keeping the wine a little too cool and I didn't want a stuck ferment or stressed out yeast. These will go back to the floor for ageing when ferm is complete. First time fermenting in Spring with Chilean juice. Basement is overall cooler than in sept and oct. when the Calif juice is fermenting. Cheers!

 

[moesagoodboy]

This is my setup, I'm still in the setting up phase. Originally was going to go to the "local" big box store and purchase some laminated countertop. Laminate is really nice because it is slippery so you can just slide the carboys around. But countertop depth is only 25 inches. You can fit a depth of two carboys but have no room left to work. So I retrieved my workbench from the garage. It's 36 inches deep, 6 feet long. To me it's more suitable to the task of winemaking. Nine carboys on it only takes 2/3 the space leaving a decent area to work. It doesn't take a lot of wall space. The only drawback is if you want to mount a shelf above it, and above the carboys, you would have to have the arms of a NBA player. Its a loong reach.
Joe

 

[LoveTheWine]

I had just posted my pics here:

http://www.winemakingtalk.com/forum/f4/my-wine-room-renovations-38057/

 

[ShelleyDickison]

http://s130.photobucket.com/user/jswordy/media/grape-stomp-i-love-lucy_zps473917f5.jpg.html

That's funny. I just used this picture for a label for a batch of moscato I am making for myself and my wine making friend. My husband calls us Lucy and Ethel.

 

[Elmer]

I started making wine right after I had moved into my house. My wife was nice enough to let me use a small unfinished corner of the basement, between the furnace and cat litre.
I soon moved to the other end of the basement by the fuse box. It is probably 5ft wide, but I manage. Unfortunately I have no water source in the basement so any work I would do means I have to pack up and haul everything upstairs to the kitchen to rise, then back down.
I have since taken over a portion of the living room for fermenting, portion of the kids playroom in the the basement for aging because there is no sunlight and it is cool, 60 degree all year long. And all my storage goes in what was once my make shift lab ( where I trip over unused excersize bench and conga drums).
I am most proud of my traveling lab, (just a homer bucket) which I have all my gear and I can easily pick it up and hightail it out of the room if my wife tells me we have company coming over.

I have to say I am jealous of all of you for the space you have.
I hope one day after all the home improvements are done I can build a little work station for me!

 

[jswordy]

Elmer, the bucket buddy is a great idea! Maybe gonna steal it.

I make my wines in my kitchen. No special space for me. The carboys sit out in our enclosed sunroom. Basic equipment. It all gets stores in a dedicated kitchen cabinet and in metal cabinets out in my farm shop. Shrug.

 

[MNwino]

I see a lot of people using those Carboy carriers around the necks of the carboys. Be very carful with those. They are not to be used with full carboys only empties. If you carry a full one the neck can snap clean off.