Mead Pump

[xpc]

Geesh, it sounds like you are talking a foreign language to me!

I agree that after re-reading it I may have gone off on a tangent with the theory but felt it was necessary to understand the simplicity of the project.

 

[Rebecka]

Very cool indeed! I am totally setting my sweet husband to task on this one ! Every batch of mead in this house gets 3 rackings before it ever sees a bottle. However, we never have any sediment, or off flavor. I have tasted too many meads that could have been so much better had they just been racked a few more times. We also have a 6 month rule. 6 months in the bottle and we can open ONE. Just one. Then we wait another 6 months. However, we are also running 10 gallon batches.

ETA: xpc, do you have a thread here on making whiskey ? I have done some reading and have built a small still for herbs. Maybe a book or 15 that you recommend ?

 

[Jaxom]

Just a suggestion, I learned alot about building a still and such on this site. http://homedistiller.org/

For everything else, beer, wine, meade, ale, ect, here's another good site... http://morebeer.com/

Both sites have excellent forums for the newbie to the expierenced. Alot of good diy built stuff as well.

 

[noobiechickenlady]

Geesh, it sounds like you are talking a foreign language to me!

Yeah!! But I like it!

 

[xpc]

Here is a short video of the pump in action, on this one I reverse the air and suction lines to push the liquid from the full bottle to the empty jar. It took 25 seconds to move 16oz but this air pump is the smallest available for $6.95, larger ones will do it much quicker in the $15 range.

This would be perfect for those who don't want to decant a 50 pound glass carboy or siphoning into smaller bottles while keeping the suction going at an awkward height.

mead pump video

edit: This method needs no modifications and uses the pump straight out of the box and just need to drill a small hole in the bung for the air hose. To transfer from a large open top bucket you need the suction modification.

 

[Farmfresh]

You are just the kind of crazy genius that I love most! Keep up the great work.

 

[xpc]

You are just the kind of crazy genius that I love most! Keep up the great work.

Is it genius or just crazy?

I just put down 5 gallons of hard apple cider and a gallon of spiced mead and one of sack mead. I used EC-1118 for all 3, the cider should come out at 7.5%abv, the spice about 14%, and the sack about 25% if the yeast can survive it but more likely 18% to dry. I racked and bottled the pyment mead and is in the refrigerator at 12%.

I now have 8 gallons fermenting and legally can do 92 gallons more this year. You guys with 2 adults can do 200 gallons a year. I already had ten 5 gallon bakery buckets from walmart and just picked up 10 more yesterday, at $1 a piece they are perfect as they have an integrated air-proof gasket in the lid, I just drill a 5/8" hole for the airlock bung and all is good.

I see that Missouri kinda has an impromptu moonshine law as in don't ask don't tell and god forbid don't sell. Most other states as well but will hit you with a fine if caught selling.

 

[Farmfresh]

We don't do near your scale here. Just hubby making his own beer supply and occasionally some hard cider for me.

I am pretty sure some of my cousins still shine though!

 

[dragonlaurel]

XPC- I think you need somebody to help you with this mead. I volunteer as a taste tester.

 

[xpc]

XPC- I think you need somebody to help you with this mead. I volunteer as a taste tester.

It should be ready by Christmas and will take your message as an invite for dinner, I'll bring the beverages.

Just racked the mead's and hard cider to secondaries after a very long 4 weeks. The cider came out to 7.3% abv and both the ancient orange regular and spiced are about 14.8% abv. All 3 have fermented to dryness and don't taste too bad even at this young of an age. I got to use my mead pump for real for the first time and it worked flawlessly using very little effort and introduced no oxygen into the mix.

Unfortunately today was the hottest of the 3 summers I have been here at 104F and at 2:00am still 85F, tomorrow will be another 100+ day. I say unfortunately because I also double racked 30 gallons of wheat mash using hot sparkalloid, mixed up 15 more gallons of hot simple syrup and distilled 8 gallons of product requiring the stove to be on for 6 hours straight. The main house is at 87F with a very high humidity and the warmest it has ever been, at least the computer room is at 75F.