About to rack for 1st time...

[CaptainArgo]

I'm about to siphon beer to a bottling bucket for the first time and I've got a couple questions. I don't have an auto-siphon, just a racking cane and some tubing, so I've been looking around at siphoning techniques.

As I was practicing with plain water the other day I found that the easiest way, for me anyway, was to fill the tube by holding both ends of the tube turned upward, stick a small funnel in one end, and to ladle water in to it until the tube was nearly full. After that I'd just remove the funnel and stick it on to the end of the racking cane, then turn the other end of the tube over into the bottling bucket.

My 1st question -- is there anything bad about doing it this way, assuming that I sanitize my ladle and funnel of course? Am I overlooking something that could cause problems?

My 2nd question -- I know most people fill their tube with sanitizer and then try to pinch/move the tube over when beer starts flowing. It seems rather precarious and prone to beer loss. Assuming I'm using my funnel technique, and that the tube is properly sanitized beforehand, would there be anything particularly wrong with just ladling beer into the tube and starting the siphon with that? I can't think of one, but I'm a noob so I never assume I've thought of everything Most people don't seem to do things this way, perhaps there's a reason?

 

[Captain Damage]

I have an autosiphon for my carboys, but this is the way I do it for drawing wort out of my kettle: the cane is already attached to the tube. One end goes in my bucket of Star San, the other end goes in my mouth and I draw the sanitizer up like sucking on a straw - it's sanitizer, so I'm not worried about my gross mouth germs being left on there. Cane goes in the kettle (quickly), a finger stays over the end of the tube as I put it in the carboy. Lift off my finger and the siphon starts. Easy for one person to do!

 

[Conan]

This is most likely terrible advice, but after my autosiphon broke (plastic flapper valve keeps coming off it's seat) I just mouth siphon like you would gasoline. I soak the hose in Star-San for an adequate amount of time, usually about a half hour while I clean the kegs, etc.. Take it out of the Star-San, drain it, and one end goes in the beer and I start the siphon.
Functionally it sounds like your proposal will work but it also sounds like it'll be a pain juggling a ladel, tubing, and a funnel. Honestly you'll do yourself a favor by just getting an autosiphon. Mine was a 3/8" and was unheavenly slow. Next I'll get a 1/2". Kyle

 

[rxpx40]

I always fill my siphon hose and tube with tap water from the sink after sanitizing all of course. Hold your thumbs over the ends of the tubes. My hands were in the sanitizer solution, so I'm not concerned about contaminating the beer. Just make sure you don't scratch your butt between sanitizing and siphoning. If you do- let your coworkers taste it first.
Then, when you go to rack, put the high end in first, and when you are in position with the low end, take your thumb off the low end. Gravity works great.

 

[thrashandburn]

I've heard of guys using a turkey baster to suck the beer through to start the siphon. I've never really tried it but you might find that method appealing. I just attach my tubing to my racking cane and use a spray bottle to shoot star san into it filling the hose up to the bend in the racking cane. then I start the siphon and let the sanitizer drain into a pan and the I pinch the hose and quickly transfer over to the bottling bucket.

 

[CaptainArgo]

I have an autosiphon for my carboys, but this is the way I do it for drawing wort out of my kettle: the cane is already attached to the tube.

Thanks! I'm probably never going to suck on the hose, I'm way too nervous about contamination for that -- perhaps partly because I'm a n00b and don't know what I can get away with -- but this did give me an idea. Attaching one end of the hose to the cane before filling the tube would be way easier, I'm not sure why I didn't think of that first.

Anyway, thanks everyone. Seeing the diversity of methodology makes me less nervous that I'm gonna mess something up, haha.

 

[Captain Damage]

Caution is good!

If you can fill the cane & tubing with sanitizer by submerging without sucking on it, do it that way.

 

[jrgtr42]

Caution is good!

If you can fill the cane & tubing with sanitizer by submerging without sucking on it, do it that way.

This. I have the locking bit on one end of my hose that will stop off the flow of liquid. what I do is submerge it, usually the open end first, in sanitzer, until it's full, then lock off the stopper. With the whole thing still under water, I then find the other end, bring it out, attach it to my racking cane, put that in wort, and then open the stopper.
I drain the first it into a glass or something so I don't get that much sanitizer in my beer, and then move it to the bottling bucket, but I don't lose more than a couple ounces at the outside.

 

[BugDude]

I went out and bought a 2ft section of tube thats smaller so it fits into my rackin canes tube.

Dip both in sanatizer then put the smaller tube in the bigger one and suck. As the fluid gets close I pulled out the smaller tube and away it went

My brew never got close to my mouth and the tube that was in my mouth gets removed from the process