# brake bleeder - harbor freight



## rrawhide (May 17, 2008)

would someone show us how the brake bleeder is set up and how it works.
thanx
rrawhide

ps - just got mine from harbor freight and am ready to learn!!!!


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## grapeman (May 18, 2008)

Wade will probably post after a while with some pictures. Until then, just hook the hose to the bleeder, then to the reservoir and then to another pice of hose. Find a fitting(Wade uses the suction cup-mine was bad so I don't). Hook the fitting to the hose and into a drilled bung. Make sure there are no leaks and pump away. Go fairly caustiously at first to avoid boilovers. Then pump up as high as you can go. Let it sit until the vacumn drops and pump again. Lather, rinse and repeat- oh wait a minute that is shampoo- Well it's along the same lines. Repeat as necessary until it holds vacumn pretty well.


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## Wade E (May 18, 2008)

This is the set up and you should use the canister so as not to get moisture in the pump itself.





This is the suction cup fitting and also the 1 I prefer and you just fit it in the multi-size bung. You can use 1 of the other fittings that come with this set up if you dont use the multi-size bung or just want to use the other fittings in your multi as demonstrated below.


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## Wade E (May 18, 2008)




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## Wade E (May 18, 2008)

I do the degassing right before adding any fining agents as clearing a wine without being degassed well will not let your wine clear well. Start by inserting the chosen fitting into your bung and install bung in carboy. Start pumping till you reach 15" on your dial indicator then wait a second as at this point, especially in the beginning, is when the C02 will start to be released from your wine and you may have to hit the release on the vacuum as you really dont want to get wine in the hosesor you will have to clean them out really well. After that you keep pumping till you get up to 25" which will usually take a while and you can take many rests whether it be for an hour or overnight. The object is to be able to hold 15" - 25" of vacuum for an hour or more. Ive only had a few that I was able to hold 25" of vacuum and didnt really find them any better or worse for that matter then at 15" but that 15" must e sustained and not just reached on the dial. Good luck. P.S. Do what you normally do 1st and then hook this up to see how much gas is still in your wine and youll be amazed.


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## smokegrub (May 20, 2008)

What was the source of this white brake bleeder? It appears to be painted and, thus, somewhat protected from corrosion. The one currently at Harbor Freight looks like it is of lesser quality.

Thanks.


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## Mark (May 20, 2008)

I use one just like it.It's the plastic version of the MightyVac, and it's grey plastic, not painted. I think the plastic ones are less expensive than the metal ones, and I've heard the metal ones can be repaired if something breaks whereas the plastic ones may not be repairable depending on what actually breaks. I've never used the metal version, but my plastic one works great! I've used it on 3 batches, and so far no problems.


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## rrawhide (May 20, 2008)

I have the metal one - looks pretty substantial to me. I have set mine up like Wade suggested and have a question. The purpose of this tool is to remove the gas before clarifying so how do we know when this has happened. I have one carboy hooked up right now and the vacuum is at 20 for over an hour so i pumped up some more and got more foam/bubbles coming. Are these bubbles gas? Do you keep doing this and for how long? 

Thanx for your assistance.

rrawhide


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## Wade E (May 20, 2008)

When you start you will notice the bubbles are much smaller and more abundant, that is C02. After awhile, typically when you can hold around 17" you will notice that the bubbles are much bigger and less abundant, there may be a little gas being pulled but most of it will just be vacuum being pulled through the wine and in my eyes you have degassed thoroughly enough.
As for the brake bleeder, there are actually a few variations of this. 1 is the 1 I have which is plastic and does work well, the other 2 are metal and I have never worked with either of them. The metal 1 that looks exactly like mine is rebuildable. As for the red one, Im not sure if that is rebuildable.


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## pizz65 (May 20, 2008)

how much does a set-up like this cost?


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## Wade E (May 20, 2008)

The plastic 1 which I have had for 1 1/2 years now is $33.59 at Harbor Freight and pretty close to that at just about any auto parts store. T Metal red 1 is $18.99 at Harbor Freight and i have not seen that 1 available at any stores.


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## smokegrub (May 20, 2008)

Thanks for the feedback on the bleeder.


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## First250 (May 22, 2008)

My first two batches are in the first month of bulk ageing. Would my wine still benefit from using the vacuum? I don't havea vacuum pump,but the more I read the more it sounds like a good idea.


Thanks!


Jim


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## scubaman2151 (May 22, 2008)

If you guys are looking for a specific brake bleeder from Harbor Freight, let me know. I live about 3 miles away from that store and I could pick it up for you and save you some money on shipping. It also gives me a reason to pick one up for myself



. In all seriousness isa brake bleeder a good buy and I take it, it will be, what model is a pretty good one? 


Scuba*Edited by: Scubaman2151 *


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## smokegrub (May 22, 2008)

I ordered mine from Harbor Freight a couple of days since I just had to see for myself whether this would materially improve my wines. It certainly appears to be considered a serious asset by several. Perhaps I will become another champion of its use.


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## Wade E (May 22, 2008)

Any of the brake bleeders are good enough for what we use it for. The best 1 without going crazy is the metal 1 that looks like the plastic 1 that I have pictured as that 1 is rebuildable but for what I payed for it and how long it has lasted me already I believe I have already gotten my moneys worth and wouldnt bother trying to go through the hassle of ordering parts for it and rebuilding it. I bought mine at a local auto parts store for a few dollars more then Hrbor Freight sells them for and without shipping it saved me money so call your local store and see if its worth giving out your financial info on the internet. I always try to do the least spending online, most sites are safe enough but there is always some weasel out there with too much time on their hands and no conscious of hurting your financial situation. I also like immediate gratification of paying for something and not having to deal with waiting for something in the mail only to find out that what was shipped is the wrong item or doesnt work and you have to call them and send it back.


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## scubaman2151 (May 22, 2008)

Maybe ill go out and get me one tomorrow, thanks for the help Wade.


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## moose (May 22, 2008)

I picked up one at the local Napa store. Paid about $32 for it. Was completely surprised at how much gas is in the wine and does a much better job than stirring alone.


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## Wade E (May 22, 2008)

Anyone that gets 1 do a test and do as you normally do then hook up the bleeder and see the difference. Just remember to watch the bubbles as they will get much bigger as you get towards the end of degassing, typically when you can hold 15" or more.


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## MO-WINEAUX (May 22, 2008)

those babys work like a charm ( slicker'n a whistle). bought one of the metal ones at the local harbor fraight store a couple of months ago. then found one of the plastic jobs at a "grudge" sale for $1. i bought it as a spare.




thanks masta i was doing it wright but was in too big of a hurry.
thanks wade for the picture of your volcano i learned from you and put carboy in containment vessel.
JC


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## termini (May 22, 2008)

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<DIV style="OVERFLOW: auto" ="msg">If I figure out how to set up pictures, I will submit my set up. 
It is also a Harbor freight pump, but after viewing someone elses set up on the forum a while ago, I tried a little experiment.....I have a 1967 Buick show car that incororates a supplemental vacuum canister ( a glorified coffee can) to keep the engine running at idle - sometimes needed when the engines get more modified---you old timers know... anyways, this acts as a reserve accumulator-- so that is what I did to my set up.
I put a tee in the vacuum line and used a sanitised wine bottle as the reserve canister--this, I think ,helps because if the carboy is filled up like it should be, there is not enough vacuum capacity, and that is another reason that the vacuum will drop quickly in the begining.
like I said, I hope to get a picture set up soon---------But Turkey hunting comes first..........




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<DIV style="OVERFLOW: auto" ="msgSignature">"You can't drink all day if you don't start in the morning " 
" Aah, I see the Screw-up Fairy has visited us again..." 
Hastings, MN </TD></TR>
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<DIV =msgSignature style=": left; OVERFLOW: auto">"You can't drink all day if you don't start in the morning " 
" Aah, I see the Screw-up Fairy has visited us again..." 
Hastings</TD></TR></T></TABLE>


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## Jeff H (May 22, 2008)

Yo Mo,


I've read that your wine level should be above the shoulder into the neck region when vac de-gassing. This way the winevolume distributesthe vacuum uniformlytherebyavoiding unsupported stresses on the glass surfaces of thecarboy. It makes sense and hopefully willforego an implosion of the carboy. FYI - it seems that your bung is about to be sucked into the carboy, something else to watch for. Hope this helps, 


Regards, Jeff.


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## MO-WINEAUX (May 23, 2008)

jeff,i was using the bung for my 6 gl carboy, have sence replased it with a universal bung. ( yes it was a close deal ) much better now.
JC


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## scubaman2151 (May 24, 2008)

So just to clarify, I need to have my wine topped up before I try to degas it so it doesnt implode? 


BTW - Wade I went to Harbor Freight and bought the same bleeder that you have, seems pretty nice.*Edited by: Scubaman2151 *


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## Wade E (May 24, 2008)

It should be pretty close to shoulder of the carboy. 1 reason is that the more space there is in the carboy the more you will be pumping to create a vacuum on empty space. The other reason is that the lower 1/2 of the carboy is the weakest part of a carboy. The shoulder and neck area of any bottle are typically much thicker and can withstand much more pressure.


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## scubaman2151 (May 24, 2008)

So I was playing with this a little bit and had two questions. How much pressure can you safely pull without harming the carboy (20 lbs, 25 lbs)? How do you know when your wine is sufficently degassed


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## Jeff H (May 24, 2008)

Scuba,


Here is an article from George and the crew: http://www.finevinewines.com/degassing2.htm


The most I'veseen is slightly over 25" Hg and that seemed fine. Carboy was topped up. I suspect that most carboys will not have a problem with a sustained vacuum of 25" Hg due to a sufficient wall thickness. Things that we can't see are micro-cracks in the glass structure. By keeping the carboy topped up it will assure a uniform pressure (vacuum) load throughout. My experience tells me that's a good thing! I don't have alot of wine making experience so this is just the engineer in me talking



.


Jeff


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## Joanie (May 24, 2008)

Scuba, I believe you know you're done when you can hold 15" for an hour and the bubbles that come up are larger than what your first start with.


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## Wade E (May 24, 2008)

Joan, you are right in my opinion. Some people struggle to get or use an electric pump to get to 25" and i believe now that it is too much. I strive for 15" that ca be held and that requires pumping it up to 25 " many times and has not resulted in any problems with carboys. I have gotten it to hold 25" with a wine that has bulk aged for over a year and didnt notice any difference then the one next to it that was holding 15" so Ill stop when I achieve 15" now.


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## scubaman2151 (May 24, 2008)

Thanks guys. Two more questions, I have a couple small 1 gal batches going and those bungs dont have the lip on them, how can I keep the bung from being sucked down into the carboy? How do commerical wineries degass large volumes of wine?


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## Wade E (May 24, 2008)

Commercial wineries probably dont have to worry all that much as gas is released much easier in wooden barrels then in glass carboys. I have done a few in glass jugs and just watch to make sure that the bung does not get sucked in. Note: Make sure you have this gallon jub topped up properly and do not go above 20" to stay safe.

*Edited by: wade *


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