# Yard sale carboy and corker



## jamesjr (Dec 6, 2014)

Ok so I picked up a carboy and corker at a yard sale for 18 bucks im so excited but how can I get this carboy clean its oldddd he said it just been sitting in his garage and what type of corker? He said he never had pennies or anything in it


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## vacuumpumpman (Dec 6, 2014)

I believe that is a beer capper not a corker -


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## cmason1957 (Dec 6, 2014)

Nice pickups, great price. I don't know anything about the "corker" and I sort of think that is a capper, not a corker, but I might be way off base with that.

As to cleaning that carboy, fill it with fairly warm water and rinse out a few times. Then fill it, add one scoop full of oxyclean and let it sit overnight or for a full day maybe. You may need to repeat and you may need to get a drill mounted carboy cleaner to run around in there. Think carwash pom-poms for a carboy, they run about $10-15, but are almost a must have for cleaning stubborn stuff inside carboys.


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## Runningwolf (Dec 6, 2014)

Nice find. I believe that is not a corker but a bottle capper. Soak the carboy over night in oxyclean.


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## Runningwolf (Dec 6, 2014)

all right you guys, big deal you type faster than me. LOL


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## jamesjr (Dec 6, 2014)

Ok thanks also ya it came with caps I see now lol I was just overly excited but could I somehow make it into a corker maybe fabricate something?


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## garymc (Dec 6, 2014)

Put it on craigslist.


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## garymc (Dec 6, 2014)

It looks like it might be a 6 gallon carboy. If you do the soak in oxyclean thing, I'd measure how much water it takes to fill it up. Nothing like making a 6 gallon batch and then finding out your carboy takes 6.5 gallons or something. I have three 6 gallon and a dozen 5 gallon carboys and it seems like there are 4 or 5 different volumes that they hold.


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## jamesjr (Dec 6, 2014)

Yea its alot more round than a 5. And ill keep the corker I may do beer eventually


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## REDBOATNY (Dec 6, 2014)

I have 2 cappers just like that, handed down from my father. I use them for skeeter pee in Corona bottles. you can also cap champagne bottles with it.


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## jamesjr (Dec 6, 2014)

Ok that's good to kno. I have the carboy just soaking in water now and later ill soak bleach then oxygen clean but it looks good already im so excited this is my first big carboy except the one gallons I got look out liver its going to be a fun winter


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## Julie (Dec 6, 2014)

don't put bleach in it! You really should keep bleach away from your winemaking area and equipment. Just use the oxyclean, like everyone said, the one with the green lid because it does not have bleach in it.


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## jamesjr (Dec 6, 2014)

Please explain why no bleach ( im only a couple months into this and I was under the impression that if very careful with thorough rinsing I could sanitize with bleach? 

Also the carboy held 8 gallons of water tonight is that unusual? The guy said it sat in his garage for 30 plus years also am I an idiot using it could it be worth some crazy money? Or have I had to much skeeter pee?


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## calvin (Dec 6, 2014)

It is hard to get the bleach smell/flavor out of your equipment. All the beer/winemaking cleaners are basically flavorless or unscented. You don't want to drink bleach do you? 

That's my understanding anyway. Others could correct me tho.


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## Boatboy24 (Dec 7, 2014)

calvin said:


> It is hard to get the bleach smell/flavor out of your equipment. All the beer/winemaking cleaners are basically flavorless or unscented. You don't want to drink bleach do you?
> 
> That's my understanding anyway. Others could correct me tho.



It's also a cause of TCA (cork taint), which might make your wine taste like wet cardboard.


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## Julie (Dec 7, 2014)

+ to what Calving and Boatboy24 have said, you cannot sanitize if you are rinsing after you sanitize, you defeat the purpose of sanitizing.


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## jamesjr (Dec 7, 2014)

Well that does make perfect sense that's all ive done so far lol ill be sure to order some starsan


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## Avantjour (Dec 11, 2014)

*Capper...*

I have a Capper like yours. The Corker piece missing. I keep it tied with a piece of Para Cord to keep it from getting lost. 

It's a metal tube that sits on top of your wine bottle that compresses the cork into the bottle.

To switch from Caps to Corker one would pull the clip and reverse the shaft insert the handle and clip. You might have to play with the handle / shaft fit to get the height you need. 

I bought a Portugese Floor Corker...


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## Avantjour (Dec 11, 2014)

*Corker / Capper...*

Here are pics of the missing part.


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## jamesjr (Dec 12, 2014)

Oh wow that is the exact one what is that called that I have?


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## JohnT (Dec 12, 2014)

Nice find. 

Use the capper to make Champagne!!!!!!


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## Avantjour (Dec 13, 2014)

*Yard Sale Corker...*

Jamesjr,

I don't know the name of the missing part. I received my Corker / Capper from my parents, who taught me to make wine.

You might take a pics of the missing part and show them to the folks that sold it to you. They may have it still and not know what it is.

You could have one turned on a lath in brass or a dense wood. 

Some dimensions:

Over all length 1 7/8"
Top opening .9531"
Bottom opening .7187
It's a cylinder bore down from the top to 1 3/16, then the taper starts down to the bottom opening.
It has a recessed collar so that it sits on top of the bottle.

The piece I have is Non Ferrous Metal.

Hope this helps...


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## jamesjr (Dec 13, 2014)

Ya that does help. It was at a yard sale at a storage unit and they didn't even kno what it was and only wanted 3$ for it I have a lathe so I may try that thanks alot


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