Argon gas

John Prince · Aug 1, 2011

I'm going to the wielding shop this week to buy a bottle. Questions, how do I use it? I don't have to top off my carboy with wine now? How often do I need to put argon in the carboy? How much or how do I know when there is enough gas in the carboy. Any other tips is welcome.
Thanks,
John

ibglowin · Aug 1, 2011

Woah. Hold the horses. Argon is not a substitute for topping off a carboy. Its a short term stop gap tactic. You should always top off for long term storage. We are talking backfilling a carboy or a jug or a bottle. It should be backfilled once a week. I use it in a carboy after I have racked off the gross lees and stabilized and fined. I will top off with Argon while I wait for the fines to settle out (1-2 weeks) After I rack off the fines I will then top off with wine for long term aging.

Also I would be very careful with whites as they are much more prone to oxidation. You want to get them topped off even faster.

andy123 · Aug 1, 2011

Argon is a high priced trace element. The cylinder that contains it cost some dollars as well. An industrial tank contains enough gas to top off 2300 carboys and enough pressure to destroy same. Proceed with caution.

John Prince · Aug 2, 2011

Dang it! I come home tomorrow and was planning on aging my wine in the carboy with argon. I guess I'll top off with store bought wine. I need to learn to rack better.

Runningwolf · Aug 2, 2011

I also use Argon. Just a small empty tank will cost you $100, then you'll need a flo meter, hose and then a source to buy the gas. I only use it for very short term storage (two weeks or less). When I buy juice I always a a gallon more then the capacity of the carboy I am going to use. I have plenty of smaller vessals to hold the extra, but I always have plenty for topping up with. This also gives me a little extra in the end to play around with.