I have two Speidel tanks....they have the perfectly flat lids with the gasket you wrap around the lid....you can see some gasket showing on the upper side once the lid is placed on the tank.
I use these for bulk storage/aging for the first two rackings before putting into barrel or straight to bottle....95L volume.
Both tanks show the same problem:
No matter how carefully I place the gasket and close the tightening ring, they are NOT airtight.
I have proven this in both directions--a +1 PSI overpressure dissipates over a day or so and a negative 1" mercury vacuum does the same.
Other tanks I have with simple gaskets and downward clamps (Chapman tanks) will hold +3 PSI and negative 10" mercury for a month or more.
I really dislike this wraparound gasket and I think the metal rings don't tighten enough and I basically gave up on the Speidel tanks but I am asking: maybe this is operator error ?
Is there a method, or trick, to getting a tank like this airtight for months long bulk aging??
Note- my own testing SEEMS to show that the air path is around the interior of the gasket....the clamp might be tightening a lot on the outside of the ring but air goes around the edge of the lid THROUGH the interior of the gasket. I really dislike this gasket design....
I use these for bulk storage/aging for the first two rackings before putting into barrel or straight to bottle....95L volume.
Both tanks show the same problem:
No matter how carefully I place the gasket and close the tightening ring, they are NOT airtight.
I have proven this in both directions--a +1 PSI overpressure dissipates over a day or so and a negative 1" mercury vacuum does the same.
Other tanks I have with simple gaskets and downward clamps (Chapman tanks) will hold +3 PSI and negative 10" mercury for a month or more.
I really dislike this wraparound gasket and I think the metal rings don't tighten enough and I basically gave up on the Speidel tanks but I am asking: maybe this is operator error ?
Is there a method, or trick, to getting a tank like this airtight for months long bulk aging??
Note- my own testing SEEMS to show that the air path is around the interior of the gasket....the clamp might be tightening a lot on the outside of the ring but air goes around the edge of the lid THROUGH the interior of the gasket. I really dislike this gasket design....
