Thanks!
You also got me to learn what DE was, and I though I knew about winemaking...

"Tom S" > wrote in message om>...
> "Raanan" > wrote in message
> m...
> > I'm trying to build a wine filter using a cartridge filter. I ordered
> > a Flojet 2100 diaphragm pump which has 3/8" ports. Now the cartridge
> > housing - I can choose b/w 1/4" (smaller) or 1/2" (bigger) - any advice on
> > which should I take? also the tubing size - should it match the pump or
> the
> > housing?
>
> Assuming you're going for a standard 10 inch housing, that'll take anything
> up to 1 inch fittings.
>
> That pump has 3/8" female pipe threads, and apparently comes with a pair of
> ½" hose barb fittings. I'd run ½" hose to and from the filter housing, and
> in fact throughout. For couplings you could use plastic garden hose
> fittings.
>
> I'd recommend that you use a 10" housing (with adapters as required) because
> the filters are cheap and readily available at hardware stores. Since
> that's a diaphragm pump, you could do DE filtrations easily by just dumping
> DE* into the wine and keeping it stirred while filtering through a $3
> throwaway paper filter. That avoids the extra expense of depth filtration
> media.
>
> *You should rinse your DE before using it in your wine unless you're sure
> that it's free of off odors and flavors. Some brands of DE have
> cardboard-like character to them, but will clean up OK with a flushing with
> dilute citric acid. Run them with dilute citric followed by clean water
> through your filtration setup until the effluent water tastes and smells OK.
> Then drain most of the moisture from the DE, dump it into the wine and
> you're ready to go.
>
> If you're going to use a depth cartridge instead of DE you should still run
> dilute citric acid through it first. Cartridges tend to have a plastic
> smell/flavor at first. You really don't want that to end up in your wine.
>
> If you want to get _really_ fancy you could put a 0.45µ membrane (in a
> separate housing) after the DE filter and do sterile filtration. Then you
> could make sweet wines without having to use sorbate, or non-ML wines
> without having to worry about corks shooting in the middle of the night.
> :^)
>
> BTW, I've been using DE filtration for ~15 years on my wines. Lately I've
> been trying to get away from filtration altogether, but sometimes you don't
> have that option.
>
> Tom S