1. Home
  2. Winemaking Craft Forum
  3. cleaning corkers

cleaning corkers

G'day,

I've just bought a floor corker, ready to cork some melomel and mead this weekend, and it occurs to me that I should know how to clean and sanitise it first :)

I've googled a bit and here is the process I've come up with:

  • wipe the compressive jaws with a damp rag to remove surface gunk
  • roll up some kitchen paper towel to simulate a cork, press it through
  • wipe the compressive jaws again with alcohol to sanitise

Does this sound OK? I'm using some Eno polyethylene synthetic corks, and practice runs with bottled water were really easy so I don't see any need for lubricant.

cheers, Ross.

-- Ross McKay, WebAware Pty Ltd "The lawn could stand another mowing; funny, I don't even care"

- Elvis Costello

Reply to
Ross McKay
Loading thread data ...

Ross,

All you need to do is get it clean, of dust, grease, etc., so the first two steps are fine. Unless your corker is unbelievably filthy, I don't think the alcohol is necessary ;-) Occasionally (rarely), you may need to lube the iris blocks where they slide against each other. Most people I know use ordinary petroleum jelly as their "Food Grade" lubricant. After that, you may need to run a paper towel or two through. Good luck with your machine; I'm sure you'll love it.

Mike MTM

Reply to
MikeMTM

Thanks mate, I'll try not to let it get unbelievably filthy then...

cheers, I love it already and I've only corked a couple of bottles of tap water so far!

-- Ross McKay, WebAware Pty Ltd "The lawn could stand another mowing; funny, I don't even care"

- Elvis Costello

Reply to
Ross McKay

Reply to
J Dixon

Thanks John, I'll try that on a couple of bottles and see what happens. With the trial attempts with bottled water, it all just happened really quickly with almost no effort on the lever, but there was a small dimple on the cork afterwards.

cheers, Ross.

-- Ross McKay, WebAware Pty Ltd "The lawn could stand another mowing; funny, I don't even care"

- Elvis Costello

Reply to
Ross McKay

Good-Morning: for the fast 15 years I've dipped my corks in BM Sulfite and rinsed with water then soak in water for a few minutes before inserting into bottle. works great evertime. never use clorox.

Mike K

Reply to
Mjk9234

Thanks Mike, I'll probably leave out the soak because synthetic corks don't need it AFAIK.

cheers, Ross.

-- Ross McKay, WebAware Pty Ltd "The lawn could stand another mowing; funny, I don't even care"

- Elvis Costello

Reply to
Ross McKay

since about 2 years ago I have use dry corks without sterilisation direct from the pack in my Portuguese floor corker without problems!

Reply to
Pinky

Thanks Trevor, I'm feeling pretty confident about all of this now.

cheers, Ross.

-- Ross McKay, WebAware Pty Ltd "The lawn could stand another mowing; funny, I don't even care"

- Elvis Costello

Reply to
Ross McKay

DrinksForum website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.