MichaelAtTCW

TCW sells Code 7 (aka P7) cartridges too. They're made in the USA by Graver Technologies, who are great about technical support if you need to get really deep in the weeds about filtration.

Graver Pre-filter Cartridges These have a nominal retention rating, meaning they'll filter out 95% of particles at a given micron rating, and 99% of particles at a larger micron rating. They have good dirt-holding capacity, and can be cleaned, backflushed and re-used if you store them properly, e.g. in alcohol or another sterile solution.

Graver Final Filter Cartridges Final filter cartridges are good if you need to filter out organic particulate like yeast or bacteria that are a certain size. In 0.45µ or smaller ratings they're also known as "sterile" cartridges. They're rated to filter out 99.9999999% of particles at a given micron rating.

Final filters tend to be more expensive than pre-filters, so ideally you want some pre-filters "guarding" the final filter, if you need to use final filters at all.

We also sell Activated Carbon Fiber Cartridges with Code 7 ends if you're filtering for color/odor.

The Bonaire "Ultimate" is the other nozzle I see used fairly commonly. It's cheaper than the SuperKlean, and lighter duty.

http://www.amazon.com/Bon-Aire-HN-10C-Original-Ultimate-Stainless/dp/B000E7YYDS

you will hate life if you have to do any volume

Bingo. A new marketing team will likely be the cheaper alternative. ;-)

Seriously, though. Glue-on labels and their associated machinery have largely gone the way of the dodo. We used to sell huge volumes of label glue and Schaefer label cementers 10 years ago. We still sell both, but nowhere near the volume we used to. It's become more of a boutique market.

Glue-on labels do have some benefits: they're much cheaper than pressure-sensitive labels, they can be straightened/adjusted before the glue sets, and you can print them yourself on-demand. Still, in terms of speed there's just no comparison.

I am doing a preliminary check looking for a used ROPP capper. Not a definite purchase yet, but a strong possibility. Do you have an old one laying around? Does anyone have any good or bad experiences with different makes/models?

Thanks for your input.

Todd Weiss

Striped Pig Distillery

Tecnomax Due's capping heads are highly regarded, and are used as the OEM head on quite a few automatic bottling lines from other manufacturers. They also sell a mechanical and pneumatic semiautomatic capper. If you can find a unit used I'd recommend checking it out.

Does anyone have a recommendation on a table-top label machine?

Our customers really like the BottleMatic II once they've outgrown the Race (which is also awesome). Made in the USA, and capable of crazy fast speeds once you get into a rhythm. The manufacturer is always quick to pick up the phone and answer a technical support question.

Check it out.

Or this hose?

http://www.thevintnervault.com/product/4263/1.5-%22-Kanaflex-Kanaline-FW-Fully-Barbed-Hose.html

Thanks so much!

Tom

As an aside, Kanaline is a PVC-based hose. Many folks will advise you against using PVC for the transfer of high-proof spirits, as it does not have great compatibility with alcohol and may contribute off tastes/odors due to leaching.

There are plenty of great hoses specifically for high-proof spirits like GlideTech Distillery Hose that are constructed of materials that have better high-proof compatibility. They are higher quality hose overall, but will be pricier.

For water and general low-proof transfer where alcohol compatibility and temperature extremes are not an issue, Kanaline is awesome hose. Breweries and wineries use it all the time.

Hey RyeWater,

The Flojet G70's wetted parts are made of Polypropylene, Kalrez, Viton Extreme, and Hastelloy. All of these materials have excellent compatibility with high-proof alcohol.

We have many dozens of these little pumps out in the field. I have not received one back for service or for failure. The diaphragms may need to be replaced after a long, long time, but that's about it in terms of service.

Obviously they won't pump mash, but for bottling, small-scale barrel transfers and the like they're pretty much the perfect pump.

How adjustable is the shelf? Does it only adjust in increments based on the holes I see on the sides? Or is there a way to fine tune it more? If only the holes, how large is the minimum increment for adjustment?

Hi Troy. The adjustment increments are 5/16 of an inch apart. At one point we had the option of a micro-adjustable nozzle for fine-tuning, but of the hundreds of Mori Fillers we've sold I can count the number of users who got that option on one hand. Most everyone preferred the simplicity of the standard nozzle. I'd have to ask Mori if they're still able to manufacture the micro-tune nozzle.

At what proof of spirit would you recommend the air pump?

This is a tough question because the factors that go into it are not just dictated by the proof of the alcohol, but by things like local regulations, policies and procedures at your facility, personal tolerance for risk, etc. Most distilled spirits start to become flammable at around 80 proof, but there's more to it than that. Rather than recommending the pneumatic filler at a particular proof, I present the option to the customer and let them determine whether they feel comfortable and are compliant using the electric level control or if they need the air-driven level control. Is that evasive enough for you?

How do you recommend cleaning the unit (reservoir in particular) after bottling a product with strong flavors? Is there a drain on the bottom of the reservoir?

One of the things people like about the Mori is that all the wetted parts are stainless, with the exception of some EPDM & Nitrile seals, so anything you'd normally use on stainless is fair game: citric, hot proxy soak, Star-san, PBW, etc.

There is a drain at the bottom of the reservoir. The inlet to the reservoir is a ball valve. It can be opened for draining, or removed entirely. Additionally, all the nozzles come out of the bottom of the reservoir, and they are completely removable as well. So for cleaning you can leave the nozzles on, or remove the nozzles and break them down for a soak.

Michael, Is there a calibration adjustment for flow/level on bottle filling for the Mori?

The Mori is a level filler. It fills to a consistently repeatable level. You can adjust the fill level by adjusting the shelf the bottle rests on. Move the shelf up for a lower fill level in the bottle. Move the shelf down for a higher fill level in the bottle.

With regard to calibrating flow rate, no. It's a very simple gravity filler. The flow rate is determined by the head pressure from the reservoir relative to the opening in the stainless steel nozzle that the product flows through. I've not heard of problems with flow rate being too fast or too slow, so perhaps that's one reason they're so popular amongst our customers.

The tank has arrived here in California! A number of people have requested photographs. Here they are:

If anyone is in the California bay area and would like to check this tank out in person it should be arriving next week. Just let me or Ryan know.

Awesome thanks!

Last question. Do you have dimensions for both of the tabletop units (4 & 6 Spout)? I need to make sure I'll have enough space on my table.

Yep, the dimensions for the tabletop units are as follows (W x D x H):

Tabletop 4-spout: 780 x 410 x 920 mm (30.7 x 16.1 x 36.2 inches)

Tabletop 6-spout: 1100 x 410 x 920 mm ( 43.3 x 16.1 x 36.2 inches)

Michael - What is the reservoir capacity (volume) on the gravity fed Mori unit? Also, if there are any elastomers or tubing, what are they made of? Lastly, what is the fill rate for the 4 and 6 spout units?

Hi Agporte,

There are two sizes of Mori fillers: 4-spout and 6-spout. The 4-spout filler has a reservoir capacity of about 11.2 gallons. The 6-spout filler has a reservoir capacity of approximately 16.4 gallons.

There is no tubing on the gravity feed unit. The fill nozzles are all stainless steel, and the liquid input is through a stainless steel ball valve with 3/4" hose barb. You can use any 3/4" ID tubing you like to connect your tank to the filler. We normally use polypropylene tubing when we build the air-driven or electronic level control fillers.

With regard to other elastomers, there are a few o-rings on the fill nozzles made of EPDM, one seal made of buna, and the "nozzle cone" -- the cone that rests against the lip of the bottle, made of silicone. The latter two have no/minimal contact with the liquid, but have good compatibility with alcohol nonetheless.

Assuming standard 750 ml bottles, fill rates are approximately eight bottles per minute on the 4-spout and twelve bottles per minute on the 6-spout.

I noticed we get a lot of people coming to our website from this page looking for the Mori filler. The link above is stale since we changed our website to allow online ordering. Here's where you can find info about the Mori filler now. It comes in a few different configurations.

The bare-bones Mori filler is fed by gravity, and dispenses by gravity. Super simple.

Some of our customers can't feed their fillers by gravity because of the layout of their facility or the placement of their tanks. They need a pump to feed the filler. For that reason we designed an upgrade to the Mori filler with distilleries in mind. It runs completely on compressed air, uses PVC-free dairy tubing to feed the reservoir, and pumps liquid into the filler via a groundable, explosion-proof air diaphragm pump. It has an air-driven reservoir level sensor that detects when the level of the reservoir is depleted, and kicks on the pump to replenish it.

If you're bottling low-proof spirits and don't need a totally air-driven system, we have an electronic level control + pump for the Mori filler that works great and is a little cheaper.

Xpressfill is a great choice as well. Good folks, and good support. Many of our customers have been very happy with their Xpressfill fillers.

We have a line of groundable, ATEX-rated 316 stainless air diaphragm pumps designed for high-proof spirits: our SimpleSpirits line.

The 12 GPM (45 LPM) version without cart would probably suit you fine based on the quantities you mention, and it comes with air regulator, ball valve for controlling air flow/pump speed, and Tri Clamp adapters for $1666.

We sell a little 5 GPM ATEX-rated, explosion-proof air diaphragm pump with Kalrez diaphragms for high-proof transfer. It's made by Flojet.