Looking for an inexpensive bottle washer

[geraldmarken]

I need a way to rinse bottles that doesn't require running water. Closed-loop is preferable, 2- or 4-head. I saw a nice looking one from TCW but it's about $3000. 

Does anyone have a recommendation for an inexpensive bottle washer that fits these requirements?

 

Thanks!

[nabtastic]

Will compressed air work for what you are wanting done?  

[TheMechWarrior]

You can build the equivalent to TCW for around $500. The parts are readily available on the web  

[MichaelAtTCW]

1 hour ago, TheMechWarrior said:

You can build the equivalent to TCW for around $500. The parts are readily available on the web  

Equivalent? Eh, I don't think so. I designed the MiniMax myself with an eye toward

• Keeping the costs low, but not sacrificing on quality of parts
• Ensuring everything would have excellent compatibility with high-proof spirits
• Be easy to clean and disassemble
• Be ergonomic and adjustable for long bottling sessions
• Use intrinsically safe or explosion-proof parts on the pneumatic version

I'm sure you can make a cheap bottle rinser that runs in a closed loop, but it won't be equivalent to ours.

[TheMechWarrior]

Sorry Michael, "equivalent" was a poor choice of wording.

As you eluded to I simply meant he could build his own very easily with the help of Google. 

[MichaelAtTCW]

11 minutes ago, TheMechWarrior said:

Sorry Michael, "equivalent" was a poor choice of wording.

As you eluded to I simply meant he could build his own very easily with the help of Google. 

No worries

[geraldmarken]

8 hours ago, nabtastic said:

Will compressed air work for what you are wanting done?  

It will! 

[geraldmarken]

4 hours ago, TheMechWarrior said:

Sorry Michael, "equivalent" was a poor choice of wording.

As you eluded to I simply meant he could build his own very easily with the help of Google. 

Is there a guide to making one somewhere online? I'm not too savvy at dreaming up mechanical contraptions. $500 sounds like a nice price though.

[nabtastic]

geraldmarken - if you are going to make something yourself only use clean water (RO, carbon, whatever).  I don't know if TCW is explosion proof or not but I can pretty well guarantee that yours won't be.  If you are trying to remove dust and such on a small scale, use an oil free air compressor and blow it out (keep the compressor outside or in another room).  Do that until you have the cash flow/credit for something proper. 

 

[Silk City Distillers]

Simco Ion makes injectors and anti-static systems for dust and particle control.

If you want to roll your own with regards to compressed gas bottle cleaner, you can often find bottle injector nozzles like the Simco HS 11b in surplus or on eBay, along with the matching ionizing power supplies.  Paired up with a simple foot control, solenoid, regulator, and a food grade nitrogen tank (or highly filtered oilless compressor) and you have a very simple ionized air rinse setup.

This setup would explicitly not be explosion proof, specifically due to the ionizing power supply and nozzles.

If you wanted a true explosion proof air rinse, just use food grade co2 and a manual actuator.  No electricity at all.  If you got fancy with your gas piping, you could probably find a foot operated valve to provide a short burst of gas.

[TheMechWarrior]

The TCW is Ex rated as could be the one you build but you are not ready for a build like this. Simple how to guides don't exist either, that's why TCW are here. If you don't have the knowledge and skills to build one of these reliably and safely you'll likely end up costing yourself a great deal of time, effort and money you could have better spent on your distillery.

Know your limits and spend your time and efforts where they will provide the best return for your business.

At the end of the day if you need a bottle washer, $3000 is not a lot of coin in the scheme of your total start-up costs. It will pay for itself in no time.

Cheers,

 

Mech.

[jeffw]

If you are trying to be really cheap and you have an inline filter to your bottler and your main concern is debris, just partially fill the bottle then dump it back out.  This will be pretty slow though and you might get spillage on your bottle.  I certainly know some people do this though.

[captnKB]

Jeff is right, but it is all about how much time you want to spend bottling. Ive used the TCW rinser and it is first class reliable equipment. Money well spent if you ask me

[GeekSpirits]

I have one of the  MiniMax bottle washers and overall, it has worked pretty well for me.  I wish the stainless steel tank was bolted to the frame rather than weld it to allow easy removal and cleaning or add a drain plug.

[MichaelAtTCW]

14 hours ago, GeekSpirits said:

I have one of the  MiniMax bottle washers and overall, it has worked pretty well for me.  I wish the stainless steel tank was bolted to the frame rather than weld it to allow easy removal and cleaning or add a drain plug.

Glad it's worked well for you!

What you're describing regarding disassembly is pretty easy to achieve, I think. Just loosen the rinser body's height adjustment knob (see the attached picture) and pull the body up and out. You'll have to disconnect the the hoses, of course, but they're all push-connect for easy-on/easy-off.

Still, adding a tri clamp drain at the bottom of the keg is actually a really great idea, and something I'll talk to the shop about doing on future units. If you ever have some downtime with it, please send the keg part back to us and we'll add the port free of charge.

[TheMechWarrior]

[CCREngineering]

For new bottles we have an ionized air cleaner, it removes the need for water and hence drying.  It can be adjusted for different air flow times and works for all of the bottles we have encountered.  Check it out here http://designccr.com/systems/ionized-bottle-cleaner/ 

Feel free to contact us with any questions.

[aquatech-bm]

 Hello all, just taking a chance to let you know about this bottle washer for any size, any format. Will wash recycle or new bottle before refilling.  Wash with soap, rinse with sanitizer and final rinse with heated water 200 degree.

Mike  (450) 651 0909  /  1 844 651 0909.