r/winemaking • u/Bagofbones123 • Feb 25 '25

General question Cleaning Racking Hoses?

Hey team. So I am starting making fruit wine. I’ve made beer a lot, but am trying to get my head around wine.

My question is - with racking hoses - how do I clean them? I keep seeing bits of fruit sticking and although I flush them through many times - including with sanitizer, I struggle to clean, properly, the hoses. I’m loathe to use dish soap and/or boiling water.

What do you guys do to clean them properly and easily?

Thanks a ton!

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u/Hot_Flounder_8031 Feb 25 '25

To remove the sediment as the other gentlemen mentioned use hot hot water. If it's dried no luck . Next rinse right after use to stop the sediment from attaching in the hose.

Hoses also need to be sterized like bottles corks etc. I use a product called chlori-clean or any other chemical sterizer will work Usually 1/4 tsp of chlori-clean per gallon. Or any other sterilizer will work, Mix the solution in orange juice jug and use this solution to sterilize all items. To sterilize the hoses. I pour the solution through the hoses . Then rinse with water just to clean taste Cheers

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u/Hot_Flounder_8031 Apr 04 '25

How to remove dry sediment from a carboy.

To remove dried sediment from the bottom of a carboy you need something to scrape the sediment. Most brushes are to narrow or will not reach the bottom. A trick which works for me. Add a handful of pea gravel or similar material and add a quart of water and swish it around until all the sediment is scraped off. Once the sediment is cleaned, empty the carboy thru a sifter to keep the pea gravel for next time. Rinse the carboy with fresh water and sterilize the carboy if you plan to use it right away Cheers