Bottle Sanitiser design - Your thoughts please

[Vossy1]

I love the first distance test shot....looks like theres a dalek out of shot :lol:

 

[BrewStew]

lol @ the darlek comment

right i've finished it and tested it with various different sources of pressure.

Here's the finished prototype:

upon testing, i had to amp up the pressure in my cornelius keg to 30psi or 2 bar to achieve the same pressure i got with one nozzle at 15 psi. i believe that pressure to be enough to forceably blast off any sediment left in the bottom of any bottles we might clean.

i then decided to ramp things up a bit :evil: and connected it up to my mains... not really much different sadly so then i got out my pressure washer and meaning business :twisted: but alas, i didn't get any more pressure using that either :cry:

so either two things were happening; the first is my pressure washer must be utter ***** or there wasn't enough size to the holes for it to make it a difference... ie i had reached the maximum flow rate through the holes.

i'm not wanting to make the holes bigger just yet as i believe that there's another problem... in that i'm having to pump 2 bars or higher for just 5 sprinklers to be at an effective force to shift stubborn sediment. pumps of higher bars get quite expensive.

the BIG problem right now though is the spread of the jet inside the bottle. as it's still a relatively thin stream it hasn't got enough cover to fully cover the insides of the bottle with solution.

so what i'm going to do now is experiment with one nozzle back down at 15 psi and see if i can get a decent spread by crimping the pipe as phil had planned (thanks for the idea mate, kudos to you :) )

 

[Vossy1]

I didn't realise you were going to use the set up for cleaning
If you are, surely you could use a warm solution of soda crystals or something similar, then you won't be relying on brute force of pressure to clean them

 

[BrewStew]

well not necessarily a brute force clean... i did have in mind the use of soda crystal, but it seems you do need a good bit of pressure to soak every bit of glass inside the bottle continuously without having to go around all the bottles moving, rotating and fiddling with them. perhaps a better designed nozzle is the solution. i think the distance of the sprinkler from the base of the bottle matters too.

i love all this experimenting

 

[Vossy1]

Might be worth having a play, putting something directly on top of the water outlet to see if you can create a spray pattern that gives full coverage.

Just move things into the water stream where it exits and see what happens...

 

[BrewStew]

wow hehe, the first try at crimping worked really well :)

here's how i shaped it

and here it is in action

hard to see but that one covers everything inside really well and at every angle.

i've noticed it works best when the tip of the nozzle is about halfway into the bottle

 

[BrewStew]

i've just tried two more tip types. one completely flattened with a hammer, and the same piece with the corners of the flattened edge cut.... rubbish!

i'm thinking my first try was a lucky one hehe

 

[BrewStew]

it's getting dark now so i'm going to pack up and eat something

not bad for the first evening of prototyping

 

[Wez]

Very good, looking forward to the next installment!

 

[A T]

You don't hang around :shock: do you?
Jeez i'd talk ***** about it for 3 weeks and then not bother :lol: :lol:

 

[BrewStew]

heh once i get something in my head, i can't get it out until i've at least started it otherwise thoughts of whatever it is plague and distract me, very much like this afternoon at work... i could barely concentrate :lol:

i'll keep you all posted, that's for sure.

Tonight cost be a fair few quid, but i hope i'm saving others a few bob from my experimentations :) i'm looking forward to nailing it and getting a finished item, but this aint gunna come cheap. i estimate i'll all amount to about £200 (including what i've spent on research) by the time i've bought a pump, a shower tray, and all the parts for the final design... it better bloody work! that's all i can say hehe

 

[Vossy1]

just keep the memory of bottle washing fresh in your mind and any price will be cheap :lol:

 

[Vossy1]

Twas trawling flea bay and thought of you

clicky

 

[BrewStew]

PINK??? pink and u thought of me :shock: i really must work more at hiding my feminine side :lol: :lol: :lol:

 

[Phil]

How strange. Before I realised what it was, I looked at it and thought of Vossy :lol:

/Phil.

 

[BrewStew]

Is it possible to solder brass to copper?

i'm thinking of something like this:

http://www.rittenhouse.ca/asp/Product.asp?PG=630

it's a bit expensive though, but that's sort of what i'm trying to find.

I'm thinking about pursuing adjustable nozzles because varying bottle depths will need to be catered for as there's no point having a wide stream, when in a longer bottle it doesn't properly reach the bottom, and vice versa. this would also allow me to tailor the set up to suit the pressure of the pump i'll eventually get.

thoughts? crits?

 

[BrewStew]

hmm i wonder if the end of this would fit a bottle

http://www.sitebox.ltd.uk/proddetail-dr1192-brass-108mm-expert-quality-spray-nozzle.html

 

[BrewStew]

does anybody know the inside diameter of 15mm coper tubing?

i'm trying to think up a cheaper alternative to buying nozzles. and the problem i can see is the varying lengths of bottles... so i have and idea

imagine a 15mm copper tube that slides over the top of the 10mm pipe. this 15mm pipe has a crimped end and is the nozzle. when you turn the water on the pressure forces the 15mm nozzle up until it stops at the base of the bottle, where it sprays outwards instead of upwards. it then wont matter what length the bottles are. it also means that you can remove the jets if they get blocked with crud.

but, for this to work the 15mm sleeve cant be too tight or too lose on the 10mm pipe. something i think might pose a problem

edit: forget it i just realised that copper tubing sizes state the inside dimension.. it's the outside dimension i need but i've found it. 10mm microbore is 12mm overall, so that may be a bit loose

 

[BrewStew]

oh bugger! haha.. i just found this:

http://www.thebeeressentials.com/equipment/bottle-washers.shtml

does 12 bottles. it's a shame the picture wont enlarge cos i think it has an inlet and outlet for recirculating :?

 

[Vossy1]

Cheap too