First of all, I’m grateful to all of you for sharing information and opinions and recipes and many other useful stuff!
At the beggining I was happy to get into vaping and now I’m more than happy to be the part of DIY community and such a great resource! Thanks to all of you!!!
This thread is opened to share the last information and methods about Ultrasonic cleaner method.
I’ve just ordered one and was going through all the topics all over the forum and got very confused, because there’s only one person shared his steps with USC… I’ve expected to see some more people sharing their experience… but haven’t find anything
Here’s what was found:
MofoggerRegularDec '15 2
It has 30min timer intervals and a heater. My basic process is…
Mix by weight
Froth with coffee frother ~1min
Bottle and cap
4x 30min cycles in USB @ 45 degrees Celsius with 15min rest between each cycle
**Note: The 15min rest is for the USB, not the juice. I don’t wanna wear it out and break it.
30min countertop cooldown with cap off after USB process
Then re-cap all and put in dark storage area
Tests are every 7 days up to 6wks (if it’s still bad then The blend is probably off)
I’ll bet he turns the caps clockwise to tighten, and counter-clockwise to loosen
I don’t use a USC, but that seems to be plenty of info to start from. Everyone does their own thing. You will figure out what you prefer. Maybe do some test batches heating for different times to see what you like best. Keep one bottle unheated. Make sure to label each bottle so you know what process you used on each bottle. Stick them in the closet and test at weekly intervals recording your thoughts on each bottle in a notepad.
I basically use the same method ,froth for a minute and USC for 45 degree Celsius but use five cycles of 20 minutes on most mixes.I test 24 hours later most times unless it is something I have mixed before.On custards I just run one USC bath at 45 degree for five minutes and put it in the cabinet and if it is a new mix I will test in one week and test each week thereafter.
I can’t say that the heat hurts the mix but I know several mixers feel that way.I now have enough curing in different stages that I don’t have to try and speed the process up.
Good luck to you and let us know what works best for you.
I set mine at 45oC and typically run it for 1 hour. I don’t always do it - if I have plenty of liquid steeping it just goes on the shelf to steep, since I know it’ll steep for a long time I shake them a few times though.
So is that true with any flavor? And how long do you keep it at that temp? How long is it safe to do so?
There has been a lot of discussion on whether or not to heat. That heat degrades flavors, or the flavors evaporate. One of my best batches I kept at 120 degrees on the stirrer at 900 rpm for 4 hours. It turned from a faint yellow color to a very dark amber during that time. This was my Strawberry and Banana Vanilla Custard. It was so good. The next batch I made is still steeping, but as of yet it has not reached that goodness.
You being a flavor guru it would be nice to get your take on the subject.
It really depends on the flavor and the company you are getting it from. A flavor that is designed for soda for example may not stand up to heat the same as one designed for bakery or candy. There is a laundry list of reasons for this but it is best to ask the producer if they can handle higher heats. One thing we look at is the flash point (Yes it is not just for shipping ha).
Because normally raw extracts are set in an alcohol base, they evaporate easily and are less heat stable than flavor concentrates when exposed to high heat. So if you have a high alcohol flavors base there is a chance of evaporating a bit.
Now with that said heat can break down the structure of a flavor. Again you would need to check with your flavoring company but different elements will break apart or decompose at a set temp. Oddly this is a good thing with some flavors. It is why people with temp control taste different things than none temp.
Does that help or does it make it worse ha. Sometimes I am bad at explaining it with out you sitting in my office. Chemistry I passed… English and Grammar… Not so well.
Excellent info. That explains it a little better yes. For those of us that didn’t pass chemistry (I actually did but that obviously means nothing 28 years later LOL), is there a safe way to speed up steeping time on basically all recipes, or at least most of them? Like a general temperature range to stay below as far as temp? Because when I first started mixing, I read it is best to stay below 60C. Then I was told stay below 50C. And you are saying you heat to 45C to test. I would be really curious to know your actual process for testing flavors. Especially ones that usually require long steep times.
I use a small crock pot and have a floating thermometer handy let it sit in the warm water which it’s usually around 99-100 degree F and then once it’s warmed about 15-30 minutes varies d/t the viscosity of the juice then I’ll spin in on my magnetic mixer. If I had a warming hot plate/ stirrer then I’d be set but have to go with what I got.
I do have an USC and whenever I’d use it, I will have to put warm water in it around 80 degree F bc it will eventually warm up as it gets going. I still take my floating thermometer and check the water temperature pretty often keeping it in the 90-100 F range. My USC is an annoying little crappy 3 minute cycle one and it drives me bonkers so I will have to sit it next to me and push it every 3 minutes occasionally I’ll give it a rest and then push it again.
DO you want more info as far as the science behind the USC and what goes on ?
I shake them a few times though.
