I wondered if anybody else had a problem with their bottles moving around or tipping over in the ultrasonic cleaner. I came up with a solution to that problem.
It’s hard to judge the room you have in there but the first idea I thought of might be a dishwasher silverware basket if it would fit. Would give you in most cases 6 slots for bottles. Maybe some trays have 4, never browsed this item. Question, is it absolutely necessary for the bottles to be open to the air. I guess you want to emulate the cap off on the first day of steeping. Perhaps the tops of this type bottle might help as well…
If you’re in the US these bottles are readily available at Hobby Lobby.
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I guess I could do cap on but they will still be all over the place and tip over. The bottom of my cleaner has an indentation right in the middle and the bottles would tip over. I noticed also that the bottles vibrate better when they are standing making contact the bottom of cleaner. I also read that basket that came with the cleaner reduced the vibration a certain percentage. I noticed when I used it there were less air bubble streaking though the liquid. I don’t have this problem when I make large batches, (100-250 mls.) I use a flask and it sits in there real sturdy.
Hmmmm, I see. Well if you don’t mind lengthening time for vibration loss with smaller batches this is what I was thinking for your solution. Now keep in mind this is the first basket I saw that COULD MAYBE fit the bill and there are many of them out there and quite possibly much better fits. This one would accommodate raised indentations in both directions being it has 4 raised outer legs but I do not know if this actually snaps together as a single unit. Ideally you want something with just 4 raised legs to rise above the indentations. Bad thing most EBAY descriptions are lacking. May have to go to the manufacturers for dimensions of the product or another appliance part store. Take a look EXAMPLE. Anyway, just a thought that might help, I tried…
Oh, I should have mentioned the bottles I’m using are 150mls. I blend usually 100ml batches but I like the extra room for a good shake. They also come in 50ml (Be aware the 50ml caps don’t seem to interchange well), and if a remember correctly I believe 250ml bottles…
thanks I’ll check into that.
Whats the best way?? steeping using UC or Normal steeping in room tempreture?can anyone help me?
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You’re likely to get about a million different opinions on this. Some people like the USC, some do a heated magnetic stirrer, some do a crockpot, some do a milk frother or paint mixer, some do nothing but time. Some leave the cap off for a day, some leave the cap off for several days, some shake daily, some only shake once.
I suggest you do what works best for you. If you have an ultrasonic, use it. If you don’t, try just putting it in a drawer and letting time do its thing. If you’re very impatient but don’t want to invest, you can use a bowl or crockpot of warm, dry rice. Or buy a milk frother or paint mixer and blend the heck out of the juice every day. I’ve heard that helps shorten steep times.
Personally, I froth once after I’ve mixed, cap, maybe test, and stick in a box. I test once a week for 4 weeks and make notes on how it develops. But, that’s just me. I’m generally a pretty patient person. There’s several here who would go nuts using my method. LOL.
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Truth be told, one person will tell you it’s the best while another will tell you steep at room temp. One will tell you take the cap off for a day, another will tell you not to. Heck, some will tell you it’s unnecessary to steep if you blend in a blender. I think I have nearly heard it all. Best, who knows…
Here’s a lot of reading…
Me personally, I just let time do it’s thing. Works for me !!!
I like the heated magnetic stir plate. The way I use it is more to ensure a very thorough mixing of the ingredients than it is to shorten steep times. I do suspect it reduces steeping times a bit, but I haven’t verified this with a control group. Typically I bring the mix to around 125 deg F while it is rapidly being stirred. It usually takes about an hour for it to come to temp and stir to a froth. After that, I bottle it and let it cool to room temperature with the cap off, then I cap it and into a steep box it goes. Like JoJo, I tend to be somewhat patient. I check each of my mixes through the week over a period of 4 weeks, taking notes on flavor and color changes. Have fun finding “your” ideal way of mixing/steeping. The methods seem to vary to individual preferences. Find what works best for you, take notes and stick to it. The rewards are well worth the effort with both the quality and cost (or lack of cost) in our chosen madness. 
Mix it >>> Froth it >>> 2hr Heated USC with very warm tap water. You can get a very good starter steep in 2 hrs. You can also do several mixes at once. For my small mixes I mix them right in the storage bottle. I’ve had up to 12 small tester mixes in the USC at once.
Before and After…
I froth in seconds with a paint mixer attached to a small dremel type rotary tool. (3000 rpms)
Degasification,… you can see this process occurring during your hot USC Cycle.
After this process is complete, I froth it again and cap it, then store it for a month. I exercise patience and never test early ***(unless specified by the creator). I like to know when I test it’s fully steeped*
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I have seen and heard some of my most looked up to what I call juice masters. say the same thing and insist on cool not hot not cold dark place to store and maybe repeat in some case for a month I ask about these ideas to speed it up they smile .but there juice is good real good
Why don’t you just get some of those aluminum coat hangers from WalMart and twist up something like this…
It would get the basket up out of the water so it’s not absorbing vibration. And you could make a couple different ones for different size bottles. Just bend two coat hangers into a “U” shape to form the ends, then cut straight pieces and weave them together to form the grid and twist the ends over to secure them. If you did it right, the grid would actually be adjustable, and the weave would secure the grid from changing shape in the USC.
Or, if you made it the shape you want you could alway buy some plasti-dip and have a nice plastic coated basket.