Funnel Uses

To funnel or not to funnel

Kitchen funnels

Kitchen funnels, which can range in length and size, are great for separating bulk quantities into small containers. For example, a funnel could be used to divide a large container of juice into smaller, single serving bottles for a picnic. Simply place the spout into the openings of the single serving bottles and pour the juice into the bowl. The juice will move through the funnel into the smaller bottle. This ensures that more of the liquid will end up in the bottle, and not on your kitchen counter.

Kitchen funnels can be used for any such transfer of liquids or fine-grained solids. Use one to transfer coffee grounds to a small mouthed container for camping or travel. The funnel would be used in the same way described above, and the grounds would end up in the smaller, more easily transported container.

Another use of kitchen funnels is for use with irons that have a steam setting. As anyone who does much ironing knows it can be difficult to get distilled water into the small water openings of some funnels, particularly older models. A funnel is an excellent tool for this situation, as it allows you to pour the water into your iron without spilling it all over the appliance.

Pewter wine funnels

Wine funnels are often made of pewter and can be very ornately decorated. A wine funnel is used to decant wine. Decanting wine is when you pour a bottle of wine into a decanter to aerate, or oxygenate it. The wine funnel serves two purposes. The first is that it channels the wine from the bottle to the decanter with little mess. The second purpose is to filter the wine. A small screen in the spout filters out any sediment that may have built up in bottle.

Drum funnels

Drum funnels are usually used to channel chemicals or other hazardous liquids into industrial sized drum barrels. They are usually made of chemical resistant polyethylene or galvanized steel. Drum funnels are much larger than kitchen funnels, and are usually measured in quarts. They generally have threaded spouts that allow them to be screwed directly onto the barrel, although some have lids.

More information on funnels