Hello my auto-siphon just broke on me so I am looking into getting one of these https://imgur.com/gallery/sqPtIay. So my question is how would one start a siphon using one of these thing?
Weird looking maybe move it up and down few times
Regular old fashioned siphon with a sediment tip and clip to hold it in place. The way I do it is fill it completely with starsan then with a receiving lower put the non cane end in the lower vessel and the cane in your beer. As soon as the starsan runs put and beer runs move the tube end to the bottling bucket. Not as complicated as it sounds. I actually have a bottle wand on the tube end to make it easier to stop the flow
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I’m lucky… Mine I just plug in and turn the with on! 
Sneezles61
I had an auto-siphon a long while back, but stopped bothering since I didn’t think it offered much that a standard racking setup didn’t.
Most of my transfers these days are either closed-system transfer where I push it with CO2 or done with a valve, so no siphon in either case.
With that said, filling your hose/cane with sanitizer as brew_cat suggests, placing the cane end in the beer while keeping the hose end closed (with a clamp or just putting your sanitized thumb over the end) while keeping the out end lower than the end of the cane works just fine.
It’s not a difficult process, but it does require that you understand where either end of the siphon is and what does and doesn’t cause outflow from one end or the other. I have troubleshot my process many times with water before doing it for real, and those “dry” runs really helped me know for sure what’s important and what can screw things up.
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Hold the racking cane with the bottom end pointing up. With your other hand hold the tubing still coiled up and stick the open in right in your faucet. Blast cold water through until it’s full then stick your thumb over the end. Keep the racking cane end up until you can quickly turn it over and dunk it in the fermenter or whatever you are transferring from. Have the “to” container, keg, secondary or whatever lower then pull your thumb off, dunk the hose and let it rip.
Sanitize the cane, tubing, faucet and your thumb of course. If you don’t want to add the water have a container next to the “to” container and run out the water first, recap with your thumb and move the hose to the “to” container.
In a pinch i’ve Used a shot of whiskey to clean out my mouth…and old fashioned suction 
Don’t you hate when you have to sacrifice for the overall good? 
I didnt want to waste it…so i swallowed it 
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Back when I was growing up you learned how to siphon or you walked alot
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Oh yeah we learned fast or you got a mouthful. Rinsed it out with beer.
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Gasoline belches taste like burned shrimp.
Whiskey makes me barf…
Sneezles61
Use a turkey baster. Works like a charm. You’ll even have a sip left in it to taste.
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This should work, but how well it works will depend on keeping the tube/out end as low as possible when you flip and immerse the cane. If it’s always lower than the bottom of the “from” vessel, almost none of the water/sanitizer will flow out from the cane end when it’s inverted and immersed in the beer in the “from” vessel. You can prove this to yourself by doing it with an empty “from” vessel and just letting the water run out as if you were starting the siphon.
It can be a little clumsy, but again, get the process down before going live and it can be done perfectly smoothly.
ETA: Guess hd4mark’s post does state this, but wanted to be sure the importance of that point is very clear .
Interesting…I’d never seen this before. Saw a youtube video that showed it working flawlessly. I have to say I’m a bit surprised that it does, given the relatively small volume that a turkey baster would draw. I don’t have a turkey baster handy, but I might have to get one just to see if it simplifies things further.
There isn’t much volume in the siphon tube either. Can find a turkey baster for less than $3 at your local grocery. I like this method much better than my auto siphon.
Fair enough. Definitely going to give the turkey baster a whirl, thanks!
I’ve been staring a siphon with the faucet and my thumb for 20 years. I’m all for gadgets but that’s how I learned and never found the need to change. I did break down and buy a stainless steel racking cane after breaking another plastic one. The only thing I don’t like about it is you can’t see if there is any gunk stuck inside.
