Sterilizing Brewing Vessels

Forums › Home brewing (beer, wine, spirits) › Sterilizing Brewing Vessels - home remedies

ageorge

626 posts

Ultimate Geek

#284137 2-Apr-2021 14:20

Hi all.

I know you can buy camden tablets, you can also use really hot water, but when you make a brew like Coopers Stout, there is a lot of scum left on the container.

I tried baking soda and vinegar soaked for a while, shook the living daylights out of container, but that did not do the trick.

Any suggestions for an easy to use eg no need to scrub, home ingredients cleaner?

Thanks,

Al.

jpoc

1043 posts

Uber Geek

#2685769 2-Apr-2021 14:34

Do you want a cleaner or a sterilizer?

Two very different functions and there is nothing that does both.

ageorge

626 posts

Ultimate Geek

#2685771 2-Apr-2021 14:42

jpoc:

Do you want a cleaner or a sterilizer?

Two very different functions and there is nothing that does both.

Both. I see some use washing powder for cleaning; recommend or not?. Sanitizing after with? Citric Acid?

Cheers,

Al.

jpoc

1043 posts

Uber Geek

#2685780 2-Apr-2021 15:17

ageorge:

jpoc:

Do you want a cleaner or a sterilizer?

Two very different functions and there is nothing that does both.

Both. I see some use washing powder for cleaning; recommend or not?. Sanitizing after with? Citric Acid?

Cheers,

Al.

Washing powder, with all of those lovely enzymes that will not be completely rinsed away however much you try? Plus conditioners that are actually designed to stay attached to plastic?

Not for me.

I use chlorinated tri-sodium phosphate. Sold by some homebrew shops as pink cleaning powder. Also available in 25kg sacks from bulk chemical suppliers.

The chlorine acts as a bleach and the t-s-p destroys most organics. It is very popular with commercial food processing/preparation folks and is also licensed as a food additive so most likely safe if well rinsed away. It was used for cleaning the eggs that you just bought in the supermarket. Use (non-powdered) latex gloves if you intend to immerse your hands in it though.

Clean things with water force first, shower hose of just a good hard shaking.

Then use the pink stuff diluted in water. Wait a while and then empty the liquid into something that you can inspect. If it is all as pink as when you started, then all is good and clean.

If is is a dirty pink or any other colour at all then you need to repeat until you get the desired result.

I use sodium metabisulphite for sterilization. Sometimes, I don't even bother and nothing bad seems to happen.

CTSP seems to keep forever in waterproof plastic boxes at the back of the garage. SodMet will turn itself into a hard lump even if kept dry but all is not lost. Threaten it with a good seeing to from your cheese grater and it turns back into powder that works just as well as ever it did.

ageorge

626 posts

Ultimate Geek

#2685784 2-Apr-2021 15:48

jpoc:

Washing powder, with all of those lovely enzymes that will not be completely rinsed away however much you try? Plus conditioners that are actually designed to stay attached to plastic?

Okay, I believe.

Thanks kindly,

Al.

panther2

370 posts

Ultimate Geek

#2685795 2-Apr-2021 16:34

Starsan is amazing but a sodium bicarbonate for a wash or Grainfather High Performance Cleaner works well.

Always sterilised with starsan for all beer prep / bottling and kegging

Gurezaemon

~HONYAKKER!~
1344 posts

Uber Geek

ID Verified

Lifetime subscriber

#2685805 2-Apr-2021 18:11

For cleaning a tank before a brew, I've usually used bottle washing powder, an alkaline salt that feels suspiciously like dishwasher tablets. It's cheap and cleans very well, and after rinsing it out, I've never really felt the need to sterilize as well.

In the past, if the tanks have been sitting around unused for ages, I've filled them to the brim with water and put a cup of straight bleach (for example, the type you get from Binn Inn, not Janola, which has other stuff in it) and let it sit for a few hours, and then drained it and let it fully air dry.

For sterilizing bottles, after I've rinsed them out, I fill them most of the way with water, and then the day before bottling, put a splash of bleach in, which then evaporates off overnight leaving just the water. There's never any bleach taste or smell if done the day before. Purists tend to shudder when they hear this, but I've yet to have a problem.

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MrAmerica

128 posts

Master Geek
Inactive user

#2685807 2-Apr-2021 18:20

Sodium Percarbonate is great, removes staining and sterilises.

Also cleans timber decks, coffee machines etc.

Hatch

Trade NZ and US shares and funds with Hatch (affiliate link).

panther2

370 posts

Ultimate Geek

#2685827 2-Apr-2021 19:40

Nappysan is also pretty good. Non scented

ageorge

626 posts

Ultimate Geek

#2685828 2-Apr-2021 20:03

MrAmerica: Sodium Percarbonate is great, removes staining and sterilises.

Also cleans timber decks, coffee machines etc.

Which is also Napisan/Vanish (main ingredient thereof).

Interslice

159 posts

Master Geek

#2685934 3-Apr-2021 09:04

I've used napisan for cleaning works alright but now moved on to PBW (powdered brewery wash) it's good stuff then for sanitising use Starsan it's a spray on no rinse sanitiser, so convenient and don't fear the foam that it makes. Will not harm you. Just my 2 cents here cos I don't bottle anymore I use kegs, still the same processes though I guess.

Cheers

Interslice

159 posts

Master Geek

#2685935 3-Apr-2021 09:04

I see you after household cleaning stuff, my bad, but one bottle of starsan will literally last you years. The ratio to mix with water is just a few mls to the litre and the biggest thing to with homebrew is clean as soon as something is empty otherwise it does become so much harder to clean things.

tukapa1

725 posts

Ultimate Geek

#2685959 3-Apr-2021 10:48

Interslice: I've used napisan for cleaning works alright but now moved on to PBW (powdered brewery wash) it's good stuff then for sanitising use Starsan it's a spray on no rinse sanitiser, so convenient and don't fear the foam that it makes. Will not harm you. Just my 2 cents here cos I don't bottle anymore I use kegs, still the same processes though I guess.

Cheers

This.

Buy some starsan for sterilising. Keep a spray bottle with some Starsan made up for quick and easy sterilising. Starsan will last you ages.

Are you cleaning plastic or stainsless steel? I don't use plastic very often anymore - mainly for spirits only. Mangrove Jacks do powdered cleaner and no rinse steriliser as well that your LHBS will sell if you want to try something different.

But PBW and Starsan is my preferred.

ageorge

626 posts

Ultimate Geek

#2686052 3-Apr-2021 15:35

tukapa1:

Buy some starsan for sterilising. Keep a spray bottle with some Starsan made up for quick and easy sterilising. Starsan will last you ages.

This is getting away from original 'home remedies' which could be supermarket available like Vanish or Frend, or something from the kitchen.

============================

Making cleaning easier:

Using PET (used 1.25L water bottles) makes sense one use only if bottling stout, as they are a sod to clean. Possibly it will make a difference cleaning when I have purchased glass flip top bottles.

Since I make 1/2 size brews (about 10L), instead of used 4L water bottles for brewing (which is my current method), I'm going to use a stainless pot (really easy to clean) like here:

https://www.kmart.co.nz/product/15l-stainless-steel-stock-pot/1358303

Regards, Al.

Gurezaemon

~HONYAKKER!~
1344 posts

Uber Geek

ID Verified

Lifetime subscriber

#2727697 12-Jun-2021 16:46

An excellent channel overall, and very relevant advice about sterilization. To be honest, I don't think it's worthwhile trying to cut corners too much on keeping things clean - the 'correct' things to use are not expensive, and usually work way better than whatever you might have lying around the house.

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