hi all just in the process of setting myself up for brewing my very first all grain brew. just wondered what is best to sanitise all my equipment with. was going to use something like Milton ?
would this be strong enough to kill all unwanted bacteria or is there other cleaning products I can use?
would appreciate any advice.
sanitising all equipment best method.?
Re: sanitising all equipment best method.?
The problem with milton and other chlorine based sanitisers is that you have to ensure that it's thoroughly rinsed afterwards or you run the risk of off flavours in your beer. A no rinse sanitiser like Starsan may cost a bit more initially but saves a lot of effort and a bottle will last you ages.
If you do decide to go with chlorine then you might as well just use thin value bleach and to get rid of every trace rinse with a sodium metabisulphite solution.
If you do decide to go with chlorine then you might as well just use thin value bleach and to get rid of every trace rinse with a sodium metabisulphite solution.
In or near Norwich? Interested in meeting up monthly to talk and drink beer? PM me for details.
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Martin G
Re: sanitising all equipment best method.?
Yep, also vote for Starsan for day to day use, but it is a good idea to do the critical equipment with another method from time to time. If using chlorine based sanitiser then one method for rinsing it is to boil up a batch of water and rinse everything with it three times. If the water is used whilst still very hot then the heat will also provide some of the sanitising action and help remove the chlorine, some things cannot take heat though and there will be more nasty fumes.
Re: sanitising all equipment best method.?
Hi liddley
Just a tip. Its only the things that come in contact with the brew after the Boil that realy need to be sanitized.
Everything before the boil just needs to be clean.
I use sodium met to sanitize.
Bleach to clean.
Norm
Just a tip. Its only the things that come in contact with the brew after the Boil that realy need to be sanitized.
Everything before the boil just needs to be clean.
I use sodium met to sanitize.
Bleach to clean.
Norm
The Doghouse Brewery (UK)
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brodington
Re: sanitising all equipment best method.?
Starsan has changed my life. (got the better)
You need to use so little of it that a bottle is very good value.
You need to use so little of it that a bottle is very good value.
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yamr6
Re: sanitising all equipment best method.?
me i just wonders what they did in the old days before all these chemicals
bit of stem mayhaps
bit of stem mayhaps
Re: sanitising all equipment best method.?
Old beer probably tasted rubbish but still safer than the water of the time 
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Eric
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Re: sanitising all equipment best method.?
They made their beer strong enough to resist infection or sold it quickly before it was too rank to sell.yamr6 wrote:me i just wonders what they did in the old days before all these chemicals
bit of stem mayhaps
Without patience, life becomes difficult and the sooner it's finished, the better.
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setmash
Re: sanitising all equipment best method.?
Im really new to all grain (only done two brews - the chaps on this forum have been amazing with the amount of advice i have been given). For my last brew i used Starsan, it was a 100 pint 3 corny brew and using Starsan made a massive difference.
Starsan is fussy about water. If it doesnt like your water (too hard) it will go cloudy. Best is to buy a big bottle of Tesco Ashbeck mineral water (costs nothing) and mix it with that. Once made up (use a small syringe to put correct dose in your water) starsan lasts ages (you can even re-use it). I have starsan in a hand spray bottle for spraying on the side of my FV etc and i also have some made up for general sanitising - i pour some in to a wallpaper long plastic dish and dunk pipes etc in that. Starsan is no rinse so saves loads of time...I love it
Good luck with your fisrt brew...welcome to the dark side
Starsan is fussy about water. If it doesnt like your water (too hard) it will go cloudy. Best is to buy a big bottle of Tesco Ashbeck mineral water (costs nothing) and mix it with that. Once made up (use a small syringe to put correct dose in your water) starsan lasts ages (you can even re-use it). I have starsan in a hand spray bottle for spraying on the side of my FV etc and i also have some made up for general sanitising - i pour some in to a wallpaper long plastic dish and dunk pipes etc in that. Starsan is no rinse so saves loads of time...I love it
Good luck with your fisrt brew...welcome to the dark side
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Jocky
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Re: sanitising all equipment best method.?
My tips on this are:
1. Get a trigger bottle and put starsan solution in it. A quick spray from that sanitises most things.
2. While brewing keep a tub of starsan solution around. I use a plastic biscuit tub, but a small fermenting bucket is fine too. This is great for dumping equipment in to keep it santised (thermometer, syphon, bottle caps, teaspoons), and you can reuse the starsan solution in future as long as you're not dumping anything dirty into it (rinse things before dropping them back in).
3. Clean everything when you're done brewing for the day. You don't want to leave anything to dry onto your equipment as it makes it much harder to remove later, and it will harbour nasties. I use Oxi clean (well, it's a tub of Vanish Oxi Action) for this, usually in a bucket, and then rinse it off in the sink before leaving to dry. This way the next time I come to brew a quick squirt of starsan from the spray bottle is all that is needed.
1. Get a trigger bottle and put starsan solution in it. A quick spray from that sanitises most things.
2. While brewing keep a tub of starsan solution around. I use a plastic biscuit tub, but a small fermenting bucket is fine too. This is great for dumping equipment in to keep it santised (thermometer, syphon, bottle caps, teaspoons), and you can reuse the starsan solution in future as long as you're not dumping anything dirty into it (rinse things before dropping them back in).
3. Clean everything when you're done brewing for the day. You don't want to leave anything to dry onto your equipment as it makes it much harder to remove later, and it will harbour nasties. I use Oxi clean (well, it's a tub of Vanish Oxi Action) for this, usually in a bucket, and then rinse it off in the sink before leaving to dry. This way the next time I come to brew a quick squirt of starsan from the spray bottle is all that is needed.
Ingredients: Water, Barley, Hops, Yeast, Seaweed, Blood, Sweat, The swim bladder of a sturgeon, My enemies tears, Scenes of mild peril, An otter's handbag and Riboflavin.
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liddley
Re: sanitising all equipment best method.?
where is best to by starsan ? had a quick look on eBay and seems to be all American sellers.
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dazer23866
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Re: sanitising all equipment best method.?
The malt miller sells it http://themaltmiller.co.uk/index.php?se ... mit=%C2%A0
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jonnyt
Re: sanitising all equipment best method.?
Oxy also kills 99.9% of all bacteria like bleach.
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Jocky
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Re: sanitising all equipment best method.?
http://www.the-home-brew-shop.co.uk/aca ... icals.htmlliddley wrote:where is best to by starsan ? had a quick look on eBay and seems to be all American sellers.
Ingredients: Water, Barley, Hops, Yeast, Seaweed, Blood, Sweat, The swim bladder of a sturgeon, My enemies tears, Scenes of mild peril, An otter's handbag and Riboflavin.