McChub

Recipes 

after i have a drink what is the best way to clean the bottles?

devilishprune

Recipes 

Rinse them out with water immediately and you really don't have to wash them after that. If it still has a label on it, then I soak them in oxyclean for a day or two and rinse the labels off under the bath tub faucet.

glenn514

Recipes 

+3 to ^^^

If you don't rinse them out, the remaining "sludge" drys and then must be scrubbed out with some type of cleaning solution and a bottle brush. That can be time-consuming and a pain in the place you sit on. Keep them clean, and remember to sanitize before using again.

glenn514

eanmcnulty

Recipes 

+1 on the immediate rinse. I fill them two or three times and shake out the water. Then I soak them in Oxyclean in the kitchen sink for about a half hour or so, and the labels usually come off. Sierra Nevada labels have a gooey glue that rubs right off, but sometimes I see a film left behind. I take a Scotchbrite pad and scrub it a little in Oxyclean or dish soap to get it off. I like to do a thorough job the first time, then I know it's clean.
After that, when I pour a home brew I just rinse them. When I have a counter-full )about 80-10 bottles), I do an Oxyclean wash and leave in the dish rack or bottle drier for a couple of days. When they are dry, I cover each bottle with a 3"x 3" (roughly - I eyeball it) piece of aluminum foil and store them in the basement. They are ready for sanitizing right before I bottle.
Sanitizing is easy if you have a dishwasher that has a hot-dry cycle. I checked mine and it gets to over 170F for fifteen minutes. That is hot enough to sanitize. I stack all the bottles I need in the dishwasher and run it without any soap. Then I just bottle sitting next to it, pulling each bottle out as I fill it. Easy. Takes me an hour or less to bottle and clean up.
For me, I see dealing with bottles a once or twice weekly chore. It doesn't take long as long as you do it often. I don't see myself going to kegs. I think having beer on tap in my house could be a dangerous thing.

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Mmm, beer.

northernlad

Recipes 

For the most part an immediate rinse is all that is needed but it does not clean the bottle and over time you will notice a film on the inside of the bottles.

I store my clean ones upside down in milk crates which eliminates the time and expense of covering the tops.
When its time to bottle, a quick squirt with the vinator and upside down a dishrack, then bottle.

tvtoms

Recipes 

Pretty much same thing as everyone. If it's an old cruddy bottle, oxiclean soak inside and out. If it's freshly poured, rinse well immediately and store well until bottling day.

OHIOSTEVE

Recipes 

I hate the oxiclean residue!! If I leave the bottles in for more than a couple of hours it is a pain in the ass to get the film off of it. I did however discover ( maybe on here) that after a soak in OXI, a soak in starsan completely removes the film. So I mix up a bucket of each and do a bucket full at a time. no scrubbing at all to get lables off of 99% of the new bottles....and the old ones I have used are just rinsed and stored.

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BALDGUT BREWS