I have starsan in my airlocks so if it gets in, it is sanitizer and nothing "gunky" and has no effect on my beer whatsoever.
Only if you use distilled or Reverse Osmosis water to make your starsan. Regular tap water will lose it sanitizing power in a few days due to mineral content of the water.
OK. Well, guess I'll put Vodka in the airlock from now on and just loosen the fermenter lid a little before I start bottling so there isn't much "airlock suckage."
When I move my carboy (pulling it out of the fermentation fridge and moving to rack) I hold it by the neck with one hand, and on the bottom with the other hand. With my hand on the neck, I can lift the stopper/airlock a very small amount so that the pressure differential causes suction at that millimeter opening, rather than the airlock.
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"I have read that putting the fermetor in like a milk crate helps a lot as you lift the crate not the fermentor and do not get as much flex in the fermentor"
Milk crate, good idea! I have been thinking of something taller and on wheels...a Radio Flyer?????
Only if you use distilled or Reverse Osmosis water to make your starsan. Regular tap water will lose it sanitizing power in a few days due to mineral content of the water.
Ok, wow, now I'm confused. Until now I had heard and believed that a solution of star-san would maintain its sanitizing power for months. This is incorrect if tap water is used?
Ok, wow, now I'm confused. Until now I had heard and believed that a solution of star-san would maintain its sanitizing power for months. This is incorrect if tap water is used?
Yeah, in my short time as part of the homebrewing community I've heard of making a batch os star-san and saving it for later use. Never once have a seen a disclaimer that tap water degrades its longevity. If this is true, I must have gotten lucky with not getting an infection in my first batch, because I used a spray bottle full of star-san that I mixed up when I brewed the batch to sanitize my turkey baster to take samples.
Maybe it's time to go get some petri dishes and mix up/age some tap water/star-san solution.
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How long starsan will last in tap water varries based on the profile of your tap water. Some people do OK, while others have the starsan go bad after several days. I think the more disolved solids, and the more alkaline your water, the less time the starsan will remain viable. Starsan keeps a very acidic profile which is part of how it sanitizes and if it is fighting the chemical profile of the water it goes south much quicker.
Starsan will last many months with reverse osmosis water, or distilled water. You can get distilled water for under a dollar at the drug or grocery store, so it's not like it is a big expense for the added longevity it provides to the starsan.
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Yeah, in my short time as part of the homebrewing community I've heard of making a batch os star-san and saving it for later use. Never once have a seen a disclaimer that tap water degrades its longevity. If this is true, I must have gotten lucky with not getting an infection in my first batch, because I used a spray bottle full of star-san that I mixed up when I brewed the batch to sanitize my turkey baster to take samples.
Ya, I've lucked out too. I guess I've been sanitizing several items with little more than tap water.
Quote:
Originally Posted by MBasile
Maybe it's time to go get some petri dishes and mix up/age some tap water/star-san solution.
That would be above and beyond the call of duty, but really helpful if a clear answer to this question doesn't surface. I know I'd certainly be interested in the results.
The easy way to test your starsan is to test the PH. This can be done expensively with a fancy PH meter, or quite cheaply ( a couple bucks) with some PH test strips. If/when the PH reads above 3.0 it is time to discard the starsan solution and mix up some more.
__________________ Primary: German Hef, Belgian IPA, Scottish 80, Belgian Dubbel On Tap: Oatmeal Stout, Vanilla Oatmeal Stout, Belgian Dark Strong, Munich Dunkel, Dunkel Weizen, Oktoberfest, Bock, IPA, Black IPA, English IPA, Pale Ale
Using the mind to look for reality is delusion. Using your senses to look for reality is awareness.
"One time I was so desperate for a beer I snuck into the football stadium and ate the dirt under the bleachers." Homer Simpson
The easy way to test your starsan is to test the PH. This can be done expensively with a fancy PH meter, or quite cheaply ( a couple bucks) with some PH test strips. If/when the PH reads above 3.0 it is time to discard the starsan solution and mix up some more.
That sounds easier but less fun than petri dishes
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Until now I had heard and believed that a solution of star-san would maintain its sanitizing power for months. This is incorrect if tap water is used? 
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