sanitizing without a sanitizer

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I've been using iodine to sanitize my bottles, but now I've become paranoid that it makes my beer taste bitter.
It will also be a while until I can get my hands on some starsan.
Aaaand I don't own a dishwasher.

Is there any other possible way for me to sanitize my bottles reliably?
 
In an old BYO mag there was a guy who built a bottle sanitizer to be used in the oven. The basic premise was that you filled the bottles with about 2/3 cup of water and placed them in a 250F oven for 1 hour. Water boils and sanitized/steam cleans the bottles. This is terribly inefficient IMHO but I guess it would work. Long cool down time though.
 
Here ya go: http://www.howtobrew.com/section1/chapter2-2-3.html

Oven - 340°F for 1 hour - Renders bottles sterile, not just sanitized. Allow bottles to cool slowly to prevent thermal shock and cracking.

(edit) I've also heard of people putting foil caps over them prior to baking, then they can store them away with the foil on and they'll supposedly stay ready to use for when you need them.
 
I would be wary of heating and cooling these bottles a lot. They are not very high quality glass and can form micro cracks from doing this method.
 
2 different oven methods already. I'd go at 220 F for about 15 minutes. None of us are worried that a boiling hot temperature is inadequate for our needs. This should do the trick just fine with less power usage.

Put bottles in oven, turn on, set timer after oven is heated, turn oven off after timer. Leave the bottles in the oven. Use as soon as they're cooled.

Other options to pursue could be looking at common household items. Bleach was a big one back when I first remember my father homebrewing. Took a comical amount of rinse water. Now people are paranoid about the quality of water their tap provides, I'm not one of them. My first few batches were bleach sanitized, now it's all about the starsan.
 
Thanks guys, I'll go with the oven method.
Do I have to remove all the labels from the bottles before I bake them?
 
I would take them off, to be safe. If they don't combust, then they might be harder to clean/remove later.
 
Would be a good idea to de-label. If you're at 220 - 250 you are well below the paper flashpoint. I have no clue about ink or glue. Glue might become rock hard or it might melt off. I'd aluminum foil underneath just to be sure. I speak from experience, 10 minutes at 250 dried out a clipboard and papers dripping with irish coffee. It wasn't my fault I assure you.
 
I've been using iodine to sanitize my bottles, but now I've become paranoid that it makes my beer taste bitter.

It will also be a while until I can get my hands on some starsan.

Aaaand I don't own a dishwasher.



Is there any other possible way for me to sanitize my bottles reliably?


Where are you located? I'll send you some StarSan & B-Brite (works great on removing labels)
 
I've used the oven method before - definitely remove the labels and the glue - otherwise your bottles/oven will smell like glue.

After removing all that gunk, cover the bottle tops w/ aluminum foil, then bake - I recommend like 275 for a few hours (check the howtobrew chart). Let them cool slowly and then put away for future use.
 
I've been using iodine to sanitize my bottles, but now I've become paranoid that it makes my beer taste bitter.
It will also be a while until I can get my hands on some starsan.
Aaaand I don't own a dishwasher.

Is there any other possible way for me to sanitize my bottles reliably?

StarSan is about $8 online, why dont you just order some and be done with it?
 
ok the oven method is dangerous. bottles are not consistent. if they have airbubbles in them they can easily crack and pop.

Go old school. use bleach and rinse the heck out of them.
 
I bleached for years. Actually get your dilution right. Rinse three times.

Of course I still like steam but it really is impractical.
 
Ive used Iodine, it doesn't make beer bitter, boiling hops at the begining of the boil makes bitter beer, so does using bitter orange peel, Iodine... never as far as im concerned, after I am done with my star san I am going back to Iodine. I dont like the foam starsan produces. everyone says dont fear the foam, well I let the foam sit over night once and in the morning there was a large puddle of water/starsan I dont want that in my beer, Iodine foams, but not as bad.

Just a thought, but if you boiled a gallon of water in a boil pot and just set the bottle in the pot with a lid for 15 seconds 220 degree water with full surface contact should sterilize 50 bottles in no time, Use tongs to roll around.

If your boil pot has a faucet you could fill each bottle with boiling water and reintroduce the water back into the pot x 50 and you got sterile bottles. Dangerous yes, but there you go, nothing in this hobby is non dangerous. Use gloves and protective gear!

experiment and let us know what your findings are.
 
Where are you located? I'll send you some StarSan & B-Brite (works great on removing labels)

Hey, thanks a lot man! But I'm not from the US, so I don't think it will be practical.

I think maybe if I use iodine and then rinse it off with boiled water, I can save myself the trouble of de-labeling and baking the bottles.
 
I used to put boiling water into the bottles, give a good shake (all the while wearing gloves) and dump it out and toss a cap that had been in sodium-meta solution onto the bottle. IF I saw steam coming out before laying the cap on it was good enough for me. I've since switched to star-san for the ease of it but it work out well enough but more time consuming for sure. Also learned why you don't put boiling water on a bowl full of caps :D

Edit: These were all previously cleaned bottles FYI
 
I use iodine and let them drip dry without rinsing. It is safe and will not affect the flavour of the beer. I'd go mad if I had to bake my bottles for each batch.
 
It's not too bad really. Just load your oven with your 50ish bottles, turn the oven to 350, let it bake for an hour, turn it off and go to bed, bottle in the morning.

I've only done it once. I usually just use starsan. I also agree that this will start to wear on the glass.
 
Hey, thanks a lot man! But I'm not from the US, so I don't think it will be practical.

I think maybe if I use iodine and then rinse it off with boiled water, I can save myself the trouble of de-labeling and baking the bottles.

A soak in hot Oxyclean will make the labels fall right off, I didn't know people bottle in bottles with the label still on. I would think the labels would get sticky & gross, I always rinse & dry the outside of my bottles after I bottle, before I put them away. My thinking is if you don't put care in the presentation of the beer you crafted why on earth would I think you have put care into the crafting of the beer it's self... guess I'm just anal lol....:D
 
My thinking is if you don't put care in the presentation of the beer you crafted why on earth would I think you have put care into the crafting of the beer it's self... guess I'm just anal lol....:D

Um, yeah...the bottle isn't the presentation to some of us...that happens in the glass. Of course you would likely think I am a slob there too as I can't be bothered with clarifying agents because they do not increase my enjoyment of the beer (and because 9/10 beers do drop perfectly clear for me).

And I have been known to serve kegged beer in Solo cups, store mismatched bottles in 6-pack holders they originally came in (or, well some of them) instead of having all the same shape and size bottle, custom labeled in 6-pack holders that have been custom labeled. Occasionally I even use the 2-liter Pepsi bottle I just emptied and rinsed out to take beer to party when my growlers are all full.

How on earth is my beer drinkable! Next thing you know I will tell you I step up starters in empty plastic juice bottles...
 
Um, yeah...the bottle isn't the presentation to some of us...that happens in the glass. Of course you would likely think I am a slob there too as I can't be bothered with clarifying agents because they do not increase my enjoyment of the beer (and because 9/10 beers do drop perfectly clear for me).

And I have been known to serve kegged beer in Solo cups, store mismatched bottles in 6-pack holders they originally came in (or, well some of them) instead of having all the same shape and size bottle, custom labeled in 6-pack holders that have been custom labeled. Occasionally I even use the 2-liter Pepsi bottle I just emptied and rinsed out to take beer to party when my growlers are all full.

How on earth is my beer drinkable! Next thing you know I will tell you I step up starters in empty plastic juice bottles...

I re-use 6 packs too, no problem with that, but before you pour a bottle in a glass it is in the bottle so that is part of the presentation, if you handed me a sticky bottle of beer with a half torn label on it and a glass I'm going to be less than enthusiastic about drinking it, but that's me..

I'm not saying the beer will be bad I'm just saying it is off putting and you should take pride in presenting something you worked so hard on... Why half-ass it at that point?

And I am also picky about my glassware, but if I am out and about a Solo cup will do, just not with a beer poured from a nasty looking sticky bottle.

to each their own though i suppose...

Also I don't see a problem with not using Whirfloc in your beer, I'm just saying it looks better when you have your beer in a clean looking bottle, and people are more likely to try it & take it seriously if the bottle is clean.

BTW I mean no offense to any one who chooses to do this, I seriously just didn't know some people leave labels on & it seemed silly to me so I though I would share.....

If I offended you with my opinion then sorry
 
Occasionally I even use the 2-liter Pepsi bottle I just emptied and rinsed out to take beer to party when my growlers are all full.

+1. I not only use this but my mother has taken to drinking carbonated water in 1.5 (3 pint) bottles. Asked her to save up a few for me. While showing up at a party with a bag of unmarked blue bottles does lack presentation it accomplishes 2 things. It allows the task to be accomplished, and you can leave them behind without fearing that you may never see them again. Truth be told last party I did this I sent the DD home with one that was never opened, after all she did the responsible thing and shouldn't miss out.

And you know you're a homebrewer when:
Someone you know likes drinking carbonated water, and you offer to carbonate water for them. Unfortunately mass production vs the little guy...
 

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