I'm going to shoot a hole in oxiclean

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rohanski

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As a lot of you know I have had many bad batches even after I switched to oxiclean and starsan. I know a lot of you guys say you don't need to scrub your bottles and that's what I believe got me in trouble. I was inspecting one of my glass carboys in the sun and noticed it had a light film inside and when I brushed it you could definitely see it. After giving the bottle a good scrub I did a good soak with a strong bleach solution and my first batch smells good. I haven't tasted it yet but I'm pretty sure I have licked it. I will still use oxiclean but I will definitely brush all of my bottles after every batch.
I know the better bottle crowd can't scrub with a brush but there has to be something.

Now I know ya'll are going to say you have been doing this for a long time and never had a problem. I too went a long time without a problem but when you get one it's very unforgiving and very expensive, not to mention nerve racking.

I visited JNJ yesterday who had my same problem and the common thread was fruit flies. I think what happened is the initial infection started with fruit flies and once it was stuck to the walls of the carboy oxiclean and starsan would not remove or kill it.

From now on it's oxiclean, scrub, and starsan. If an infection occurs a good soak with a strong bleach solution.
 
Just curious, but were you using the regular oxyclean or the oxyclean free (no perfumes, etc.)? I've just started using the oxyclean free for my kegs and bottles but am using the pbw for my kettles and fermenters.
 
It was nice meeting you and thanks for stopping by. I'm either going to brew my first test batch today or may be Sunday, we'll see. I really hope this works.
 
In the case of ridding infection, I am a big advocate of going to the most extreme cleaning measures possible: Elbow grease and lots of bleach. Pass sanitation and approach sterilization. Looks like this is exactly what you did, and it worked. Cheers!
 
mrkristofo said:
In the case of ridding infection, I am a big advocate of going to the most extreme cleaning measures possible: Elbow grease and lots of bleach. Pass sanitation and approach sterilization. Looks like this is exactly what you did, and it worked. Cheers!

I have had infections in the past and stopped them this way but with all of the talk about oxiclean and not scrubbing I didn't think of it. Extreme problems require extreme measures. Plastic always worries me because it retains a smell that even bleach can't remove.
 
Sanitizers will not break or penetrate bacterial biofilms. Some of those films can block straight bleach! Clean, then sanitize.
 
Interesting... I know oxiclean will leave a film on things if you leave them to soak for a very long time but it always seemed to rinse off after rinsing several times with hot tap water (and in the case of carboys, filling it partway and vigorously shaking it, multiple times) - however I also never really stopped and looked closely at it after it dried to make sure there was no residue. Though, I haven't had any ruined batches with qualities that would lead me to suspect anything oxiclean-related (yet)... But since oxiclean gets recommended on this forum left and right, perhaps it's time someone figures out exactly how much rinsing/scrubbing/etc is required to reliably clean it off of a surface after use.

I guess when I get home I'll take a close look at my better bottles. Nothing seems to stick to that PET plastic, so hopefully a good thorough series of hot rinses has been good enough (since I can't scrub them), but you can never be too certain when it comes to chemicals on your brewing equipment.

rohanski said:
Plastic always worries me because it retains a smell that even bleach can't remove.
I definitely agree with that for HDPE (like buckets), but my better bottles don't seem to harbor odors at all.
 
I never let them soak for long and yes oxiclean may leave a residue after rinsing. What I think is either the bacteria sticks to the residue, or it sticks to the carboy and it cannot be removed chemically.
JNJ had the same infection problem with better bottles. Looking at his bottle it was hard to tell if there was a residue. I do not know how clear they are when they are new.
 
Funkenjäger said:
I guess when I get home I'll take a close look at my better bottles. Nothing seems to stick to that PET plastic, so hopefully a good thorough series of hot rinses has been good enough (since I can't scrub them), but you can never be too certain when it comes to chemicals on your brewing equipment.


I definitely agree with that for HDPE (like buckets), but my better bottles don't seem to harbor odors at all.

i always stick a rag into my BB to aid in dislodging any nasties in there:ban:
 
Hmmm, I was going to switch to Oxiclean or Oxyclean or however it's spelled.

I use PBW now and haven't had any issues...it's just more expensive. But if oxyclean leaves residue I want no part of it
 
bigbin Don't take this the wrong way. I'm not tryng to make a point about oxiclean leaving a residue but that scrubbing is a must no matter what you use.
 
...and rinsing. Oxyclean is not no-rinse. It must be thoroughly rinsed otherwise it WILL leave a residue. The star-san, however is no-rinse and should never be rinsed.
 
rohanski said:
bigbin Don't take this the wrong way. I'm not tryng to make a point about oxiclean leaving a residue but that scrubbing is a must no matter what you use.
Yea, but I thought scrubbing wasn't required with PBW...I never scrub(I use plastic buckets). At the most I will wipe with a paper towel while the bucket is filled with PBW solution.
 
clayof2day said:
...and rinsing. Oxyclean is not no-rinse. It must be thoroughly rinsed otherwise it WILL leave a residue. The star-san, however is no-rinse and should never be rinsed.
Yea, I understand that...they are 2 completely different products for different things.

Oxyclean is a cleaner and star-san is a sanitizer.
 
I always leave my carboys (both glass and BB's) in oxyclean for a few days, use the rag method for stuck on stuff, and rinse multiple times with hot water to get rid of the oxyclean. No problems for me yet, even leaving the oxyclean in for a week.
 
Im' going to scrub no matter what I use after what I just went through. I wouldn't wish this on anyone. I just don't think rinsing after anything is enough. It's kinda like those no touch car washes. I don't care how good they are if iit doesn't scrub it can't get it all off.
 
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