Mold!

I brewed a scottish export 3 weeks ago. Last time I checked on it was 2 weeks ago, everything seemed fine, primary fermentation had already stopped (S-04 works quick). So I checked on it today, and there is mold all over the inside of my fermentation chamber(mini fridge).

It's not completely covered in mold, but there are 30-40 big mold spots all over the inside of the fridge, on the outside of my ferm. bucket, etc etc.

Now I know mold has spores, but I'm fairly confident the bucket has been sealed well, and I've used a blow off tube for this batch. So i have a pretty good feeling the beer has been safe, but my big question is how do I clean up the inside of the mini fridge.

I'm assuming everything needs a healthy bath in bleach? I'm due for a new ferm bucket anyway, so i'll clean the outside of this one with bleach, and mark it for other uses. But will it be ok to use this mini fridge again? Just give it a healthy bleach clean?

Also, I've been using this thing for 6+ months, and this is the first time i've seen mold. There's an open cup of star san for the blow off, but I can't see that being the issue. Any ideas?

Just buy some Clorox wipes and wipe it down. Also, unless the fermenter is scratched on the inside, it's probably fine. Of course more brew stuff is always desirable. You may have had something on your hands, the wind might have blown some volunteers in there, it's hard to say. I would/do wipe them down each time. Luck - Dwain

So i forgot one of my good friends works for a fire/water damage company, and he's kind of an expert on mold. So I called him, and he basically said a thorough cleaning with a good cleaning agent, or a strong bleach solution will work fine. The bucket it probably with any certainty fine, but I've brewed 20 batches with it already and for the $11 to replace it, I might as well.

Oh, and damp-rid, he said definitely get something in there to absorb the moisture. So i guess the moral of the story for all those with refrigeration fermentation chambers, or Keezers, use damp-rid or a moisture absorbing product.

It's a good idea to let everything defrost with the door open every once in a while to let things dry out, then clean with clorox wipes and restart.

Don't panic. I've racked out from under mold floating on top of the beer in primary and had a stellar batch. Mold doesn't seem to hurt the beer much.

Keep a thick layer of old newspapers in the thing from now on to absorb excess moisture. You might check for air leaks too.

I had a mold problem one time in my fridge fermentation cellar. I wiped down the interior with alcohol then followed by a wet wiping with idophor, then dry wiped the idophor off after about 5 minutes. I also soaked idophor into any porous materials (I have an MDF shelf to hold the vessels). it's been almost a year since i did that and haven't had any repeat mold issues. But be forewarned, the idophor will likely stain any plastics, but that didn't bother me.

Ok, I bleach-bombed the fridge tonight. The beer was 100% fine, I racked to a keg. I was on the fence about keeping the fermented bucket, but said screw it. I grabbed the sharpie and designated it for cleaning purposes only. $11 just isnt worth the risk. I used a very strong bleach/water solution, dried it as best I could, and now I'll leave the door open for a couple days with the fan pointing inside.

I think the trick will be to clean out the fridge between batches, and damp-rid to keep it dry

scottland said:

Ok, I bleach-bombed the fridge tonight. The beer was 100% fine, I racked to a keg. I was on the fence about keeping the fermented bucket, but said screw it. I grabbed the sharpie and designated it for cleaning purposes only. $11 just isnt worth the risk. I used a very strong bleach/water solution, dried it as best I could, and now I'll leave the door open for a couple days with the fan pointing inside.

I think the trick will be to clean out the fridge between batches, and damp-rid to keep it dry

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Good man.