Are my bottles still steril enough after a week?

Hey guys,

A week ago I cleaned my bottles with star san placed them upside down in a covered plastic tote. Thinking I was going to bottle my beer then but I got side tracked, do you think they are still sterile a week latter or should I do it over again?

I would do it again why risk weeks of work ?

My 2 cents

You don't clean with star San You sanitize,and no after a week all kinds of fun things could be living on/in them.

Starsan is a wet contact sanitizer. So no,you'd have to do it again.

Just put them in your dishwasher after you clean them.... Run a hi temp wash, hi temp rinse, and then heat to dry. Works like a charm....

BlindFaith said:

Just put them in your dishwasher after you clean them.... Run a hi temp wash, hi temp rinse, and then heat to dry. Works like a charm....

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I do have a sanitize setting on my dishwasher. How long should I wait after its done before I can bottle? Or is it OK to fill a hot bottle?


Thanks Guys!

Don't use detergent if your sanitizing in the dishwasher.

I would think if you left the dishwasher door closed it should stay pretty sanitary until the bottles cooled. I would not fill hot bottles. Maybe warm would be ok though.

RMS said:

I do have a sanitize setting on my dishwasher. How long should I wait after its done before I can bottle? Or is it OK to fill a hot bottle?


Thanks Guys!

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I run my through the cycles I mentioned and then I let them sit until cool. Sometimes I open the dishwasher up to hurry the cooling up and I have never had an issue.

How exactly does a dishwasher spray into a tiny bottle opening and sanitize when it won't clean my plates 100%

The _heat_ will sanitize them even if no water ever gets inside the bottle.

But whatever form of sanitizing you use it won't stay sanitized for long.

Not to be blunt to the op but sanitizing them a week ago is utterly useless.

woozy said:

The _heat_ will sanitize them even if no water ever gets inside the bottle.

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^^^ This

I make sure my temps are high enough by using the hi temp setting for both cycles AND the heated dry feature. I'm pretty sure the dishwasher doesn't get all the way up to 180F, but it is at least 140 or so and my cycle is well over an hour. I read on here awhile back that 1 hour @ at least 143F suffices for sanitation. I have never had any issues anyhow.

BlindFaith said:

^^^ This

I make sure my temps are high enough by using the hi temp setting for both cycles AND the heated dry feature. I'm pretty sure the dishwasher doesn't get all the way up to 180F, but it is at least 140 or so and my cycle is well over an hour. I read on here awhile back that 1 hour @ at least 143F suffices for sanitation. I have never had any issues anyhow.

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Thanks for the info! I am doing this today.

Since pasteurization happens at about 160F,I'd be wary of 140F. An hour might do it,but?...

My god, just give them each a spray with starsan and call it a day. It's not rocket surgery, it's beer. Star san is a wet contact acid sanitizer; it needs to be wet to work. Dishwasher works too, but I'd still sanitize the bottles with a wet contact sanitizer so that they can remain sanitized as you handle and fill them.

Update:

I had the first beer last night that was from the dishwasher sanitize process and it seemed to work out well, that is I did not get sick and the beer looked and smelled fine.

I kind of like the idea of using less chemicals so I may adopt this as my new bottle sanitizing process.

Glad it worked out ! Enjoy

Rinse them on the spigot immediately after use, drain them, store them upside down in a cardboard carton, then dunk them in Starsan before bottling.

I've never used a dishwasher.

You wouldn't have gotten sick anyhow. Beer doesn't harbor any type of food poisoning bacteria like salmonella, E. coli, listeria, etc... The bacterial infections of beer change the flavor, level of carbonation, color, and other quality issues, but you will not get legitimately sick.

Some people are more squeamish to off-flavors, yeast and such, but an upset stomach or diarrhea doesn't mean that person was made sick by not properly sanitizing or an infection.

If you want them to stay sanitized for a week (and more), cap the bottles with aluminum foil and bake them in the oven for an hour at 340. Let them cool and as long as you have that tin foil over the opening of the bottle you are good to go.

I rinse & scrub my bottles in the sink,then onto the bottle tree to dry. I put them in boxes right side up,since they're Leinenkugel's boxes with multi flap lids with closing tabs. They have seperators too. not much chance of dust getting in. They get Starsaned by the vinator right before filling anyway.

I wash my bottles in PBW, then rinse them and store them upside-down on one of those red plastic bottling trees. They stay there until bottling time, at which time I just hit them with some Star-San and add the beer.

Once they're already clean, if they're stored upside-down, very little will get inside. If anything, maybe some dust, which will quickly be rinsed away by a squirt or two of Star-San.

kombat said:

I wash my bottles in PBW, then rinse them and store them upside-down on one of those red plastic bottling trees. They stay there until bottling time, at which time I just hit them with some Star-San and add the beer.

Once they're already clean, if they're stored upside-down, very little will get inside. If anything, maybe some dust, which will quickly be rinsed away by a squirt or two of Star-San.

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Which is why I store them right side up. The boxes are so well enclosed,that a little dust gets rinsed off anyway. Having been dried on a bottle tree,there's nothing left for the dust to stick to. Not like it matters a lot. Just my thoughts...

Tonyctitan said:

Don't use detergent if your sanitizing in the dishwasher.

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And in addition to no detergent, definitely none of that No Rinse / Jet Dry kind of stuff.
(Ask me how I know this)

Is it necessary to wash bottles with PBW, or is a good rinse/scrub with a bottle brush enough if you do it right after the bottle is emptied?

I've never cleaned a bottle with anything. Just a good rinse to make sure there is nothing in it (pretty easy if you don't let it dry) and sanitize just prior to bottling. PBW is great to clean things that are hard to clean. If your bottles have dried-on crud, use PBW. If not, no need IMO.

This^

I usually just rinse a couple of times right after pouring and only occasionally with some highly flocculant yeasts do I have a residue that I have to soak in PBW and hit quickly with a bottle brush.

Quick starsan before using again and good to go.

Use PBW or Oxyclean if there is dried on crud. Otherwise just rinse until there is nothing sticking to the glass then store. On bottling day rinse off any dust etc., sanitize and fill.

I wouldn't trust my dishwasher to squirt enough hot water up inside each and every narrow little bottle neck of the bottles. Even with regular glasses, if one is setting a bit off kilter, it might not get cleaned well.

Carrollyn said:

I wouldn't trust my dishwasher to squirt enough hot water up inside each and every narrow little bottle neck of the bottles. Even with regular glasses, if one is setting a bit off kilter, it might not get cleaned well.

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It isn't the water that sanitizes the bottle, but the heat from the sanitize setting or high wash/rinse. I would just rinse my bottles with Star San and bottle from there, but I am lazy so I let the dishwasher do all the work.

Yeah, I went back and read that folks were just using the heat from the dishwasher for sanitizing, not cleaning. But honestly, running the dishwasher through its whole hour plus cycle to sanitize bottles that can get recontaminated by a misplaced finger?

This is why I use Starsan in a vinator & bottle tree. I sanitize right before filling. No worries then.

Sounds like a lot of work. I batch sanitize my bottles after a thorough cleaning and store them upside down or covered loosely with aluminum foil. At bottling time I dip the mouth in Starsan or wipe the mouth with a clean paper towel soaked in Starsan and fill as normal. I’ve used bottles up to 6 months from the day I sanitized this way with no issues. Storing as long as 1-1/2 years with no contamination. As long as nothing gets in the bottles, once you clean and sanitize you should be all set. Do what you feel is right.

MoldMan said:

I’ve used bottles up to 6 months from the day I sanitized this way with no issues. Storing as long as 1-1/2 years with no contamination. As long as nothing gets in the bottles, once you clean and sanitize you should be all set. Do what you feel is right.

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This is true, however I wouldn't recommend any extended time between sanitizing and filling bottles. Yes, once sanitized bottles stay sanitized until contaminated. But contamination is easy and undetectable. I would recommend sanitizing immediately before liking bottles.

I COULD drive with my eyes closed. The longer I keep them closed the more likely I'll have an issue.

Using the vinator & bottle tree is actually quick & easy. The bottle tree has a smaller footprint than having bottles all over the counter,floor,etc. footprint is about 2 square feet. Sanitize,onto tree,then start filling. I've actually gotten pretty quick with my setup for bottling day. The bench capper also makes things quicker & easier.

If you can't transfer cleanly to a bottling bucket or you can not handle your equipment in a clean manner then nothing you do to your bottles matters anyways. Like I said, do what you feel comfortable with. I've never had an issue. K.I.S.S. method works well for me. Clean what needs to be cleaned, sanitize, and keep your bottles covered or upside down. Dust and yeast don't fall up or into a covered vessel. If you clean properly then there is no food for yeast or contaminates to grow. If you sanitize properly then you've knocked the contaminate levels to an acceptable level. Like I've said I've stored beer in bottles this way for up to 1-1/2 years with no issues. But I am comfortable with my process and do not feel a need to change. YMMV

Well I must say that I have enjoyed all the suggestions! Though one issue that was mentioned was the No Rinse / Jet Dry liquid and I just turned the dial to off and I plugged the hole with a clean ear plug though that did fall out during the cycle. Not sure if any leaked out but like I mentioned my batch of beer came out good.

I am glad to also hear that you cannot get really sick from a mild contamination and that is good to know; I always listen for the carbonation fizz when I open them just too be sure its good!