Sanitizing question

The kit that I got came with 5 star PBW. Now from what I understand this is to just clean equipment and bottles of surface residue. I'm guessing it doesn't sanitize it as well? Thanks

You guess corectly. PBW is one the best cleaners you can get for a homebrewer, but it is not a sanitizer. 5 star Star San is a sanitizer.

I would not think that it would sanitize since it is an alkaline cleaner.

Good sanitizer is a bleach/water mixture. About 1 capful in 5 gallons of water works well.

Thanks! I will definitely use the bleach and water mixture as I don't feel like driving out to the homebrew store

Some people will scald you for using bleach in the homebrew setting. While it can be a very affective cleaner, you must take care because chlorine is not good. It will cause a very distinct off flavor even at a very low ppm, and usually must be rinsed off, possibly re-introducing contaminants.

In an interview with the owner of 5 star about star san, he actually discuses bleach as a viable alternatize to star san, which is a no rinse sanitizer. Carefully measuring 1tbs of household bleach (unscented, & grocery store brand is actually better for sanitizing than clorox), and 1tbs of plain white vinegar into 5 gallons of water will give you an effective sanitizer with a 2 minute contact requirement. Without the vinegar, the pH of the water will be too high to affectively kill all microorganisms, but DO NOT mix them together, put one in the water, then the other. Mixing straight bleach with straight vinegar is toxic. This will give you 5 gallons of no rinse sanitizer.

Histo is right in saying that PBW is an alkaline cleanser, and is not meant to sanitize, star san is acid based. PBW is basically a souped up version of Oxy-Clean. Star san is made to be used without rinsing, and breaks down into a beneficial nutrient for the yeast when dilluted into the wort, requiring 30 seconds of contact, and can be used in a spray bottle instead of a 5 gallon bucket.

excellent info! I just realized there's an entire section for sanitizing....i'm such a noob mods can move if you please.

I use PBW and Starsan in tandem. I soak my carboy with PBW after fermentation to remove all of the deposits created by fermentation. Soak for a day (less with hot water) then scrub. I follow up with 3 gallons of Starsan solution. I then store it in the carboy until I'm ready to use it again.

I use detergent to wash all the deposits away, then I soak in sanitiser for 10 minutes, a young's brand. The instruction on it says to rinse, so I rinse everything in tap water, which here in England is chlorinated and I've not noticed any ill effects from either rinsing or using chlorinated water. Everythings coming out cushy.