Rapid Sanitization

The thing I dread the most about brewing is the sanitization process. I spend about 4 hours running detergent, rinse, sanitizer solution, and then a final rinse through my 5-gallon HLT, 5-gallon mash tun, brew pot, and 7-gallon carboy, so that I can clean and sanitize all the tubing.

If you saw what I do, you'd probably laugh your tail off, but I can't think of a more efficient way to clean the tubing. For the buckets, sure I could just scrub it, rinse it, and sanitize it in no time, but how do I go about cleaning out my tubing? I know it gets nasty in those tubes.

I'd appreciate any suggestions regarding rapid sanitization processes that you more experienced brewers have discovered. Thanks!

What tubing are you talking about?

That seems like a long time for sanitization.

I put everything in the fermentation bucket, and use that as a vessel to sanitize the equipment, then empty it out and sanitize the bucket itself.

I just throw the tubing in the star san bucket and let it soak.

I only use tubing between the MLT and brew pot, then between the brew pot and the carboy. It's one 3-ft piece of silicone. When I'm done brewing, I toss it in the brew pot and scrub the outside, then flush the inside with hot water and soap. Takes about 30 seconds. Then on brew day I squirt some Star-San inside and spray the outside, then let it sit for a few minutes. I spend about 15 minutes cleaning and sanitizing on brew day.

I'm talking about the tubing used for siphoning from the HLT to the mash tun and out to the boil pot, also the tubing used for bottling and transferring from the primary to the secondary fermenter. This includes the racking cane, etc. Stuff with openings smaller than my finger can reach in to scrub.

What do you use to force the water through the tubing in order to "flush" it? I have this elaborate gravity system set up. lol - 3 tiers of buckets channeling water. :|

theres no need to sanitize all tubing and HLT or mash tun pre-boil

all wort is sanitized in the boil
if you use a immersion chiller just put it in boil 15 min before end of boil to sanitize.
you only need to sanitize all post boil items
i.e. transfer tubing, primary fermentor, hydrometer, plate chiller, airlock.

I hold the hose under running hot water from my bathtub and then drop them into a Wall Paper Tray that is full of Sani solution. If that doesn't do it, I soak them in Oxyclean over night and repeat.

Now that I pump, I just run hot water through my system from HLT to Kettle, and then pump some sani through it. You're doing it the hard way.

I wondered about all the pre-boil sanitization I did and if it was even necessary. I do understand that the boil sanitizes, I guess I was playing it cautious from the start and kept going with what I started with. Thanks a lot guys, I'm sure I'll be saving a lot of time on my next brew.

The only tubing I sanitize on brew day is the tube attached to my autosiphon for transferring from the kettle to the carboy - I use a 3/8 ID silicone tube which fits tightly on my large size autosiphon - after I whirlpool, while I'm waiting for the sediment to settle I toss the tubing and a couple other items in some boiling water, and a few other items in a tray of sanitizer solution. Not a big deal.

thewurzel said:

theres no need to sanitize all tubing and HLT or mash tun pre-boil

all wort is sanitized in the boil
if you use a immersion chiller just put it in boil 15 min before end of boil to sanitize.
you only need to sanitize all post boil items
i.e. transfer tubing, primary fermentor, hydrometer, plate chiller, airlock.

Click to expand...

THIS! beaten too the punch...wasting time sanitizing things that only need to be clean, not sanitary.