sanitizing bottle caps

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justio

justio

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I've looked through several threads on here and other homebrew sites and the general consensus is to sanitize the caps.

W/ that being said, is it ok to put a cap on a bottle that's still wet/damp w/ sanitizer water? Will residual sani water have any negative effects on my brew?

Also, if I should dry them, how should I dry them? A clean towel is still not "sanitized."

A previous time I sanitized the caps, and didn't use them all. The ones I didn't use I put away damp and they rusted. Any ideas on that one?

Sorry for all the questions.
Appreciate any input!
 
If you use a wet sanitizer such as Iodophor, you simply pull them out of the sanitizer and cap the bottle, no need for drying at all. Just shake off the excess and your good to go. If you have caps left over, dry them off as best you can, leave out to air dry and throw back in the package, you shouldn't have any rust them.
Good Luck and Good Brew...
 
just soak them in a bowl of sanitizer and cap your bottles right out of the bowl. the wet sanitized caps won't affect your beer
 
I sanitized caps one time and they rusted. I then read that if you get the caps in a sealed bag or container from your HBS, then you don't need to sanitize them.

I decided to bottle without sanitizing and I haven't had a problem (knock on wood).
 
I sanitize my caps in star-san. I only sanitize the amount I need. Extra ones do tend to rust, even after air drying. If your using oxygen absorbing caps do not sanitize them or get them wet. The activate when they get wet and will be useless for the extra money if you drop them in a bowl of sanitizer.
 
Hammy71 said:
If your using oxygen absorbing caps do not sanitize them or get them wet. The activate when they get wet and will be useless for the extra money if you drop them in a bowl of sanitizer.
Click to expand...

hammy could you elaborate on this a little? I've never heard of this and I'll be botteling about 30 gallons this afternoon. I picked up some oxygen barrier caps yesterday cause the plain tops are easy to label with a marker.
 
Hammy71 said:
If your using oxygen absorbing caps do not sanitize them or get them wet. The activate when they get wet and will be useless for the extra money if you drop them in a bowl of sanitizer.
Click to expand...

Actually you can and do want to sanitize them when you are using them, soaking them is what activiates the oxygen absorbing magic. It actually takes a week for them to do their job on the bottle.

On Basic brewing James Spencer contacted the maker of Oxygen Absorbing Caps (Crown Beverage), and actually recommended you santize them quickly, evidently the "Oxygen Absorbing Effect" of the caps is not immediate and they need to be wet for a period of time before the magic happens, like days.

Click to listen

It's within the first few minutes of the podcast.

They recommend sanitizing ONLY the caps you are using, and sanitizing just before bottling.
 
I boil the amount of caps that I need + 15% more for about 5 minutes, then pour the hot water & caps into a colander, where they drip off excess water. If I drop one or two, I don't touch it, grab another clean one and keep capping. Rinse the extras off that fell, dab them dry with a towel, and store them back on the shelf. No rust, no sanitizer, no wasted caps, no infections. Been doing it this way for over 5 years (less often since I started kegging) and has never failed me. If anything does get into your beer, it's a small drop of sanitary water. No worries there.

TB
 
thanks again everyone! i bottled today. just had the caps i needed in a bowl of sanitizer and shook em off and capped em.
 
Just my 2 cents, I stopped sanitising my metal caps about 15 batches ago. I just figured the beer is not touching the caps since I do not move my bottles around much. I suspect there is a very remote chance of an infection by something like a gusher or lacto etc. However, I would wager the chances are much less than 1%. I guess I will see though, 15 batches is not a large test group for that theory :)
 
Revvy said:
Actually you can and do want to sanitize them when you are using them, soaking them is what activiates the oxygen absorbing magic. It actually takes a week for them to do their job on the bottle.

On Basic brewing James Spencer contacted the maker of Oxygen Absorbing Caps (Crown Beverage), and actually recommended you santize them quickly, evidently the "Oxygen Absorbing Effect" of the caps is not immediate and they need to be wet for a period of time before the magic happens, like days.

Click to listen

It's within the first few minutes of the podcast.

They recommend sanitizing ONLY the caps you are using, and sanitizing just before bottling.
Click to expand...

Thanks Revy, I was just parroting what Forrest said last year sometime...but old knowledge is just that....old.
 
I just throw the caps I'm going to use in a container and spray with Star San, tossing the caps around enough so that the inside gets all coated. Then, cap. No worries........
 
I drop mine in a small pot of boiling water. Let them sit for a little while then turn it down to a slow simmer and use tongs to pull them out one at a time as I bottle.
 
I just drop the caps in the vinator. That way they are being sanitized and are very conveniently located for bottling.
 
I put mine in a container of starsan at bottling time. I then pull them out, slap them on the bottle and go to town with my capper. Any extras I put on a towel, let air dry and store in a sandwich bag until I bottle another batch. I've never had a problem doing it this way.
 

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