What are your sanitation practices?

Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum

Help Support Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
h22lude

h22lude

Well-Known Member
Joined
Dec 27, 2010
Messages
3,429
Reaction score
440
Location
lincoln
Do you fill a bucket with 5 gallons of water and StarSan each time you brew? Do you usually use just a spray bottle of StarSan and fill a 5 gallon bucket when that spray bottle is close to being empty?

If you always fill up a 5 gallon bucket, do you throw the StarSan away after each use or do you keep it in a bucket for later use?

Really I'm just curious. I usually just use a spray bottle and maybe every 4th batch I will make up a new 5 gallon mix of StarSan to use and then refill my bottle.
 
I only make 1 gallon of starsan at a time,don't need more than that. I can clean my FV's,then on brew day swish that 1G of sanitizer around in it & dump it back in it's jug right before filling with wort. I use the 1G Sunny D jugs. They're heavier than milk jugs which tend to start leaking at the bottom seams.
Being a wet contact sanitizer,you just have to wet the surface with it for it to do it's job.
 
I have a rectangular cooler which I mix my star san/water solution into and I throw in anything that I will be using that day along with a rag or some paper towels. If my FVs, kegs, or bottling bucket need any I just open the spigot and pour some into them. I use the soaked rags to wet anything like my carboy bungs or my long stirring spoon.
 
Something I've found helpful for tubing/keg parts is using a long narrow plastic planter box (without the holes of course). I fill that up with some sanitizer and then can lay my autosiphon/whatever down in there to wait submerged and sanitized for me. Makes transfer days a lot easier and gives me a place to set things down in.
 
i'll do 5 gal in my fermenter pour out 4 in a plastice storage container. I throw anything that will touch the wort in that, and swirl and dump my carboy right before transfer. I keep my spray bottle handy but i use r/o or distilled water for that mix of starsan. it stays perfectly clear forever. A clear starsan solution is a working star san solution. one spray bottle will easily last me more than one brew and bottle session
 
I have a bottling bucket which I never use to bottle as I use Kegs. So, I keep it full (and covered) with Star San solution and use it to sanitize things I use on brew day (primary, utensils, turkey gravy siphon, ...) I also have a dedicated keg with Star San for sanitizing kegs when I'm about to transfer from primary to the keg to secondary and to force through bev line, shank, taps, etc. Since both are sealed/covered, the Star San keeps pretty well.

I bought a GALLON of Star San in the last group buy I participated in, so when in doubt mix up some new stuff.

Given 1 oz mixes with 5 gallons of water, that's 640 gallons of solution! I might just sanitize my whole house! Foam, anyone?
 
I like the gallon jug idea. Spraying is nice for smaller items. I like to swish around some StarSan in the bucket just to cover everything so keeping a gallon premade on hand is good.
 
BristolStBrewing said:
the kit im using came with C-bright...but it doesn't say if it is no rinse or not....

color me confused.
Click to expand...

It was...they no longer call themselves a sanitizer though, I think because they did not reach FDA limits, they claim something about state paperwork. Either way, it now says to rinse it off, go figure...

I have use it in a spray bottle for some of the small parts and have never had an issue
 
Calichusetts said:
It was...they no longer call themselves a sanitizer though, I think because they did not reach FDA limits, they claim something about state paperwork. Either way, it now says to rinse it off, go figure...

I have use it in a spray bottle for some of the small parts and have never had an issue
Click to expand...

sounds good. Rinse it is!
 
I mix 5 gal on brew day in fermenter. Sanitize everything in there. Keep a spray bottle handy to spritz everything before final use once I empty the fermenter.
 
I thought I read somewhere on these forums that C-brite is chlorine-based, so it should be rinsed to prevent that public pool flavor transfer. The only time I used it (as part of my first kit), I did get that smell, so I've moved to StarSan.
 
5 gallons of sanitizer solution seems like way too much. Most sanitizers I have read about just require contact and a few minutes of "wet time". I just use a spray bottle... I pour a little into a bowl for things like bottle caps and spigots. Other than that, I just spray everything.
 
When it comes to StarSan (my sanitizer of choice), I am a firm believer in the spray bottle, there is no need to make 5 gallons of the stuff, unless you are gonna make it with distilled water and put it in a keg or something similar to keep on hand.

Otherwise it is a 30 second contact sanitizer, and dunking it, or submersing it fully is completely unnecessary.

I even just spray my carboys until there is enough in them to coat the insides.

It will save you a ton of sanitizer, and makes life simpler.

If I were to bottle a batch (I lack a vinator), I will make 5 gallons of StarSan and dunk my bottles because it's faster.
 
I think that sanitation practices changes over time. We start brewing and usually apply excessive sanitation. Several batches later with no infections and we slowly turn careless.
I recently re-evaluated my process (after 80 batches) and added few steps back that I started overlooking with time. Although I didn't get any real bad infection yet, few of my batches turned out with a phenolic bite, what started me thinking of a wild yeast contamination since my fermentation temps are under check. That been said, this is the process I'm following now, not much different from what we all do:

1)Brewing kettle . I now boil about 2 gals of water and cycle that thru the ball valve to get it sanitized. I then add cool water to that and it turn out pretty close to my striking water temp. No waste.
2)Run a small brush with a wire thru my hoses used for beer transfer, like kettle to fermenter, fermenter to bottling carboy, bottling hoses and filler.
3)Boil my oxygenation stone and hose prior to use
4)Everything that goes in touch with wort or beer goes into a bath in starsan, hoses, spigots, funnels, bottle filler, airlock and stopper. Fermenter and carboys are washed with oxyclean very well after each use, sanitized with starsan and stored. These get a few cups of starsan inside, rolled to cover all surface and drained and left to dry just before used again.
5)I take more than usual gravity readings so I use a spigot attached to my fermenter. I sanitize it with a jet of starsan (using a syringe) after each sample are taken.
 
nilo said:
I think that sanitation practices changes over time. We start brewing and usually apply excessive sanitation. Several batches later with no infections and we slowly turn careless.
I recently re-evaluated my process (after 80 batches) and added few steps back that I started overlooking with time. Although I didn't get any real bad infection yet, few of my batches turned out with a phenolic bite, what started me thinking of a wild yeast contamination since my fermentation temps are under check. That been said, this is the process I'm following now, not much different from what we all do:

1)Brewing kettle . I now boil about 2 gals of water and cycle that thru the ball valve to get it sanitized. I then add cool water to that and it turn out pretty close to my striking water temp. No waste.
2)Run a small brush with a wire thru my hoses used for beer transfer, like kettle to fermenter, fermenter to bottling carboy, bottling hoses and filler.
3)Boil my oxygenation stone and hose prior to use
4)Everything that goes in touch with wort or beer goes into a bath in starsan, hoses, spigots, funnels, bottle filler, airlock and stopper. Fermenter and carboys are washed with oxyclean very well after each use, sanitized with starsan and stored. These get a few cups of starsan inside, rolled to cover all surface and drained and left to dry just before used again.
5)I take more than usual gravity readings so I use a spigot attached to my fermenter. I sanitize it with a jet of starsan (using a syringe) after each sample are taken.
Click to expand...
Wow...You are anal to the extreme. Problem is these Myths on sanitation get passed on this way. How did the phenolic bite thing go? Did it change with your grain crush?
 
iaefebs said:
Wow...You are anal to the extreme. Problem is these Myths on sanitation get passed on this way. How did the phenolic bite thing go? Did it change with your grain crush?
Click to expand...

Agree, it is harder to get an infection than you think.

However, I will say for those of you in really humid climates; you probably have a higher probability of getting some infections than those of us in drier climates.

Having said that, pediococcus is rampant here, so some care must be taken.

Yet some of the practices described, although effective, are unnecessary.

note my sig
 

Similar threads

M
If you wanna chuckle... Read this
Replies
16
Views
1K
Brewer Mike
B
R
Question regarding cleaning tap and beer lines
Replies
14
Views
2K
alex pablate
alex pablate
bmac8
Four beginner questions. Warming garage fermenter in winter? Also, Brewer's Friend/Recipe Help!
Replies
7
Views
673
govner1
govner1
Hoochin'Fool
I hate my auto-siphon SO much!!!
Replies
31
Views
2K
Closet Fermenter
Closet Fermenter
The__Brit
First kit (Blonde) Finished, what are your tips?
Replies
10
Views
1K
Tonybrews
T
InkBird 300

Latest posts

Back
Top