Bleach as no rinse sanitizer???
- Thread starter Drewch
- Start date
Help Support Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum:
Kangarookid
Member
- Joined
- Apr 17, 2022
- Messages
- 7
- Reaction score
- 4
Sodium hypochlorite @ 100ppm definely works if you don't mind the smell of chlorine as it evaporates
McMullan
wort maker
- Joined
- Dec 22, 2015
- Messages
- 2,566
- Reaction score
- 3,441
Bleach has its uses in home brewing, but I'd rinse it very well if used on any home-brewing equipment, regardless. Fit-for-purpose no-rinse sanitisers, specifically designed to target spoilage microbial communities, are not expensive, if used correctly. There's really no reason to be mixing up 5 gallons of sanitiser to sanitise an airlock. 1-2L is plenty for a 5 gallon FV, keg, etc, and it can be used to sanitise multiple items. Bleach isn't selective at all, it attacks organic molecules, especially proteins. Remember, wort is a complex organic media. And 99% of sanitising is actually cleaning before applying sanitisers.
I used to use bleach exclusively although stronger than that mixture but always let items dry before use. When starsan came out I switched as it keeps so well with RO water as mixer. Glad to know the ratios for no rinse use.
OP
OP
StarSan is my go-to, too, dosed out into RO water a gallon at a time.
But I was trying to come up with a small-batch beginner's instructions for a friend that wouldn't involve ordering a lot of specialty items. But I also see now that you can get IO Star no-rinse sanitizer 4oz for $4 on morebeer. That might be the best balance of cheap, easy, and effective.
- Joined
- Mar 10, 2021
- Messages
- 2,728
- Reaction score
- 2,351
I use bleach for times I have had infections or for fist use of bottles and things I'm suspicious of. But I always rinse them after soaking. If I'm doing this on brew day or bottling day, I follow up with a more typical no-rinse sanitizer like Iodophor or Star-san.
I suppose if you want to use bleach only for a sanitizer you could rinse with water that has been boiled to sanitize it. But for that matter, you could just boil what ever it is that you want to sanitize without the bleach. Though boiling vinyl hoses and other similar stuff will make it very limp for a few days or more.
I'd just be too worried about the little bits of bleach solution, drips or dried drops that will just be the same issues chlorine in water does to wort and beer. Though maybe it's not enough quantity of bleach to be concerned with.
I suppose if you want to use bleach only for a sanitizer you could rinse with water that has been boiled to sanitize it. But for that matter, you could just boil what ever it is that you want to sanitize without the bleach. Though boiling vinyl hoses and other similar stuff will make it very limp for a few days or more.
I'd just be too worried about the little bits of bleach solution, drips or dried drops that will just be the same issues chlorine in water does to wort and beer. Though maybe it's not enough quantity of bleach to be concerned with.
Only time I use it is if some piece of equipment harbors an infection and I need to bleach-bomb it. Then I rinse thoroughly.
Otherwise, no sense in ruining the flavor of a brew from overkill with bleach when there are plenty of no-rinse options available.
Otherwise, no sense in ruining the flavor of a brew from overkill with bleach when there are plenty of no-rinse options available.
Last edited:
Bleach is definitely not a “no-rinse” sanitizer. If you don’t rinse and leave any concentration you are going to have band-aid flavor beer. Ask me how I know.
I have been using Star San but I also have iodophor on hand I’ve taken to using for bottles and glass and things it won’t stain. I’ve been told iodophor has a wider kill spectrum and can even sanitize to hospital standards. I’m going to try using it for awhle on some stuff I’ve been having issues with.
I have been using Star San but I also have iodophor on hand I’ve taken to using for bottles and glass and things it won’t stain. I’ve been told iodophor has a wider kill spectrum and can even sanitize to hospital standards. I’m going to try using it for awhle on some stuff I’ve been having issues with.
IIRC, iodophor will disinfect if >100ppm or so, but must be rinsed. At <25ppm, it sanitizes no-rinse.
Edit: The recommended disinfectant strength of iodophor is 75-150 ppm, per this source (pdf). For some reason I thought it was over 100, but that'll teach me to try to go from memory on stuff like this.
Last edited:
