Brewers Edge Mash & Boil with Pump; Brewer's Edge Mash an Boil

[Dad-Body]

Hello everyone!

I hope everyone is doing well. So I decided to buy an all in one brewing set up after trying to lug all my gear outside only to find the ground wet and the next day surprised us with more rain. So the Brewer Edge Mash & Boil w/ pump (hereafter: BEM&BwP) arrived in the mail and normally all new brewing equipment has some advice about cleaning brand new equipment. This manual seems to be lacking some detail about the Initial cleaning i hoped for about the BEM&BwP . It just says "Always unplug before initial cleaning. Clean your Mash & Boil interior with a scrub sponge and then rise with water". Further instructions read to add clean water and attach arm and to run the pump, wait for it to run clear and unplug the unit and to dry upside down. What I am confused about is 1) why a "scrub sponge" and not say a soft sponge, like most Stainless equipment asks for. 2) it does not mention soap of any kind.

I plan on using dish soap and a SOFT sponge but why would these instructions seem to gloss over something so critical as removing industrial oils from the machining process? I had a SS brewtech bucket that specifically mentioned I use Trisodium phosphate (TSP) Cleaner ONLY for initial cleaning. I was shocked because that is essentially remover of paint.

Thanks,
Dad-Body

 

[TwistedGray]

You'll probably have scorches on the bottom that you would either need to soak out, soak and boil out, or scrub. I use a soft sponge for cleaning the sides.

I just use dishsoap for cleaning.

I do not remember what I did to give it an initial clean though...maybe a soak, maybe a boil, I don't recall though.

 

[user 263363]

My M&B just arrived yesterday. I was planning on filling it with water and heating it to ~130 with oxiclean free and recirculating with the pump as my initial cleaning. Maybe overkill, but I don't see it hurting anything. Someone please correct me if I am missing something.

 

[Dad-Body]

My M&B just arrived yesterday. I was planning on filling it with water and heating it to ~130 with oxiclean free and recirculating with the pump as my initial cleaning. Maybe overkill, but I don't see it hurting anything. Someone please correct me if I am missing something.

Oxiclean contains a surfactant so I think that is a good choice for the initial clean.

 

[TwistedGray]

Boiling a small amount of water seems to work better for me at getting the crud off the bottom than any chemicals (Oxiclean and/or Bar Keeper's). I usually run 2-3 boiling cycles to lift whatever is caked on (small volume of water, like 0.25-0.5gal).

 

[Dad-Body]

You'll probably have scorches on the bottom that you would either need to soak out, soak and boil out, or scrub. I use a soft sponge for cleaning the sides.

I just use dishsoap for cleaning.

I do not remember what I did to give it an initial clean though...maybe a soak, maybe a boil, I don't recall though.

I cleaned the withu soap and warm water and rinsed with warm water for the initial cleaning. there is a rainbow discoloration at the bottom showing the element pattern. I'll probably use some PBW before I begin my second batch, rinse with equally hot water, and passivate with Star San to try and remove the discoloration at the bottom of the unit and keep the SS material in good working order. Thanks for the help y'all.

 

[Dad-Body]

Oxiclean contains a surfactant so I think that is a good choice for the initial clean.

It is definitely a great choice. I'll be doing that next and recommending it to anyone else with an initial cleaning of the BEM&BwP