frozengator
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Can already mixed sanitizer (Starsan) be stored in secondary carboy sealed until day to do secondary fermentation? Or just make new?
Mixed Sanitizer
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bucketnative
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You can absolutely store Star San and re-use it. As long as pH is below 3 it should be good. I store it some growlers for a few months.
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If you use distilled or RO water it'll last for years. If you have hard tap water, it may raise the pH a lot quicker. You'll start to see it get cloudy.
But if you fill it with a fresh batch and keep it sealed, it will be sanitized even if it does cloud up.
But if you fill it with a fresh batch and keep it sealed, it will be sanitized even if it does cloud up.
TravelingLight
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Yep. I keep a batch of mixed starsan in a five gallon water cooler. This has made the biggest difference in my starsan consumption. And definitely saved me some money.
tzaccario
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I make up a 5 gallon bucket, and store it with the lid. Depending on how many batches I make, bottles and eqpt get dipped etc.., it can last a month or two. Once it starts to get cloudy I just dump it, and make a new batch on the next brew day. I am sure it can be pushed further, but I would rather not ruin a batch b/c I pushed my sanitizer past the point of it's usefulness.
TravelingLight
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Yep, same. If mine starts to get cloudy or I get worried I just check the ph. If it's still below 3(?) it's still good.
tzaccario
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I'll have to start checking mine, I never really knew the usefulness was dependent on a PH
I keep my smaller equipment (spoon, paddle, turkey baster, autosiphon) in a 5 gallon bucket with Starsan. The lid doesn't close all the way so it's partially open, but it works. Just started it last week and no cloudiness.
TravelingLight
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Just make sure none of that stuff you're keeping in there is metal/steel/aluminum. StarSan is an acid and will...well, I dunno, it'll do something to it! I don't keep any of my equipment in my starsan, I just keep a five gallon batch mixed up to use when I need it. It's nice having it with all my brew stuff so if I need to use my baster for a quick sample I can just dunk it in the starsan and get after it.
Didn't think of that. I'll pull my SS spoon out of it when I get home. I've had some issues with sanitation in the past so I'm trying to keep everything as clean as possible.
frozengator
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Thanks for all replys good info here
2nd that. I left my bottle brush in the bucket and it discolored the steel wire handle. Turned it darker gray after a couple hours.
tzaccario
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I learned that lesson with my swing top bottles. They were soaking in the sink on bottling day, and turned from shiny metal to a matte grey. I kind of like the look so it didn't really bother me, but it was a lesson learned.
TravelingLight
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I use a digital pen, because I have one. They're obviously *much* more accurate than the strips. I need accuracy for my lacto sours.
StonesBally
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I buy a 2.5 gallon of distilled water with dispenser spout and fill a spray bottle for Starsan from that. It lasts months easily. Also starsan isn't going to harm stainless steel. In don't think bottle brushes are made of stainless. I wouldn't worry about your stainless spoon. Many here store starsan in their kegs with no issues whatsoever.
how much appx?
I've had a bucket of star san sitting in my garage for about 2 months, maybe more (I only know the two months due to when I last brewed.
Last weekend, I decided to test it. Realize that I often rinse things in the bucket, for instance, a growler filler that goes onto a tap--toss it into the bucket for a couple minutes, fish it out, and let it dry. So I've had "stuff" in there as well.
Saturday, I checked it with a PH meter just to be sure. 2.65. Now, the level has gone down over time, I'm down to maybe 3 gallons in it, and next time I brew (two days from now?) I'll likely dump it and mix up a new batch.
But it lasts, and lasts even under circumstances that are not ideal.
Last weekend, I decided to test it. Realize that I often rinse things in the bucket, for instance, a growler filler that goes onto a tap--toss it into the bucket for a couple minutes, fish it out, and let it dry. So I've had "stuff" in there as well.
Saturday, I checked it with a PH meter just to be sure. 2.65. Now, the level has gone down over time, I'm down to maybe 3 gallons in it, and next time I brew (two days from now?) I'll likely dump it and mix up a new batch.
But it lasts, and lasts even under circumstances that are not ideal.
TravelingLight
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How much what? How much more accurate? Extremely. The strips are just giving you more or less a range. Like, ehh this is about a 3 or a 4. A pen will tell you exact ph like 3.25 or whatever. You do, however, need to maintain the pens and calibrate them (or check calibration) before you use them.
sorry, I meant cost, how much did it cost you?
TravelingLight
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Ohhh my bad. I bought this one: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0085WO0GU/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 I paid like $35 for it, but that was about 3 years ago. But you can find damn solid pens for $25 or so.
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Based on the reviews, it doesn't seem to be all that solid. Did you validate yours against a high-quality meter to be sure it was accurate?
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I hope you do those secondaries with a good and valid purpose, not just because some kit instructions tell you to do it after xx days...
TravelingLight
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Haven't validated it. But I keep it calibrated and it holds pretty well, i.e., don't have to adjust calibration that often. So who knows. But I do know I originally bought this years ago for my hydroponic garden and never had any issues with it. And now that I'm using it for brewing I haven't had any noticeable issues.
If you're calibrating it using known PH solutions, and when calibrated you can still measure them accurately, it's likely fine.
TravelingLight
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Yep, I have bottles of the 4.01 and 7.0 solutions I use. Thanks for the heads up though!
FWIW, I do want to get a new one eventually. This one is kind of a pain in the ass to calibrate when it needs adjusting because the screws are so small and sensitive. I'd like to get one with auto calibration. But I'm not sure exactly how that works and need to research it more.
frozengator
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I have a conical ferminter. So no real need of secondary at this time. But I may want to do a second batch at some time.
I also may try a side by side comparison using a conical and using regular carboys. Just to see the difference
Highlighted in red above, it looked to me you were planning to use a secondary...
I guess you meant a second batch, not secondary.
So yes, your Starsan will be fine stored for weeks, even months.
frozengator
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This has been pretty much a brew on the fly. My wife got the conical for me for Christmas. I also got a 10 gallon pot with it. I also had a couple things from a Mr. Brew kit. I also right before I started brewing this batch I found a brewing kit with two glass carboys and everything I need to bottle. So I have been a little back and forth on how I wanted to brew this. That's why I said the first time about holding until secondary. But after thinking it over, I just left it in conical.
Yep, good decision! Secondary fermentors are rarely needed, the point I was trying to make.
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