Aerator stone question

[wuilliez]

I have an aeration system that I bought from my LHBS, and in the seemingly inevitable demise of my aeration stone, could I use something along the lines of this to aerate my wort?

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0002AQHC8/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20

 

[kevinb]

I am not sure that I would. How would you sanitize it? I would try to use a metal one so you can boil it.

 

[wuilliez]

Typically I just leave my stone in my sanitizer bucket throughout the brew.

 

[bja]

What kind of stone did you have before? And what happened to it?

 

[wuilliez]

I currently have a stainless steel diffusion stone. Nothing's happened to it yet, I'm just looking for a cheaper alternative once this one does kick the bucket.

 

[RiverCityBrewer]

I'm confused, why would your stone kick the bucket? I've had my .5 micron stone for about 5 years so far with no issues. I rinse it well after user, soak in starsan before and after use, boil it every so often, and store it in a ziplock freezer bag... no problems.

 

[wuilliez]

I've just read posts where stones become old and clogged and eventually stop working. Just thinking of alternatives on the off chance this happens, and at 5 bucks for 3 stones, it's not a bad deal. Just curious if anybody has tried it.

 

[bja]

I've just read posts where stones become old and clogged and eventually stop working.

Don't believe everything you read. This won't happen if you take care of it.

 

[JRems]

I haven't had a problem with my aeration stone, I also use it as a carbonation stone in the keg as well. I just don't touch it. It gets stored in a white labs tube filled with vodka. After I use it I dip it in star San and use co2 to push it all out of the stone. Then store it in the vodka again. If you have to handle it put a paper towel or Saran wrap around it.

 

[duckredbeard]

My stone had a reduced flow rate so I boiled it. I had a hose connected while it was boiling and tried to suck on the hose and got very little to pass through. After 20 minutes, I saw stuff floating and tried again. Huge improvement. After boiling I dropped it in a bucket o' StarSan until brew day.