Batch Contamination, need a new way...

[RLinNH]

I have been brewing now for going on 15 years, and I have only once had 1 contaminated batch. The tell tale ring in the bottle. I have recently gotten back into brewing after about a 3 year hiatus, and I have brewed and bottled 3 batches. 2 of them are contaminated. What I do is let 2 1/2 cases of bottles sit in a bleach solution for about 2 weeks. I then rinse them and bottle. Only variant to this process is that we are in a new house. So, the water from the well is different. Also, I have on all these batches run the bottles through the Sani Rinse cycle in my dishwasher. I have been told from a buddy since to keep my bottles away from any dishwasher. I guess that dishwashers are bacteria ridden.

Anywho, here's my question. I am looking for an instant sanitizer. I have always used the bleach and water method, but due to my 2 contaminated batches out of 3, I am looking for something that is instant and needs little or no rinsing. Any new items on the market that would fit my criteria?

 

[RLinNH]

Just found some stuff on the net called Star San. It says that no rinsing is needed and that it is a mixture of 1 ounce to 5 gallons of water. Anyone used this stuff?

 

[Blender]

Iodaphor is cheap and there is no rinsing needed. I just sanitize them right before bottling. I let them drain in the top rack of the diswasher.

 

[budbo]

What I do is let 2 1/2 cases of bottles sit in a bleach solution for about 2 weeks.

Chlorine loses it's punch about 2-3 days after dillution at sanitation levels(1 tsp per gallon)

I use Star San:

At 26 cents per gallon of re-useable sanitizer Star San is the cheapest and most effective homebrewing sanitizer.

Star San is a new product which replaces Iodophor as the craftbrewing sanitizer standard, and can be used for winemaking equipment sanitation instead of Sodium Metabisulphite. It is faster and more effective, and doesn't require rinsing. Star San is a blend of phosphoric acid and 'hard' sulfonic acid (dodecylbenzenesulfonic acid). This synergistic blend provides a unique killing system that is unaffected by excessive organic soils.

60 seconds contact does the job, and it penetrates the surface. Star San does not need to be rinsed. Star San is not harmed by organic molecules, light, or air, and remains effective as long as the pH remains below 3. In practice this means that Star San remains active as a sanitizer for several days in an open vessel. In a closed container Star San can remain active for 4 weeks or more. Star San becomes opaque as it becomes less effective, but can be refreshed. Chlorine and Iodophor gas off within minutes of application, and in open containers leave no residual protection.

Use distilled or reverse osmosis filtered water for stable solution. Mixing rate: approximately 1.5 ml concentrate per litre of water (1 oz concentrate per 5 US gals).

 

[RLinNH]

Idophor? Is it also sold under the name of IodoSan?

 

[El Pistolero]

Just found some stuff on the net called Star San. It says that no rinsing is needed and that it is a mixture of 1 ounce to 5 gallons of water. Anyone used this stuff?

Either Star San or Iodophor are great no-rinse sanitizers...either one will work great. For that matter bleach will work fine if used properly.

 

[Kaiser]

Chlorine loses it's punch about 2-3 days after dillution at sanitation levels(1 tsp per gallon)

I use Star San:

Thanks for the info on Star San, budbo.

But are the 26c/gal for the concentrated sanitizer or the sanitizing solution (sanitizer mixed with water)? If it's for the concentrated sanitizer, then my LHBS would be ripping me off. They want to have ~$8 for a small bottle. if its for the sanitizing solution then it is awfully expensive. Idophor is about 3 cent per galon, if you buy the 1L bottle for $11.

Kai

 

[budbo]

My local brew shop sells it for $19 for 32 oz concentrate with a cool measuring cup.. you squeeze the bottle it fills the cup then pour it in...
works out to about 12c per gallon of sanitizer when mixed.. it's one oz per 5 gallons so $8 for a 16oz bottle is good price
If I'm brewing 2 weeks in a row I use my old plastic primary bucket and seal it so 1oz will do 2 sessions and a bottling.. the fact if you seal it up it is good for a couple weeks is $$ when the water turns cloudy stop using it.

and from experience you don't want to get it on your hands un diluted

 

[casebrew]

and bleach cost 5 cents to make a 10 gallon batch, vs $2.60 for Star San. I use bleach in a lidded trash can, it still smells like a pool after a week.

But contaminated bottles may not be RlinNH's problem. Sanitation Technique could be- are you FRESHLY sanitising hoses, buckets, everything? Then rinsing in dirty tap water? Even bleach at reccomended dose is No-Rinse...

NH this time of year- sure the ring wasn't ice? (My sis lives in Hollis. her well needs chlorine...)

 

[parasonic]

You might want to use more bleach. I probably use 1 to 2 ounces per gallon, just to be sure that everything is out of there! But since bleach requires rinsing, you may be getting the bacteria in your equipment while you are cleaning them out. If you have suspicion of this, just try another sanitizer like idophor.

 

[RLinNH]

An update to this thread. I have talked to two LBS's here in NH, and both told me that it is very rare that I would be getting any contamination from my water. So, and I can tell you this, I have not been paying attention to my bottling Sanitization techniques as thoroughly as I should. So when I bottle next, I am going to FILL the bottling bucket up with 7 ounces of Bleach and water and let it sit for at least 2 hours. Also going to take apart the spigot this time and sanitize that in a bleach and water solution. One more thing I am going to try, just to eliminate the possiblity of the contamination being from my bottles will be baking my bottles for an hour at 350. Here's a link from my LBS...http://www.boomchugalug.com/baking_bottles.htm


One other note of interest is how I have learned through this thread that a bleach and water solution becomes inactive after a period of time. I have always filled my carboy's up with a bleach and water solution and let them sit for months on end thinking that they were good to go. Not now. Now I will empty the carboy and refill it with a bleah and water solution about 2 days prior to using them.

 

[Kevin K]

From the above link:

Baking Beer Bottles for Sterilization

Many home brewers don�t realize it, but beer bottles can be oven-baked for easy sanitization. In fact, the bottles are more than just sanitized � they are sterilized. As a further advantage, the bottles may be baked in advance and then used at any time in the future, and they will remain sterile. The only time you spend is loading the oven. In other words, you�ve reduced the chore of cleaning bottles to the mere five minutes required to fill the oven. What could be easier!

Bottle Baking Instructions

1. Cover each bottle top with a small piece of aluminum foil (for example, a 2� x 2� square.)

2. Place the bottles upright on the oven�s bottom shelf.

3. Bake at 350�F for 1� hours. Allow bottles to cool naturally, such as overnight.

4. If you will not be filling the bottles immediately, place them back in their cardboard cases. As long as the aluminum foil remains intact, the bottles will remain sterile indefinitely � ready to use whenever you are ready to bottle.

5. At bottling time, simply remove the foil and fill the bottle. No sanitizers or rinsing is necessary.

Does anyone else use this method? It seems simpler than using a liquid sanitizer (in my inexperienced mind).

What say you?

 

[inkbob]

I have been brewing now for going on 15 years, and I have only once had 1 contaminated batch.

what does this ring look like? i bottled my first batch right out of the primary, (no glass yet) and today just noticed that the last two bottles of it also have a tiny ring right above beer level. it would seem to me that since i didnt really do a secondary, that this ring is similar to what happens in primary, from the extra sugars that were in the bottle, but as it was my first batch, i cant say i know what a contaminated beer tastes or smells like, to know for sure. this beer wasnt too bad, but it does have a mild strange odor/flavor. i just thought that was what i get for using some crazy all in one beer kit with generic dried yeast. in the future i would really hope to know the difference from a mild contamination, and a procedural change, otherwise it will be hard to notice the changes from the little things that change from batch to batch.

 

[Lost]

The bubble in the neck is supposed to be a sign of infection.. yes. But I've had commercial brews, including macrobrews, that had this. I've even had it in a few of my bottles. I've never ever noticed an off taste in any of these beers.. and yes, I do pay attention to how the beer tastes.

While I'd rather not get into a that horrid rinse or no rinse discussion I will say this:
If you're concerned about your sanitation then just go get a bottle of starsan. Mix up a small batch (i.e. 1/8 of an ounce to 2.5 quarts) and put it in a sealed container under the sink. When you need to sanitize something then add it to a spay bottle (for that purpose only of course) and spray it. It lasts a long time that way, and it's a lot easier than bleach. No soaking, no rinsing, no worrying about getting it on your clothes, no worries of medicinal tasting beer, no worries of contamination from rinsing with tap water.. it just makes sense. The bleach sanitizing method was one of the first things I got sick of when I first started. I think I'd rank some no rinse sanitizer over the autosiphon in terms of usefulness (and I love the autosiphon).

 

[Bernie Brewer]

Only variant to this process is that we are in a new house. So, the water from the well is different. QUOTE]

Have your well water tested, or take a sample to the nearest testing facility. There's nothing wrong with using bleach and then rinsing, unless your water supply is tainted. you may have to drop some chlorine pellets into your well. It's not difficult.