Bottles and Bottle Tree

[Bouza]

Okay,
So I have a bottle tree and will, hopefully, be bottling tonight.
Wanting some feedback on how to clean this thing.
(I would assume that I need to clean and sanitize the tree since it will be in direct contact with my bottles.)

Also, on the bottles... I am thinking a short OxiClean soak and then a rinse in StarSan?
What works the best in your experience?
Thanks again guys/gals!

 

[bigjohnmilford]

If the bottles are clean already don't bother with the oxiclean soak. Oxiclean is good for delabeling and getting any mold or other junk off of the bottles. You wouldn't want to go from Oxi right to the Star san without a really good rinse.

 

[petrolero]

I always use a 1:10 bleach solution for glass because it's super cheap, super effective and glass can handle it. It also takes off labels on new bottles - just fill your ale pail with bleach water and soak your bottles in there overnight or longer. Guinness labels came off especially quickly this way. This is great for cleaning because it loosens and dissolves "gunk" that you can then remove with a bottle brush.

I always rinsed outside and inside (a faucet bottle-rinser is a must IMO) with hottest tap water to promote faster drying and to remove chlorine better (it's less soluble in hot water).

Immerse the bottle tree in your bleach mixture too for a few hours, then rinse the tree in hot water. After the first sanitation, I honestly would just rinse it in hot water before use. Just make sure it's dry before hanging bottles on it.

I write all this in the past tense because I may never bottle again now that I've begun kegging. God bless Cornelius, wherever he is.

.

 

[Bouza]

Thanks guys.
In the past, I have always used bleach.
It does work quite well and should probably stick with it.
However, I have recently been introduced to the power of star san. Anyone out there care to share their process for santizing with it?
I figure that I could recycle a small amount of it in each bottle.

 

[Laurel]

Make a batch of star san, put some of it in a squirt bottle (I just did this for the first time on saturday and I'm hooked), mist EVERYTHING. I've taken to misting my countertops when I come home from work to make dinner after the cat has had reign of the house.

 

[earlytimes]

+1 for the squirt bottle and mist down the bottle tree (and anything else). I actually prefer iodophor for bottling as it down not foam as much, but star-san would be great as well. I also have the vinator that goes on top of the bottle tree - makes sanitizing the bottles quick and easy with just a pump or two. good luck!