Brand New to Homebrew - Initial Cleaning Question

[Jhobs]

Long time reader of this forum and finally decided to dive in and got a starter set from Northern Brewer. Came with a 5 gallon kettle, 2 plastic buckets, etc.

First question is - before I begin, should I be aggressively washing these items? I know they say not to use scented dish soap and to use Oxiclean?

Also, for cleaning after the brew - how intense should I get there. Like with the kettle etc? Is just a rinse ok?

Any responses would be super appreciated. Looking forward to getting started.

 

[DBhomebrew]

Not just any OxyClean. You've got to use OxyClean Free. Or PBW. Or diy PBW, recipe on this forum.

I find an OxyClean soak, maybe a scrub with a kitchen rag or brush, to be sufficient for most items.

Disassemble  all items. If you've got any ball valves, spouts, etc., pull them apart. Bottling wand, pull the ends off, careful of the spring, take the o-ring off. You get the idea.

If you can't get to it, you can't clean it. If you can't clean it, you can't sanitize it.

 

[hotbeer]

Depends on how filthy they are or aren't.

I don't worry too much about what I clean with. For some things I've even used laundry detergent. But most of the stuff in our house is un-scented or just a mild scent. Besides, before most of it is used, it's going to get a good soak in sanitizer any how. But if you prefer just to spritz, then that might be something to think about.

As I said in another thread, I clean my stuff after I use it and I sanitize it before I use it.

The exception to this being stuff I haven't used before. Then I clean it then sanitize it before I use it.

Cleaning and sanitizing is not the same thing. Nor are the products you use normally the same.

 

[DBhomebrew]

Scented soap can make scented beer. Soap can leave residue which can reduce head retention.

 

[day_trippr]

Welcome to the Home Brew Talk forums, @Jhobs

PBW = Powdered Brewery Wash, a popular if pricey cleaner for kettles 'n' stuff. The well used alternate is Oxyclean Free aka OxyFree...

Always clean any new to you gear to remove manufacturing crap like lubricants and caustic residues.
Sanitize anything that will come in contact with post-boil wort and beer...

Cheers!

 

[Jhobs]

Thanks everyone!

Yeah, I definitely read about PBW and that it was on the pricey side.

I had some reservations about getting started as I love the actual look of the process and control of ingredients, but was hesitant due to thinking that cleaning after brew day and things would be just too aggressive.

I can’t wait to get started.

 

[day_trippr]

If your basic kettle doesn't have a drain valve there's no need to sanitize it as it and anything in it will get boiled the next brew. So a simple cleaning will suffice...

Cheers!

 

[hotbeer]

Scented soap can make scented beer. Soap can leave residue which can reduce head retention.

I don't disagree with that statement. But part of cleaning is rinsing well with clean water.

Most of that won't be an issue for stainless steel or glass and probably for most plastics we use. IMO.

At least I have had no issue with such.

 

[Dancy]

Thanks everyone!

Yeah, I definitely read about PBW and that it was on the pricey side.

I had some reservations about getting started as I love the actual look of the process and control of ingredients, but was hesitant due to thinking that cleaning after brew day and things would be just too aggressive.

I can’t wait to get started.

I use a recipe for a PBW substitute that works great and I’m sure there’s other on HBT who use it as well (as mentioned in post #2). I made a small bucket of it to keep around on brew day and bottling day. Recipe for making a substitute PBW beer equipment cleaner Less expensive than PBW!

 

[Erik the Anglophile]

I clean a lot of stuff with dishwashing soap, the liquid one intended for doing it by hand, or a mix of that and bit of pbw.
As long as you are making sure you rinse it well you'll be fine.

 

[deweydover19]

Is this the Oxy people refer to?
https://a.co/d/5yDXUA3

 

[mrveeno]

I've been using oxiclean since I started brewing 12 years ago.

 

[Broken Crow]

Thanks everyone!

Yeah, I definitely read about PBW and that it was on the pricey side.

I had some reservations about getting started as I love the actual look of the process and control of ingredients, but was hesitant due to thinking that cleaning after brew day and things would be just too aggressive.

I can’t wait to get started.

You've got a lot of good advice so far, and I've little if anything to add to what has already been said..Welcome to HBT!
In terms of cost, I justify the expense of both PBW and StarSan thusly; I have a large rectangular Coleman cooler that I have not turned into a mash tun, rather I have filled it with my left-over PBW mixture and when I still bottled, after finishing a bottle and rinsing it, I'd store my empties submeged in it until I had a full case, then I could simply blast them out with a hot-water rinse and store them until the next bottling day... Since I've moved on from kegging I still always have the cooler under my laundry table with anywhere from 3-11 gallons of 'used' PBW in it..When I cook/roast/bake anything that leaves burned residue on my glass or stainless trays, pans, pots or whatever, I only wash all the oily and loose bits off and then I take it to the laundry room and thow it in the cooler overnight (though sometimes I'll forget it there for a couple days) and when I take it out, all the scale and stains come right off if they hadn't already. I like to get maximum value for every cent I spend, and that makes it worth it [for me] to justify the cost.
As to Star San, I haven't seen it mentioned yet, But let me be the first to advocate that to you as a sanizer...also a product that you'll likely have 5 gallons or so left over from, also can be redployed around the house: A spray bottle under my sink for sanitizing around the kitchen (especially the sink and drainer), and when it comes time to make a new batch, I pour the old batch down the most distant drains in my house and it seems to help keep them clean and certainly eliminates any smells from coming up them.

 

[Broken Crow]

PS: It's also great for cleaning kitchen floor tiles: Just slop it all over the floor, let it sit a while then come back and mop it up and it looks like new.

 

[IslandLizard]

Is this the Oxy people refer to?
https://a.co/d/5yDXUA3

Yes... but not at that price. I guess "free" shipping racks it up.
The brand name (as seen on TV) is Oxiclean. There should be generics available in Dollar stores, Drug stores, Hardware stores, Walmart, etc. under similar names.

Also, be aware of what you're buying.

Ingredients:​

Sodium Carbonate, Sodium Carbonate Peroxide

The first ingredient is commonly known as washing soda, a cheap but effective cleaner, the main ingredient in powdered laundry detergents.

The second ingredient is commonly known as Sodium PerCarbonate, which is the oxygen releasing compound. It's similar to washing soda, but with a loosely bound Oxygen molecule attached. That's what you're after, and the higher percentage the better (value).

PBW is 70% Sodium PerCarbonate and 30% TSP/90, you can mix it yourself at home. You can also use regular TSP instead, if it's easier to obtain than TSP/90. The latter being phosphate free, if that matters to you.

 

[day_trippr]

This is the Oxyclean Free packaging. Note the "Free"...

Cheers!

 

[redrocker652002]

Welcome from the San Francisco area. I started exactly the way you did. Bought the NB starter kit and off I went. The 5 gallon pot/kettle I just put in the dishwasher when there is room and I am done with it. All the buckets and parts get a soak in Alkaline Brewery Wash, it is similar to PBW but I have been told it works better in any temp water. I have a tub that my wife gave me that she used for gardening that fits everything in it. I made a homemade bucket and keg washer out of old PVC and a pump i bought on Amazon. One thing I will say, do not use anything abrasive on your buckets. Any scratches in the bucket will breed bacteria, so I just use the washer and rinse really well with my hose. I then run some Starsan thru the everything as well and then store in a closet in the hallway for next use. The Alkaline Brewery wash is pretty expensive as well, so Oxyclean might be on my list to try as I think it is cheaper at Costco. Brew day usually consist of resanitizing my buckets and airlock, all the hoses I use to transfer the beer from the fermenting bucket into the keg.

My process is still evolving, but I will say that it has been lots of fun. My brother, who was not a beer drinker, has joined me and we usually do a brew day together and hang out and have a few while we do it. My dream goal is to have a dedicated room to do all this will a sink and a sealed cement floor to wash all the mess down a drain, but for now it is the garage and a mop. LOL.

Enjoy the process, and don't get hung up on the little stuff. That was a piece of advice I got that took me a while to get thru my skull. LOL.

Any questions, you have a wealth of quality info here and the folks here are awesome. Rock On!!!!!