I have already brewed with the brass fittings I have on my mash tun. I just read the back of one of packages from lowes that it contains .25% lead. I ignorantly figured that they were lead free. Since I have already brewed with them do I still need to be concerned about the surface lead and Therefore pickle them in peroxide and vinigar?
Brass fittings
- Thread starter jdpx4c
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TopherM
Well-Known Member
You may have leached a small amount in your first boil, but that first boil also created a passive oxygen layer on all parts that came in touch with the wort that will keep the lead in. Don't scrub it or clean it with anything abrasive, and don't clean it with oxyclean, and that passive oxygen layer will keep the lead in pretty much indefinitely.
naiek
Well-Known Member
This is the on his mash tun, I would imagine it didn't get much over 150F - no boil. Would it still have an oxide layer?
TopherM
Well-Known Member
Nope, you need to boil it for about 15 minutes....
Yea it's in my cooler mash tun, no boiling going on it there. The brass is my on/off valves and connectors in and out of the mash ton. I read that if you brew without "pickling" the first batch may have a little lead in it but after that you are fine due to acidity of the wort. I was wondering if this is true and I don't need to disassemble everything and pickle all the parts.
TopherM
Well-Known Member
I would disassemble everything and boil all the parts in water for 15 min.....
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Like Topher sez, an ounce of prevention is worth a ton of treatment. I would dissassemble and clean my entire rig as part of the prep for my next brew anyway, so it would just mean adding a short boil or pickling to the procedure. The amount of lead in Brass is small and would be difficult to get enough to compromise your health, but why even take a chance when the solution is readilly available and so easy to do. Once you have that layer in place you will be safe from any further leaching until you use something that removes the film. If you use Oxy Clean or other stripper you should reboil all of thhe parts to reseal them prior to using it again. It really won't add too much to your routine and may also contribute to better cleanliness and prevent infections from occuring. So the cure has a number of positive atributes in addition to lead abatement. Just my .02.
Wheelchair Bob
Wheelchair Bob
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