cleaning a gnarly blow-off tube

[Pauliwankenobi]

hello everyone!

i have an extremely gnarly run-off tube. it is perma-stained from the run-off and iodophor, plus is has some nice green spots.

unfortunately, this is the only tube that i have and it is the same tube that i typically utilize to bottle my beers with. i dont really want to bottle my beer through this bad-boy.

any pointers for cleaning a gnarly tube? honestly, at this point i would probably just feel safer purchasing a new one. can i just run to a home depot and purchase a new tube? would that be ok?

or should i let it chill in some bleach? the mind wanders!

thanks guys. cheers.

-paul

 

[bubtronic]

Get a new one. For cold beer transfer vinyl is OK and very cheap. For regular cleaning of tubes you can run a string or fishing linr through and pull a piece of cloth or sponge, but for badly soiled tubes it's not worth it.

 

[bigbeergeek]

Toss it. You can buy vinyl tubing for pennies a foot at O.S.H., Lowes, Home Depot etc. Keep your blowoff setup as disposable as possible -- I run cheapo vinyl tubing into a gallon milk jug with a pint or two of bleach water in it... Toss the whole thing when done if necessary.

 

[Pauliwankenobi]

awesome. cheap vinyl tubing it is. thanks everyone!

 

[DD2000GT]

If this blow off tube is the small diameter tube, I agree with replacement. If it is the big 2" diameter that fits inside the carboy top, I clean mine out and found a great process.

Set the tube upside down in a sink or other tub to hold it in place. Add one half scoop of Oxyclean (not the generic) to the inside. Fill up the tube with hot water up to the very top. Let sit for several hours - the oxyclean will strip all old residue out like magic. Wet a swatch of material (old tee-shirts work great here) and push through tube with a long stick or something to swab the inside walls as it is pushed through. The tube will come out crystal clear. Sanitize before next use.