Cleaning out bottles

[Gopher40]

As far as CLEANING bottles go. Is there really a reason to clean them out. I understand you definitely want to rinse ot the yeast cake (which I do before it has dried up). But if the bottle looks clean I am wondering if I need to worry about it. Obviously labels are a different thing. I am talking about the inside of the bottle. I still understand to need to sanitize ( I have a Vinator, which works great).

 

[Edcculus]

I've been using one of the jet bottle washers you hook up to the sink recently. I can't say its definitively the best way, but it seems to work for me.

 

[dhertel]

As far as CLEANING bottles go. Is there really a reason to clean them out. I understand you definitely want to rinse ot the yeast cake (which I do before it has dried up). But if the bottle looks clean I am wondering if I need to worry about it. Obviously labels are a different thing. I am talking about the inside of the bottle. I still understand to need to sanitize ( I have a Vinator, which works great).

I rinse my bottles out right after i pour them in the glass then hang them on the bottle tree to dry out. When i am ready to bottle my next batch i just sanitize and have never had a problem.

 

[HoppyMaltPoet]

I bottled for years before switching to kegging. And I too used the jet bottle washer that hooked up to the sink to clean my bottles and then sanitized them. I never had an issue with this method.

 

[BeerJorge]

The reason to clean them out is called infection....

You can't sanitize something that's not clean...

 

[Edcculus]

I will add that I rinse all of my bottles well right after drinking. I just use the jet washer at bottling right before sanitizing (like hoppymalt).

 

[Gopher40]

But as long as they are visibly clean (no yeast, dirt, etc) won't a quick rinse along with sanitizing be enough?

 

[BeerJorge]

For the most part...

I do the same as Edcculus... I rinse my bottles well right after serving them and store them in boxes to keep any dust out... then I use a jet washer that hooks up to my garden hose right before sanitizing...

 

[RCCOLA]

But as long as they are visibly clean (no yeast, dirt, etc) won't a quick rinse along with sanitizing be enough?

Yes.
I rinse mine well after pouring, let drain and store in a cabinet. I visually inspect each bottle on bottling day. Sometimes I will see a film in the bottom of a bottle and I set it aside for cleaning. Then just dunk the clean ones in starsan followed by filling. Have never had a problem after years of doing it that way.

 

[Pilgarlic]

I follow the usual routine. Thorough rinse after pour, inspect, iodophor rinse and drip dry upside down immed before bottling. I've had a belgian (low gravity, pale) in the bottle for a week. For the first time in this batch I used clear Corona 7 oz'ers for test bottles. Opened one yesterday and after pouring and thoroughly rinsing there was a quite distinct line in the neck at the "beer line", above which there was a hazy residue and below which the glass was clean and clear. I added no yeast at bottling. This makes me wonder whether the same hazy residue is in the necks of my brown bottles but not discernible because of the brown bottle. If so, that residue is probably growing with each batch. I have had no infection problems yet, but may add a quick bottle brushing to my routine to avoid buildup of this residue.

 

[Gopher40]

I do like the idea of using a clear (Corona, New Castle) bottle to watch the beer after bottling. You pick up good tips in here!

 

[GaryJohn]

I rinse my bottles after using. To get the labels off, I soak them in oxyclean and water. This cleans them well enough in my opinion. Then I sanitize in the dishwasher.

 

[homebrewer_99]

I stopped using 12 oz bottles many years ago.

Once the labels are removed my cleaning process is as such:

I clean out the bottles with a bottle brush. I cut the loop off and insert the brush into my drill. I will "scrub" the insides with the brush then rinse with a jet washer then place on bottles on the drying tree. Once they dry they go back into the cases and sit for the next filling.

Depending how long they sit, I will either just sanitize them using the vintometer (or whatever it's called) and place them on a sanitized bottle tree until bottling time, usually within the hour.

If they are older and dusty on the outside I will rinse them off in the sink before sanitizing.

Either way, they are always checked for "creatures inside (just in case).

Once the brew is poured into the glass I will rinse the bottle several times with hot water then hit it with the bottle brush drill bit and then placed on a bottle tree until dried before being stored.

Very methodic, I know, but it works for me.

 

[glenn514]

A short while ago, I found absolute, concrete proof that many people are generally pigs. But first...

Normally when I empty a beer bottle that I'm going to reuse...either one of my own homebrews or a pop-top commercial beer...I rinse out the bottle immediately after pouring, using hot water. I rinse several times. When I get to a bottling day, I simply put enough bottles in my dishwasher, use the high-temp wash mode and the high-temp dry mode to clean and sanitize those same bottles.

Now, back to my first comment...two days ago, daughter #3 stopped over for the day, bringing with her a LARGE supply of empty pop-top commercial beer bottles, mostly from New Glarus Brewing in New Glarus, Wisconsin.

Welp, I spent several hours this morning removing a wide variery of people-placed crap from those bottles. The amount of totally crappy trash in those bottles was amazing! And daughter got them from friends who were saving the bottles for her.

The stuff in the beer bottles was enough evidence to convince me that many people are generally pigs.

glenn514