Cleaning Used Glass Carboy

[OpsGuy68]

I received a glass carboy from someone who got it from a worker at a paper mill. In other words, it probably held some sort of chemical. Can I clean it for use as a fermenter? If so, what do I need to do? Thanks for any advice.

 

[beninan]

Soak it in Oxyclean or PBW overnight, maybe even do it twice or thrice.
As long as it didn't hold some chemical that etched the glass, I would think that it could easily get cleaned out.
Does it smell at all? Any residue on the inside? Any idea what may have been held in it?

 

[Fordzilla]

Glass really isn't going to hold anything in it like plastic could. You should be fine as long as you clean it well.

 

[dutchoven]

Glass carboys make lousy chemical containers ... that is unless the chemical requires glass storage (usually strong acids, like nitric). Its probably worth looking into what it previously held. Any chance your buddy could look into what it contained? Any markings on the outside/bottom as to manufacturer, contents, etc.? Any staining, residue?

Short of that, I'd rinse it with water and then the usual PBW (caustic) then Starsan (acidic) rinse.

 

[OpsGuy68]

No. I am not sure of the chemical. Doing a search on the internet, I came up with the following for cleaning carboys that held nitric acid. Soak with water, then bleach/water mix, and then folowed with several rinses.

 

[Calichusetts]

Soak in oxy over night, then soak in oxy over night, then soak in oxy overnight

After that, rinse 712 times

 

[Rondacker]

Possible contents? Paper mill? Probably some kind of acid. I think that is why the vessels are sometimes referred to as "acid carboys".