Found some old glass carboys - gross

[anastasis]

Found some carboys that were filled with water and left unattended outside for a few months. They got algae and stuff growing in them now. I got them for free and want to clean them up and use them as secondaries. I was thinking that I would soak them for a few days in pbw solution, rinse than give them a soak in iodophor to clear out the nasties prior to putting them into service?

Any other thoughts to reclaim these carboys? I assume that since it is glass I should be able to clean them out good as new?

 

[llazy_llama]

Yeah, we've seen some real horror stories about discovered glass carboys. One had dead rats. In the end, they'll clean up just fine. Don't be stingy with that PBW, and give it some good ol' elbow grease with a carboy brush, and they'll be good as new.

Edited: Oh, and keep a sharp eye out for cracks.

 

[BioBeing]

There are stories floating around here of people using carboys that had had a dead mouse and other funky stuff in them. Clean 'em good, and they'll be fine. I would probably chose to add a bleach step after the PBW too, but then I go for overkill.

 

[mordantly]

i have two that were in a yard for years.. algae out the butt and caked dirt. but they were only $5 each. i have yet to clean them... the other 2 has been enough secondaries thus far. i will use 2 cups bleach and fill with water and soak, then put some rice or sand in and shake the crap outta them.