• Please visit and share your knowledge at our sister communities:
  • If you have not, please join our official Homebrewing Facebook Group!

    Homebrewing Facebook Group

How much star san to sanitize 5g carboid

Homebrew Talk

Help Support Homebrew Talk:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

Gustavo

Well-Known Member
Joined
Jul 25, 2011
Messages
377
Reaction score
0
I was wondering do you need 5gl. Of star sand to sanitize a 5gl carboid or bucket, or is two gl. Enough?
 
Not even that much. I just put enough in there to slosh around good. I probably don't even put two quarts in. It's a contact sanitizer, Just needs to touch all surfaces then wait 30 seconds.
 
I use 2.5 to clean the carboy, then it goes I the bucket for All the other stuff (siphon, locks, etc), the I save it in an old water bottle/carboy. My question is how long is it good for? As long as it is clear, still good?
 
I use 2.5 to clean the carboy, then it goes I the bucket for All the other stuff (siphon, locks, etc), the I save it in an old water bottle/carboy. My question is how long is it good for? As long as it is clear, still good?

Testing the PH is the only true way to tell if it's still good. I forget the number at the moment, but I'm sure somebody will come along shortly that knows...

EDIT: flyingfinbar beat me to it. :mug:
 
I read a couple threads saying if u make it with RO water and keep it sealed. It can last for months
 
Distilled water is what you want to use to mix it with.

I make a one gallon batch and store it in a sealed glass container. It will last quite a long time.
 
Distilled water is what you want to use to mix it with.

I make a one gallon batch and store it in a sealed glass container. It will last quite a long time.

Funny you say that...I had a batch mixed up, and I must have gotten a little lazy on measuring the pH...It chewed through a cheap one gallon plastic water jug in a couple days:drunk:
 
Funny you say that...I had a batch mixed up, and I must have gotten a little lazy on measuring the pH...It chewed through a cheap one gallon plastic water jug in a couple days:drunk:

I keep mine in a milk jug and haven't had it eat through. I wondet if we're mixing at different strengths. I mix 0.2 oz of Star San per gallon of water.
 
I've never heard it referred to as a "carboid" before. That actually sounds cooler than what it really is (carboy)
 
I keep up to 5 gal in a keg and reuse the hell out of it. As long as you are only sanitizing clean items with it and use decent water it'll last a long time. I do keep PH strips in my kit and check it every brew day but have yet to actually throw out a batch due to PH.
 
I use 2.5 to clean the carboy, then it goes I the bucket for All the other stuff (siphon, locks, etc), the I save it in an old water bottle/carboy. My question is how long is it good for? As long as it is clear, still good?
It usually lasts me 1-2 months..

I read a couple threads saying if u make it with RO water and keep it sealed. It can last for months
I use RO water for mine and it takes a long time to get cloudy..

Funny you say that...I had a batch mixed up, and I must have gotten a little lazy on measuring the pH...It chewed through a cheap one gallon plastic water jug in a couple days:drunk:

I've never experienced/or heard of this happening. You must have mixed it very strong!
 
Where can I get Carboids? My carboys are lonesome and need carboids to reproduce little growlers. He heh, sorry I just couldn't help myself. I am back quiet now.
Bob
 
Best to use Distilled water, and as long as the pH is below 3.5 and clear, not cloudy, its good.
 
I have a 5 gallon water cooler bottle. I mix between 3 and 5 gallons and top up periodically. Using tap water this way and checking the ph occasionally it has never gone bad.

I fill a spray bottle and just spray the inside and neck of my Better Bottle and swirl it around. I would say that I might use 1 cup total.

Be careful if those "carboids" are glass. Starsan is very slippery!
 
Best to use Distilled water, and as long as the pH is below 3.5 and clear, not cloudy, its good.

When I mix starsan it goes cloudy virtually instantly - probably the minerals in the water around here. I've never had any sanitation problems from cloudy starsan, though.
 
When I mix starsan it goes cloudy virtually instantly - probably the minerals in the water around here. I've never had any sanitation problems from cloudy starsan, though.

It says on the bottle that effectiveness is reduced once it gets cloudy. I get the same thing. Cloudy on impact. I have super hard water. I just use a longer contact time to be safe and I don't save and resue it. No infections yet.
 
I keep mine in a milk jug and haven't had it eat through. I wondet if we're mixing at different strengths. I mix 0.2 oz of Star San per gallon of water.

It was definitely weird...I didn't think I had the ratio THAT far off, but I did mix it up after a few homebrews. It sat for a few weeks relatively untouched in between brews, then I noticed a small puddle forming under the jug. When I picked it up, it was just slowly weeping out of a small pinhole along the seam. I couldn't even really see the hole, it would just drip out slowly with gravity.
 
It was definitely weird...I didn't think I had the ratio THAT far off, but I did mix it up after a few homebrews. It sat for a few weeks relatively untouched in between brews, then I noticed a small puddle forming under the jug. When I picked it up, it was just slowly weeping out of a small pinhole along the seam. I couldn't even really see the hole, it would just drip out slowly with gravity.

Since the leak was at the seam, it might not have beed caused by the star san - just the seam failing. I've had that happen with water bottles after a long time.
 

Latest posts

Back
Top