Moldy Mash Paddle :(

[Hebby5]

I moved into a new home a few months back that has a workshop under the house. Like a basement but part of the crawlspace and you get there from the side of the house. Long story sorry.

I brewed down there in spring and it was still cool for Raleigh. I brewed another time indoors and all was well. My last brew (now summer) it was cool and moist down there. Too moist. All my brew gear had nice fuzzy mold all over it. I had a couple of nice custom maple mash paddles my Dad made for me that are spotted with mold. Ugh!!!

Luckily he's a great Dad (retired with loads of time on his hands) and made me one more. Can the other paddles be saved?? I only tried cleaning them with soap and water. They are still spotted from the mold. I could bleach them but not sure about using these paddles in my mash. Any thoughts???

If they are non salvageable, I probably will bleach one to clean it up and hang it in my office.

Any thoughts and advice is appreciated.

Chris

 

[fiveohmike]

Fine grit sandpaper?

 

[jwelch1103]

I don't see why you still can't use them. Spray/wipe them down with a bleach solution, put them in the sunshine for a couple of hours and they should be good to go. The wort is not at all sterile after mashing, there is probably already some naturally occurring mold spores on the grain anyway. Between boiling the wort and the low ph of the wort it will be sanitized. Just keep it dry between uses.

 

[Hello]

Under the house in a crawlspace without a dehumidifier can be a tricky and wet situation during the summer. My crawlspace is definitely one that needs a dehumidifier fast as the moisture level is over what it should be and sits like that well into October.

I would say you should probably move your stuff until summer is over. 50/50 bleach solution can likely kill whatever is growing but be sure to rinse very well. I would wet sand it, spray again, rinse well and wet sand.

 

[Hebby5]

Thanks for all the tips. I'll try the bleach and sanding method.

Cheers!

Chris

 

[tootal]

Like Jwelch said, after bleaching, rinsing put it in the sunshine. The sun is a great way to disinfect it! You need to let it dry before you sand it so let the sun do it's thing!

 

[wilserbrewer]

A little bleach is all you need, just let it dry well for a few days.

There are plenty of mold spores or even worse on the grain...the mash is not sterile surgery, the mash has plenty of funk in it already, hence why we boil. Sand it if it makes you happy or needs it???
Rdwhahb

Wilserbrewer
Http://biabbags.webs.com/

 

[charliehorse]

Rdwhahb

I do believe that you hit on the real solution to this dilemma.

 

[IslandLizard]

[...] All my brew gear had nice fuzzy mold all over it. [...]

Sorry to hear that happened, it's not a pretty sight. As mentioned before, pretty much everything can be cleaned and "demolded" easily with cleaners, bleach, sandpaper, sunshine, etc., and anything used in the boil will get the extra disinfection step each time you brew.

However, any equipment used after chilling, such as fermentors, vessels, hoses, racking canes, etc., aside from being cleaned and scrubbed and, if at all possible, boiled with heavy duty cleaners (PBW) and soaked in bleach, should be scrutinized thoroughly for any leftover mold spots.

The problem is mold spores can survive boiling water, and the damp environment of fermentation is an ideal incubation environment.