Question about how long you can leave out santized brewing tools?

[maddawg4]

New brewer here...

If i sanitize my brewing tools such as the measuring cup i use for priming sugar how long can i leave it out to dry? Because the sugar sticks to the thin cup and its hard to tell how much is in it. Or can i dry it with a paper towel? Or will that make it unsanitary again?

Also same question with bottles. Can i leave them out to dry after using the Mr. beer no wash sanitizing stuff or will they become contaminated after a short period of time?

 

[Revvy]

you should always sanitize fresh.

If not you are playing Russian Roulette with you beer, eventually it will bite you in the butt.

You should sanitize on bottling day (or brew day if you are brewing.) It only takes a few minutes. If you let a no-rinse, wet contact sanitizer like starsan or iodophor, dry your are reducing it's efficacy by half. If it is dry, any micro organisms that touch the surface render it no longer sanitized. If the walls are wet with sanitizer, that organism would be toast. But dry it would still be alive.

It really should take you no more than 10 minutes to sanitize your two cases of beer. Or bottle in an hour. If it takes you longer you need to work on your process, not cut corners with your sanitization regimen.

Here's a lot of bottling tips to make the job easier. https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f35/bottling-tips-homebrewer-94812/

You'll find a lot of good info/tips to effective sanitization here; https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f39/sanitizer-question-54932/ in cluding how you should get rid of your dry powdered "pseudo sanitizers" in favor of the afore mentioned, no-rinse, wet contact sanitizers like starsan and iodophor.

 

[downinit]

There's no need to sanitize your measuring cup as long as you boil the priming sugar for 10 minutes. Otherwise sanitize fresh.

 

[maddawg4]

Thanks for your response. Makes sense but i meant more along the longs of short term. Do i need to use the equipment immediately or can i leave it out for an hour? But what your saying is use it before it drys.

 

[maddawg4]

There's no need to sanitize your measuring cup as long as you boil the priming sugar for 10 minutes. Otherwise sanitize fresh.

I just use the measuring cup and drop the sugar in the bottle. I am learning on Mr. Beer equipment. Eventually i want to upgrade. Should i be boiling the sugar or just dumping the sugar in the bottles?

 

[Revvy]

Thanks for your response. Makes sense but i meant more along the longs of short term. Do i need to use the equipment immediately or can i leave it out for an hour? But what your saying is use it before it drys.

Keep it wet. I always keep a container of some sort like a bucket or bowl with sanitizer (if it is starsan or iodophor, a spray bottle works as well) and anything inluding my hands that are going to touch the wort post boil gets a dip before it touches. During brewing somethings are left to soak, such as my autosiphon. Just pull it out and drop it in.

But as downinit pointed out, only things post boil need to be sanitized....if it is coming in contact with boiling wort, or you are boiling your priming sugar, then stuff that touches it prior to the boil don't need to be sanitized.

 

[downinit]

I always boil everything that goes into my beer except dry hopping hops. You don't know where that sugar has been! I always try to use tools that have just been sanitized and still wet.

 

[Revvy]

I always boil everything that goes into my beer except dry hopping hops. You don't know where that sugar has been! I always try to use tools that have just been sanitized and still wet.

You have more control bulk priming than you do adding sugar into a bottle, read the bottling thread I linked to in my earlier post.

 

[maddawg4]

I always boil everything that goes into my beer except dry hopping hops. You don't know where that sugar has been! I always try to use tools that have just been sanitized and still wet.

So how do you boil the sugar? Forgive my ignorance but you dump the sugar in boiling water but then how do you add it to the beer bottle? Strain the water but somehow retain the sugar wouldn't it be evaporated or something?

 

[downinit]

I add the boiled water/sugar solution to a bottling bucket then siphon the beer into the bucket. Fill the bottles from the bucket with a bottle filler attachment.

 

[Bulls Beers]

I add the boiled water/sugar solution to a bottling bucket

Chilled of course..

 

[JRems]

If you are filling bottles right off the mr beer fermenter, you might want to look into carb tabs. They are sugar tabs you just drop in the bottle before you fill.