CafeRoaster
Active Member
Yesterday, I wrapped up my first bottling session. I have to say, it was definitely the worst part of this whole process. Hah!
I ran the bottles through the dishwasher on extra hot. Unfortunately, my dishwasher does not have a sanitize setting. So, I filled a 5 gallon bucket with a StarSan solution. It only fits 8 bottles at a time, and you can only put two in at once. Additionally, it takes quite a while to get them full of liquid, and it creates a ton of bubbles. Let them sit for a couple minutes, then remove and let air dry in the dishwasher.
Sanitizing took a very, very long time. And all of the bottles had bubbles in them after taking them out of the sanitizer, so I did end up giving them a rinse. I know you're not supposed to rinse StarSan off, so I'm hoping I didn't bork this first batch.
I'm looking at affordable, efficient ways to do this better next time. It seems like the best options in this space are:
1. Vintage Shop's Monster Washer + Bottle Tree
- Bonus is that I can sanitize my Fermonster using this as well.
- Only one bottle at a time.
2. Vintage Shop's 2-in-1 Washer + Bottle Tree
- 12 bottles at a time.
- Garden hose adapter, but don't know what I would use that for.
- Can be used for any size bottles
3. FastBrewing's FastRack
- Expandable
- Easy to use
- Terrible build quality
- Can only be used with 12oz bottles
I love Vintage Shop's build quality, and they've been doing this for a long time. I'd definitely rather go with one of their setups, but wondering which would be best. I don't really understand the garden hose hookup for their 2-in-1. I don't completely understand how it works. If it hooks up to a water line, where does the sanitizer solution come in?
I really, really like the FastRack system. It's driven by its own pump, it's expandable, and easy to use. But it has some terrible reviews, FastBrewing's website is 90% broken just like their products...
Thoughts? Experiences? Maybe a different method than I'm thinking of?
I ran the bottles through the dishwasher on extra hot. Unfortunately, my dishwasher does not have a sanitize setting. So, I filled a 5 gallon bucket with a StarSan solution. It only fits 8 bottles at a time, and you can only put two in at once. Additionally, it takes quite a while to get them full of liquid, and it creates a ton of bubbles. Let them sit for a couple minutes, then remove and let air dry in the dishwasher.
Sanitizing took a very, very long time. And all of the bottles had bubbles in them after taking them out of the sanitizer, so I did end up giving them a rinse. I know you're not supposed to rinse StarSan off, so I'm hoping I didn't bork this first batch.
I'm looking at affordable, efficient ways to do this better next time. It seems like the best options in this space are:
1. Vintage Shop's Monster Washer + Bottle Tree
- Bonus is that I can sanitize my Fermonster using this as well.
- Only one bottle at a time.
2. Vintage Shop's 2-in-1 Washer + Bottle Tree
- 12 bottles at a time.
- Garden hose adapter, but don't know what I would use that for.
- Can be used for any size bottles
3. FastBrewing's FastRack
- Expandable
- Easy to use
- Terrible build quality
- Can only be used with 12oz bottles
I love Vintage Shop's build quality, and they've been doing this for a long time. I'd definitely rather go with one of their setups, but wondering which would be best. I don't really understand the garden hose hookup for their 2-in-1. I don't completely understand how it works. If it hooks up to a water line, where does the sanitizer solution come in?
I really, really like the FastRack system. It's driven by its own pump, it's expandable, and easy to use. But it has some terrible reviews, FastBrewing's website is 90% broken just like their products...
Thoughts? Experiences? Maybe a different method than I'm thinking of?