Sewage in kettle

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ismellweird

ismellweird

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Hi, sorry but need to ask... how would one thoroughly clean a brew pot that has been accidentally pumped full of sewage? Our first brew session with the new equipment and we experienced a problem with the punk hooked wrong and experienced what I believe is called suck back where the waste from the sewer line backed up and we pumped it in. We spend most of the night cleaning but how do I know or what to use so we can use this pot again? Has anyone else have experience with this? Thanks. Mel
 
Ummmm, personally, I would fix it by getting a new one. But that's just me. Someone will probably provide you with a more reasonable solution.
 
Clean it with soap and hot water, and sanitize like any other piece of brew gear.
Or if you are really squeamish about it, fill it with an inch of water and bring to to a boil for 5 minutes with the lid on.
Done.
 
ismellweird said:
Hi, sorry but need to ask... how would one thoroughly clean a brew pot that has been accidentally pumped full of sewage? Our first brew session with the new equipment and we experienced a problem with the punk hooked wrong and experienced what I believe is called suck back where the waste from the sewer line backed up and we pumped it in. We spend most of the night cleaning but how do I know or what to use so we can use this pot again? Has anyone else have experience with this? Thanks. Mel
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This isn't what you asked, but there should be an air gap between the drain line and the sewer -- to prevent problems just like this.

Scrub it out, rinse, sanitize it. Should be good to go. Maybe boil some water it in just to make sure.
 
I'm really sorry to say this, but there's absolutely no way I'd ever use that again. Sewage potentially contains a host of serious pathogens. You're making a food product. To ensure we kill everything, and not just most things, we autoclave or cook under pressure. You didn't say you had sanitary fittings but I suspect not, based on omission. That's a lot of reasons you may be introducing serious illnesses into yourself and others.

I am sorry, but as a former chef, I'd advise - if in doubt, throw it out. This one doesn't even have the doubt factor.

Just one opinion. I hope you find a good solution, whatever you end up doing.
 
Im sorry, but how do you pump sewage back into the kettle? Having a hard time visualizing this. Did you have a drain line leading to a cleanout? Or a drain line going into a sink drain and you sucked back liquid from the P-trap? Just what do you mean by sewage?

And if it was in fact sewage, ditch it. Not worth getting seriously ill over. If you wanted to try and save it, boil it. Boil it real good.

Bonus points for the username
 
thekraken said:
At the very least you can salvage everything that's metal. If after cleaning with pbw and starsan and it isn't clean enough the metal parts can be thrown in the oven at 350F.
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I suppose, but he'd have to ensure every surface, every micro nook and cranny, achieved that sterilization time and temp. And then we're dealing with dead poop in those micro-surfaces.

I'll bow out respectfully, because I know you're bummed, OP. I truly am sorry and perhaps what Kraken and others is advising would be just fine. Just goes against everything I lived in my particular profession, and that's just one opinion, as I said.
 
Gadjobrinus said:
I'll bow out respectfully, because I know you're bummed, OP. I truly am sorry and perhaps what Kraken and others is advising would be just fine. Just goes against everything I lived in my particular profession, and that's just one opinion, as I said.
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If OP chose to throw it out I would fully support that decision as well :mug:
 
Yes the lack of a check valve on that drain is a serious issue. We knew that but still decided to hook the pump down the drain to drain out water we were using to clean the pot but we put the pot the pump backwards and so when we flip that switch it sucked back into my kettle. You should also know that my house has been in a state of construction for quite some time and have various issues.It happened very quickly and you can imagine my surprise to see sewage in my pot and my buddy throwing up. My dog barked for so long and for so loud that my neighbor who is a police officer came over to make sure everything’s OK. It was humiliating.
 
Dude, if it was bad enough to make your buddy up chuck and your dog bark uncontrollably (keep in mind... they lick their butts) that should unfortunately prompt you to purchase a new system.

And probably get that drain fixed #ptrap #nomethaneexplosions
 
d4b.jpg


:D

Clearly this place is occupied by people who have no clue what they're exposed to in the course of a week (and probably don't want to know). As unsavory an event this was (and frankly it's about an 11! :eek:) that kettle is certainly salvageable.

I would disassemble every removable bit from said kettle, scrub everything thoroughly with whatever washing liquid is available, boil the small bits separately then maybe give them a nice warm bleach soak for an hour, re-assemble the kettle then boil a few inches of water with the lid on for an hour.

I'd have no qualms using a kettle after that process as it'd be cleaner and way more sanitary than "new in the box"...

Cheers!
 
Gadjobrinus said:
I'm really sorry to say this, but there's absolutely no way I'd ever use that again. Sewage potentially contains a host of serious pathogens. You're making a food product. To ensure we kill everything, and not just most things, we autoclave or cook under pressure. You didn't say you had sanitary fittings but I suspect not, based on omission. That's a lot of reasons you may be introducing serious illnesses into yourself and others.

I am sorry, but as a former chef, I'd advise - if in doubt, throw it out. This one doesn't even have the doubt factor.

Just one opinion. I hope you find a good solution, whatever you end up doing.
Click to expand...

Sorry, but I feel this advice is driven more by emotion than science or logic, yuck factor not withstanding.
Yes, sewage can contain dangerous pathogens, as can food, ordinary household surfaces, and the air.
Knowing this, we take rational steps to clean and sterilize the things in life we expose ourselves to, including brewing equipment.
If the sewer backs up in a restaurant, do they tear it down?
 
kev211 said:
Dude, if it was bad enough to make your buddy up chuck and your dog bark uncontrollably (keep in mind... they lick their butts) that should unfortunately prompt you to purchase a new system.

And probably get that drain fixed #ptrap #nomethaneexplosions
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I don’t need a new system I’ve been told my system is top notch. I inherited some very expensive bring equipment from a relative who passed away recently was about to set up a brewery. Unfortunately I don’t know how to use any of these computers and sump pump‘s and all of the other things most of which are still shrink-wrapped. But my buddy and I were brewing with some of the smaller pieces just to get something going because we had a good idea on how to brew with some cutting edge ingredients. But of course that was all ruined.
 
Thank you for all of your suggestions. I’ve decided that I can’t throw out the pot since I can’t get another one without really saving up first, but I need to work with these equipment I inherited. I believe that I can use most of your suggestions of boiling and scrubbing and eventually I think I can get this back in usable shape.
 
ismellweird said:
I don’t need a new system I’ve been told my system is top notch. I inherited some very expensive bring equipment from a relative who passed away recently was about to set up a brewery. Unfortunately I don’t know how to use any of these computers and sump pump‘s and all of the other things most of which are still shrink-wrapped. But my buddy and I were brewing with some of the smaller pieces just to get something going because we had a good idea on how to brew with some cutting edge ingredients. But of course that was all ruined.
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Sorry, that post was meant to be semi-toungue-in-cheek. Guess it didnt come across that way. I just meant I would replace anything that the sewage touched, not the whole system. If you cleaned it well and boiled it would you be fine? Possibly. But for the cost Id rather replace those parts. Just me though. Still sucks either way you look at it. Brew day mistakes happen to all of us, some just suck (pun intended) more than others
 
processhead said:
Sorry, but I feel this advice is driven more by emotion than science or logic, yuck factor not withstanding.
Yes, sewage can contain dangerous pathogens, as can food, ordinary household surfaces, and the air.
Knowing this, we take rational steps to clean and sterilize the things in life we expose ourselves to, including brewing equipment.
If the sewer backs up in a restaurant, do they tear it down?
Click to expand...

Well no, it's not driven by emotion, it's driven by a life in the profession of delivering food, where the risk of getting people sick is a risk with a very low tolerance threshold. I've already admitted my presumptions. I've also been a cheesemaker, pasture-based smallhold farmed, and been a forceful advocate for the right to drink raw milk, so I don't have a kind of "yuck" when it comes to food.

That doesn't mean I remain unaware. I don't really think it's some kind of "emotionalistic, non-scientific" mindset to keep in mind, I don't know - cholera pandemic?

If a sewer backs up into a restaurant, yes, those parts that were exposed are discarded. They're not cleaned and treated with bleach solution. Do you honestly believe any restaurant would even claim, much less do, otherwise?

At any rate, as I've said a few times, simply my opinion. Each to their own.
 
Yes I know and was hoping no one else would notice. Somewhat somebody pointed this out to me the other day that my handle looks like I smell weird. This is very disappointing as I’ve been working on paperwork and various things for what I hope will be a successful brewery. But too late to change and I’m not sure too many people will notice I think it just happened to make a connection because of my issues with sanitation. I hope.
 
ismellweird said:
Yes I know and was hoping no one else would notice. Somewhat somebody pointed this out to me the other day that my handle looks like I smell weird. This is very disappointing as I’ve been working on paperwork and various things for what I hope will be a successful brewery. But too late to change and I’m not sure too many people will notice I think it just happened to make a connection because of my issues with sanitation. I hope.
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Oh no! Im sorry. Didnt mean to bash on your brewery name. That litterally is the only reason I made the connection. Went back to read your original post and saw your user name and went "ha! Ironic"

But as a suggestion... Maybe you put a good space between
Is______Mell_______Weird in your brewery logo haha :mug:
 
kev211 said:
Oh no! Im sorry. Didnt mean to bash on your brewery name. That litterally is the only reason I made the connection. Went back to read your original post and saw your user name and went "ha! Ironic"

But as a suggestion... Maybe you put a good space between
Is______Mell_______Weird in your brewery logo haha :mug:
Click to expand...

We had a tarping competition in town and I saw a flyer in the post office that was handmade and really cool. I found the artist in the next town over and asked her to design my logo in a few beer labels to start. I had her do it all lowercase and pushed together like my handle is here. So unfortunately that cannot be changed. She charged me for the artwork and then an additional cost for the rights to it.
 
What kind of kettle? If you’re going to throw it out someone may well take it and do the cleaning themselves.
 
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