Stainless conical cleaning after infection

[stosh]

I packaged a Kolsch directly from my Blichmann conical, life got in the way, the remains got infected, and now I have a mess to clean and sanitize.

What is the most effective way to clean and sanitize it? I usually clean all my equipment right after brewing with Oxyclean and hot water and I'm good to go. If something gets leftover until the next day I might use some PBW and hot water and let it soak for a bit. I've never had an infection cleaning equipment using this protocol but with the existing infection from sitting around too long will PBW be enough? I will disassemble everything including the ball valve. I'm on septic so I don't use bleach and wouldn't anyways with the stainless.

 

[IslandLizard]

Yup!

Soak and rinse out the majority of crud first, with help of some Oxiclean. Then do the (hot) PBW treatment, and give everything a good scrub with a nylon brush and/or non-scratching pad.
Pay special attention to corners where surface meet, nooks and crannies, threads, bulkhead passages, all the ports, the lid, and rims.

Remove and thoroughly clean all stubs, connections, valves, etc. inside out.
Rinse and sanitize.

You may want to soak or recirculate hot cleaner (PBW) through any expensive (silicone) hoses, QDs, etc. Throw out the cheap vinyl hoses, easiest to replace with new ones, for all security.

I usually scrub/mop the surfaces of larger vessels with a stiff nylon hand brush, a "soft" scouring pad, or washcloth drenched in cleaner or sanitizer, instead of filling them up.
Sometimes giving it all a good soak is the easiest, but it doesn't replace thorough scrubbing, as it is often part of the job to get everything well cleaned. Especially on the cold side.

 

[pvpeacock]

If you have a dishwasher with a "sanitize" feature, consider disassembling everything and putting as many fermenter parts into the dishwasher. I do this on a regular basis including washers and o-rings in the utensil basket. Be sure to disassemble all ball valves as well.

 

[IslandLizard]

If you have a dishwasher with a "sanitize" feature, consider disassembling everything and putting as many fermenter parts into the dishwasher. I do this on a regular basis including washers and o-rings in the utensil basket. Be sure to disassemble all ball valves as well.

I'd rather boil those smaller parts with some PBW in a pot on the stove. I sometimes add a little bit of lye (drain opener) to it.
Be careful handling and boiling lye, though !!! Know what you're doing, and wear hand, face and eye protection.

 

[Oldskewl]

I had to use a mild bleach solution to get the infection out of my Brewbucket. PBW wasn't doing it. Then I rinsed, rinsed, rinsed, and rinsed some more!

 

[stosh]

I'd rather boil those smaller parts with some PBW in a pot on the stove. I sometimes add a little bit of lye (drain opener) to it.
Be careful handling and boiling lye, though !!! Know what you're doing, and wear hand, face and eye protection.

I've considered boiling/simmering parts on the stove maybe I'll give it a go although I'll avoid the lye for safety around the kids and integrity of the septic system.

There is no substitute for good ole fashioned elbow grease. I'm heading out to the garage to get this mess cleaned up for my brew day tomorrow. RDWHAHB

 

[RufusBrewer]

I like PBW slot. It is not a sanitizer. It gets things clean and free of dirt, so germs have no where to hide. Iodophore kills a wide range of stuff. Wider than StarSan.

Bleach is a monster sanitizer. Has a very short contact time. I am going to say less than one minute. Rinse well, then rinse again. Do not soak stainless steel in bleach, if all pit the surface.

Disassemble as much as you can. Clean every surface, nook and cranny you can.