I heard that any gear used for sours/bugged beer should not be used for regular beers due to the risk of infection..i understand that for plastics and stuff but how about for glass carboys? can i brew in a carboy that once had a sour brewed in it?
using a glass carboy for regular beer after being used for sour
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Beernik
Well-Known Member
Shouldn't be a problem as long as you get it "visibly clean" before sanitizing
+1. no issues with reusing a glass carboy.
glass is smooth and doesn't (or shouldn't) have scratches in which bugs can hide. hence, can be cleaned and sanitized.
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FredTheNuke
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Bleach. Even stubborn bugs can't survive it.
Thedutchtouch
Well-Known Member
Hopefully the OP doesn't mind me tacking on an additional question- is it safe to assumes that the stronger the beer tastes the more possibility of tainting a plastic container/possibly affecting the next batch? Or do particular styles seem to do this more than others?
If you're cleaning and sanitizing properly there won't be anything from the taste of the previous beer left in the carboy.
Beernik
Well-Known Member
Other than glass primaries, I don't do anything different between my Brett and non-brett or sour and non-sour beers. I just make sure to clean extra well after them.
I've only had an infection from a pLambic transfer once and it was because I wasn't getting my beer bottles visibly clean of sediment after drinking them.
I've only had an infection from a pLambic transfer once and it was because I wasn't getting my beer bottles visibly clean of sediment after drinking them.
some people claim that you can sanitize sufficiently to kill off brett (it's a yeast, so much larger than bacteria and can't hide as efficiently in nooks and crannies).
however, it only takes a few cells and some time for brett to work its magic. if a little brett somehow makes it into your bottles, especially ones that you are aging, you may be in for some bombs.
so i don't chance it. i have enough old plastic around that i can dedicate a bucket to sacch and another to brett. personally, after using a bucket for brett i would not use it for sacch beers.
however, it only takes a few cells and some time for brett to work its magic. if a little brett somehow makes it into your bottles, especially ones that you are aging, you may be in for some bombs.
so i don't chance it. i have enough old plastic around that i can dedicate a bucket to sacch and another to brett. personally, after using a bucket for brett i would not use it for sacch beers.
One thing I wondered is how long of contact matters. For instance a bottling bucket will only have the brett in it for maybe 1 hour, is that long enough for brett to lay claim? Auto siphon and some hoses even less time.
I figure glass can be reused since it is doubtful anything would be able to hide out in it. In preparation for my beer beers this year (already funking up a kolsch now), i bought new hoses, auto siphon, bottle filler and bottling bucket. The air locks and stoppers will also be dedicated to brett.
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good question. i have no idea. i'm taking the precautionary principle here - since i don't know, i need to be conservative and assume that brett can take up residence relatively quickly. also, i don't always sanitize after use. i will definitely rinse out my bottling bucket after i'm done, but i typically sanitize it only before the next round of bottling. if a little brett managed to avoid my rinsing - probably not very hard to do - it might be resident enough (or build up a layer thick enough) to withstand a splashing of star san.
i make that assumption too, since glass is smooth.
FredTheNuke
Well-Known Member
hundreds of thousands of people with PhD's have concluded that bleach kills all bacteria (aka bugs, even when hidden in cracks). As long as the user mixes the proper concentration and fully immerses the equipment. Now one lazy ass afternoon without using bleach properly will give you a bug carryover. Oops?
are you certain about the "even hidden in cracks" part? i haven't seen anything to that effect. the problem with cracks & crevices is that bugs pile up in them, and the sanitizer - bleach or otherwise - only kills the bugs on the surface. those dead bugs end up forming a protective layer for the bugs underneath.
and bleach kills bugs 100% after 2 minutes of contact time. few people are using bleach these days, and even fewer are giving it 2 mins of contact. so i'm not sure that "bleach kills all (under certain lab conditions)" holds here.
This is my thinking. I guess if I were the betting type I would go ahead and reuse the same bottling bucket and/or tubes, but I will try to keep up my quality by separating.
The one thing I was kind of questioning is that people say "all it takes is one!", yet say it will takes months for brett to show up flavor-wise when using it on purpose. To my very green brewing understanding this could mean that you would only notice an infection after a long time, so unless you were storing for a long time it wouldn't matter (this would only apply to the short use items, not fermentation buckets, stoppers, soft rubbers in kegs, etc). So if you were brewing an IPA, APA, anything that should be consumed within 3-4 months, you would never know.
*Note to anyone reading this for information: I am only making a novice conjecture here, not giving advice.
that's not quite right. it takes months for brett to fully attenuate and finish all its work, but its flavor impact can be noticeable after a few weeks - especially in a beer where brett isn't expected.
you would know, because brett doesn't belong in an APA so it would stick out like a sore thumb. it takes a while for brett to fully show up in, say, a saison or some other belgian style because we want over-the-top brett'iness. tons of brett. in a non-brett style, you won't need tons before you notice it.
as long as you properly clean and sanitize the vessel you can use any fermentor for any fermentation clean or sour. now, there are people who feel like this is taking a risk and won't do it but that does not mean that it can't be done. to me it's important to make that distinction. they have not chimed in on this thread but there are a few other brewers on these forums who, like me, use the same plastic fermentors for sour and clean fermentations without a problem. the last sour i bottled fermented in a better bottle for a year+, i cleaned it up (with a bottle brush) and fermented a lager in that better bottle. i'm not saying that everyone should do this, i'm just saying that it can be done.
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