# How To Get Beer Smell Out Of Fermenter?



## bluejay (7/1/11)

Hey,

Just finished my first brew a few days ago. My fermenter however still has a fairly sharp beer smell to it. I've cleaned it and then soaked with hot water and the suds provided from my beer kit. It still smells though. What other options do I have? Soak it for longer?


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## QldKev (7/1/11)

Soak with Napisan FTW


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## felten (7/1/11)

it doesn't really matter if your plastic gear smells like beer (it's impossible to get rid of anyway), it won't impart anything to the next beer.


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## tavas (7/1/11)

Try unscented bleach in cold water for a couple of days. Triple rinse with hot, hot water and make sure you can't smell chlorine anymore. Then leave it outside in the sun for a few hours.
But you won't get rid of it completely.


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## Yob (7/1/11)

When the fermenter is clean and dry you can always thow in (few spoons) something like White King Oxy action. close lid till needed.. nothing will move in.. nothing.

On Brewday Recycle powder, rinse well with hot water, then throw in 1lt boiling water and get rough with it (make sure to run off through tap in case of any residue trapped and careful not to get a steam jet in the face from the hole in the lid, seriously.. be careful)... fresh as the morning sun everytime!!

I then drain for 10 min and make up my NRS (No Rinse Sanitiser) solution (few liters) which all brewday equipment go in till needed, as the fermenter is almost the last thing needed it keeps the NRS in till the last minute.

this is the one I use and it should last me a few years at the current rate I use it.. which is liberally

http://www.grainandgrape.com.au/product_in...roducts_id=8717

Different stokes for Different folks though


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## tavas (7/1/11)

I found this on a brining website. You could try this as well. 

http://www.virtualweberbullet.com/plastics.html

Removing Odors And Stains From HDPE Buckets

Since HDPE buckets are somewhat porous, they can hold odors and stains from foods like pickles or barbecue sauce. If you score a free bucket from a restaurant, try this cleaning routine suggested by USA Emergency Supply. It has worked pretty well for me.

Wash the bucket inside and out with warm, soapy water, then rinse. 
Place the bucket outside in a sunny location. 
Pour 1 cup of baking soda into the bucket and fill with warm water all the way to the top. Stir to dissolve, then put on the lid, or cover with aluminum foil. 
Let the bucket sit in the sun for several days, then empty and rinse out. 
Pour 1 cup of bleach into the bucket and fill with warm water all the way to the top. Stir to mix, then put on the lid, or cover with aluminum foil. 
Let the bucket sit in the sun for several days, then empty. 
Wash again inside and out with warm water and dishwashing liquid, then let dry with the lid off.


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## bluejay (7/1/11)

Thanks for the quick replies and suggestions.

So most of you guys use bleach to make your cleaning solution?

I think I'll buy that bottle of starsan for sanitizing


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## Yob (7/1/11)

bluejay said:


> I think I'll buy that bottle of starsan for sanitizing



It's served my berwday and the equipment I use well so far. However there is no substitute for a good cleaning program to begin with. With that in hand products like these are an invaluable tool to help prevent infection but not guarantee it.. shit still happens sometimes to the best of brewers/brewerys...

anyway, have a good search, there are plenty of threads on this topic so you can learn and make up your own mind as to wether it suits you or not... 

aw damn wheres that link to the podcast... 

[edit] and it wont help with the smell either <_<


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## jzani (7/1/11)

When I have bottled a brew, I just fill the fermenter up past the ring of crud and add a cap of napisan. Then when I am ready for my next brew I give it a good rinse, sanitise and I'm ready to go. Never noticed a smell left over in the fermenter after a few days with napisan. I also chuck in any bottles that need a good wash and it cleans them a treat. Napisan will break down any organic compounds, so it does all the hard scrubbing for you :icon_cheers:.


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## QldKev (7/1/11)

bluejay said:


> Thanks for the quick replies and suggestions.
> 
> So most of you guys use bleach to make your cleaning solution?
> 
> I think I'll buy that bottle of starsan for sanitizing



Bleach is ok for short term, I would not leave it in the fermentor overnight - you think the beer has made you fermentor smell. Generally I would use Napisan for soaking, and bleach for a quick sanatise if I didn't have starsan handy.

QldKev


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## beerdrinkingbob (7/1/11)

QldKev said:


> Bleach is ok for short term, I would not leave it in the fermentor overnight - you think the beer has made you fermentor smell. Generally I would use Napisan for soaking, and bleach for a quick sanatise if I didn't have starsan handy.
> 
> QldKev



couple of days with napisan and i would bath in it :beerbang:


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## matr (7/1/11)

Fill it up with wort and chuck in some yeast. Let it soak for 10 - 14days That usually fixes it!!


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## technoicon (7/1/11)

B.L.E.A.C.H


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## Yob (7/1/11)

beerdrinkingbob said:


> couple of days with napisan and i would bath in it :beerbang:




shouldnt that be bath in then a few days napisan?  ....least that's what the avitar implies :blink:


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## The Giant (7/1/11)

Bleach for the wn

I always ensure that i wash down my fermenter immediately after i bottle. Put some cleanser of ur choice in fill it up to the brim with hot water and soak overnight. Then next day a little bit of bleach and cold water with all ur equipment, ie air locks seals etc swirl around and leave for an hour then let drain.

Should be happy days after that


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## beerdrinkingbob (7/1/11)

iamozziyob said:


> shouldnt that be bath in then a few days napisan?  ....least that's what the avitar implies :blink:



the longer I brew the more that becomes an option!


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## _HOME_BREW_WALLACE_ (7/1/11)

tavas said:


> Wash the bucket inside and out with warm, soapy water, then rinse.
> Place the bucket outside in a sunny location.
> Pour 1 cup of baking soda into the bucket and fill with warm water all the way to the top. Stir to dissolve, then put on the lid, or cover with aluminum foil.
> Let the bucket sit in the sun for several days, then empty and rinse out.
> ...



Stop making beer while you are trying to get the beer smell out of your beer fermenting vessel for the next 2 weeks??? :blink: 



Awesome Fury said:


> B.L.E.A.C.H




use unscented bleach and cold tap water OVERNIGHT, and rinse with very hot tap water a couple of times until chlorine smell goes away. :icon_cheers: 

Hmmmm 14 days or 12 Hrs??? I know which one i will choose time and time again! :beerbang:


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## Oatlands Brewer (7/1/11)

A good stiff bleach scrub then a few days in the sun shine, does the trick for me, that and i store my fermenters lid off upside down on a wire shelf


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## schooey (7/1/11)

An overnight soak of warm pink stain remover usually removes the most stubborn odours and residues for me. I think the stuff is legendary...


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## milob40 (7/1/11)

if it smells like beer i'd be happy.
if it smells like arse, i would be pissed off and would want to take it out on some poor innocent barstard. :lol:


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## Boondy (7/1/11)

Mine smells permanently of beer.
Doesn't seem to make a difference to each brew.
I avoid bleach, as we are on a biological sewerage system here, and it's pretty hard on the bacteria.


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## manticle (7/1/11)

Sodium percarbonate based cleaner with hot water overnight or as QLD kev said - napisan FTW.

I think that's the first and last time I'll use the acronym FTW but it's a quote.

Clean first then sanitise.


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## poppa joe (7/1/11)

I would like to add..
That if you leave your brewer in the sun each time for a few days....
Be prepared to buy a new fermenter as U V Rays will destroy it..
My 2c 
Cheers 
PJ <_<


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