Bug In Fermentor

Australia & New Zealand Homebrewing Forum

Help Support Australia & New Zealand Homebrewing Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

fergi

Well-Known Member
Joined
20/10/04
Messages
991
Reaction score
5
hi guys,i have 2 fermenters that are hygenic and i have no trouble with them,but i am wondering is it advisable to every so often fill my plastic fermentors up with bleach and give them a couple of days bleaching just in case,i also have a thermentor that i havent used for about 5 years because the last 2 brews that i made in it turned sour,i often look at it and think i would like to use it again as it would come in handy,if it did have a bug in it would i be able to bleach it out ,i have tried in the past using sodium met only but that didnt seem to cure the problem hence the second batch infection so i just stuck it back in the shed,as i said its been sitting in the shed for 5 years but i would like to use it again if possible
cheers
fergi
 
An overnight soak in a strong bleach solution will kill everything and dissolve any organic material...use 1/2 ltr of unscented hombrand bleach, fill fermenter to thr rim, and await the destruction of evil bacteria....

Cheers
 
i was about to type, what is a Thermentor, but i worked it out :)
 
Commit this to memory. Every surface that comes into contact with your beer must be cleaned and sanitised.

Unless there is some sort of defect in your fermenter, there is a very good chance you can use it again. Defect could be a manufacturing fault or some sort of scratch. Give it a good soaking in your favourite cleaner, weak unscented bleach or neopink or some unscented dishwasher powder or napisan. Use only one, not a combination. Leave it for a few days with your cleaner soaking in the fermenter filled to the brim. Do the lid. If it is a screwtop, make sure you pull the rubber seal out. Pull the grommet out.

After the thorough soaking, rinse out and wash out with a soft cloth, make sure every nook and cranny is cleaned out. Take it out into the light and look at every surface.

Pull the tap out. Replace it with a new snap tap. Clean all threads with a toothbrush. Look again under good light at every surface.

Wash and inspect the grommet, being so old it probably shows some sort of cracking, buy a new one. Inspect the airlock, and replace if you have any doubt about it.
 
Adding some brewers detergent to the fermenter of bleach will help to get the chlorine formed more quickly so increasing the effectiveness of the bleach.

The standard fermenter tap can be pulled apart and all of it cleaned & sanitised. Racking hoses should be replaced every 3-4 months

Jovial Monk
 
Jovial_Monk said:
Adding some brewers detergent to the fermenter of bleach will help to get the chlorine formed more quickly so increasing the effectiveness of the bleach.
[post="56056"][/post]​

Yeah, and risk the formation of chlorine gas which forms hydrochloric acid in your lungs.

Good one JM!
 
thanks guys for the replys,yes kman i just looked at how i spelt fermenter and when i looked at it i thought ,how the hell did i get that,EXCUSE i was tired and had just been reading about the thermometers in another web site,i guess thats a reasonable excuse for it
cheers
fergi
 
Back
Top