Cleaning Bottles

[Siborg]

Thought I'd better ask before I bottle my latest brew. I don't have a bottle brush, but I'm giving them (pet plastic) a decent rinse and shake and am gonna soak em in the no rinse sanitiser. Is this ok, or should I be scrubbing with a bottle brush?

 

[manticle]

I use glass. I don't use a bottle brush - all bottles get an immediate rinse after use (occasionally the morning after). Then a good soak with sodium percarbonate gets rid of any organic material.

Rinsed clean, then no rinsed then used.

A bottle brush will help if you're in a hurry but it's not a necessity.

 

[Siborg]

I use glass. I don't use a bottle brush - all bottles get an immediate rinse after use (occasionally the morning after). Then a good soak with sodium percarbonate gets rid of any organic material.

Rinsed clean, then no rinsed then used.

A bottle brush will help if you're in a hurry but it's not a necessity.

Cheers manticle. Just about to bottle my lcba clone.

 

[kelbygreen]

yeah I soak mine in sodium perc and shake them right after drinking (got a bucket with it in there) then rinse 3 times, I also clean them with a bottle brush on bottling day and then sanitise but I am paranoid about infections haha so its all a overkill but hopefully it will prevent infection. Actually my cleaning agent doubles as a sanitiser so soak for 30 mins then bottle brush and rinse with cold boiled water.

 

[rude]

I do as above but use heaps of water rinsing the sodium percarbonate off this is the worst part, then no rinse sanitise

I would love to keg, just one big bottle.

 

[rendo]

Wow,

you guys are good!!

A bottle brush?? What is that for? Never used it. (its handy to have, just in case you need some violence to shift some dirt)

Once I pour the beer out, it gets immediately rinsed & shaken with warm/hot water. Then I spray a solution of about 10ml bleach/10ml vinegar* mixed with water in a 500ml spray bottle, about 10 or so sprays is enough to cover the bottom of the glass. Leave this over night and rinse and store away. Come bottling day i just soak the bottles in the hottest water I can get from my tap, about 60degC for 20mins or so, shake the crap outta it, let it drain/dry, then bottle. Never had an infection. Dont use no-rinse sanitisers, not cause I am too cheap, just never seen the need for it and dont want that sh!t in my beer. Thoughts?


I had bottles that had some crud, but a good soak in sod perc is great. I just ran out. The cheapie home brand(woolies) and the coles cheapy ones now have a scent!!! Its like eucalyptus type smell. its off!. So, there is a slighty more exp coles one, called sensitive, no perfume, no enzymes, no colours etc....so thats what I bought. $5 for 1kg. no smell, love it. should get some pure sod perc.

*IMPORTANT: never mixed vinegar and bleach directly. the gas is poisonous/deadly & is very overwhelming (aka chlorine gas).always add one, then water, then the other. all good!

I use glass. I don't use a bottle brush - all bottles get an immediate rinse after use (occasionally the morning after). Then a good soak with sodium percarbonate gets rid of any organic material.

Rinsed clean, then no rinsed then used.

A bottle brush will help if you're in a hurry but it's not a necessity.

 

[warra48]

My bottles are rinsed about 3 to 4 times immediately after use. Then drained and stored until needed.
A quick rinse with no-rinse sanitiser on bottling day, and they're good to go.

The only thing to beware of is that after 4 to 5 uses, you may get some beerstone deposit on the inside of the bottles. Comes off easy enough with a quick brush.

 

[praxis178]

My bottles are rinsed about 3 to 4 times immediately after use. Then drained and stored until needed.
A quick rinse with no-rinse sanitiser on bottling day, and they're good to go.

The only thing to beware of is that after 4 to 5 uses, you may get some beerstone deposit on the inside of the bottles. Comes off easy enough with a quick brush.

All sounds so complicated.....

I use hot water from the tap (72C) three rinses post use (that day or the morning after) then dry and store till bottling day. On bottling day I pre heat the bottles with tap hot water then blast them with live steam for 10seconds or til I can't hold the bottle no more through the heavy leather welders gloves. (covered footwear and long sleeve/pants and eye protection required). Never had a problem, other than the occasional bottle failure <bottle says plink> discard bottle!

My live steam comes from the commercial coffee machine in my brew palace!

 

[manticle]

All sounds so complicated.....

I use hot water from the tap (72C) three rinses post use (that day or the morning after) then dry and store till bottling day. On bottling day I pre heat the bottles with tap hot water then blast them with live steam for 10seconds or til I can't hold the bottle no more through the heavy leather welders gloves. (covered footwear and long sleeve/pants and eye protection required). Never had a problem, other than the occasional bottle failure <bottle says plink> discard bottle!

My live steam comes from the commercial coffee machine in my brew palace!

Of course 4 hot water rinses and a steam blast while wearing PPE is not really less complicated than anyone else's approach. It's just your approach that works for you.

@Rendo - lose the scepticism for the no rinse. I used to have some too but brewers all over the world (and commercial kitchens all over the world) use anionic acid rinse solutions for sanitation. It's pretty widely accepted (and I can tell you from experience) that used in the right proportions you will not taste it in the beer and it will not create a second head or birth defects in your unborn children.

 

[praxis178]

Of course 4 hot water rinses and a steam blast while wearing PPE is not really less complicated than anyone else's approach. It's just your approach that works for you.

Yep no contest there!

 

[rendo]

@Rendo - lose the scepticism for the no rinse. I used to have some too but brewers all over the world (and commercial kitchens all over the world) use anionic acid rinse solutions for sanitation. It's pretty widely accepted (and I can tell you from experience) that used in the right proportions you will not taste it in the beer and it will not create a second head or birth defects in your unborn children.

wellllll...maybe i better. i value what you guys tell me here,i hear u can use bleach/vinegar in the right conc as a no-rinse, but maybe i should get a commercial one.

recommendations/brands?

thanks

 

[Nick JD]

I'm another hot tap water three times and then fill-er-up.

When I've had an infection (about 3 bottles in 20 years) it's because of an unnoticed lump of crud ... which a no-rinse wouldn't have killed anyway.

I'm all for people using no-rinse sanitizers - just as I'm all for people with anxiety problems taking drugs.

As above: the first rule of Beer Club is to rinse straight after you pour.

BTW: with PET, 70 degrees is about as hot as you can go before bottle deformation.

 

[manticle]

wellllll...maybe i better. i value what you guys tell me here,i hear u can use bleach/vinegar in the right conc as a no-rinse, but maybe i should get a commercial one.

recommendations/brands?

thanks

You can supposedly. I have paranoia about bleach (I use it but I rinse very thoroughly) as I've had medicianl/bandaid flavours as a result of usage.

You might find some of the people who seem super cautious are those who've experienced infections. Those who haven't (like Nick JD) might be less cautious. Whatever works for the individual brewer is the right way forward.

Best value for money, effective no rinse besides bleach/vinegar is probably star san from fivestar chemicals. They also make saniclean. Idophor (basically an iodine based solution) is also popular.

Due to recent infections I actually use chlorine, boiling water, sodium metabisulphite and star san all in sequence for most brewing equipment (not the bottles though). The hot water and sodium met are as much to drive off chlorine as they are to sanitise - they just serve a dual purpose. I'm not suggesting anyone needs to go anywhere near to that extent unless they've also been unfortunate enough to tip out 60+ litres of AG beer in one go.

 

[Siborg]

Well I bottled them now. Rinsed them a few times with cold water then a couple of times with hot tap water at around 70 degrees. Then filled them with a bit of no rinse San from brewcraft and shock the shit out of them and let stand for about 15 mins. All went well except for when I lost myself daydreaming and overfilled a bottle. It was on cause I had a towel underneath, but I got tasty beer all over my hand.

 

[rendo]

You can supposedly. I have paranoia about bleach (I use it but I rinse very thoroughly) as I've had medicianl/bandaid flavours as a result of usage.

You might find some of the people who seem super cautious are those who've experienced infections. Those who haven't (like Nick JD) might be less cautious. Whatever works for the individual brewer is the right way forward.

Best value for money, effective no rinse besides bleach/vinegar is probably star san from fivestar chemicals. They also make saniclean. Idophor (basically an iodine based solution) is also popular.

Due to recent infections I actually use chlorine, boiling water, sodium metabisulphite and star san all in sequence for most brewing equipment (not the bottles though). The hot water and sodium met are as much to drive off chlorine as they are to sanitise - they just serve a dual purpose. I'm not suggesting anyone needs to go anywhere near to that extent unless they've also been unfortunate enough to tip out 60+ litres of AG beer in one go.

I have a really interesting podcast from the creator of starsan about bleach, vinegar, no-rinse, starsan etc. He swears by bleach/vinegar, but he made starsan to keep it simple and effective for brewers across the globe.

I'll give it a go The idea has been lurking in my mind, even though I am happy with current methods.

Chucking out 60L of AG.....now that REALLY is heart breaking....its worse. It's.......its........?? (is there a work for such inhumanity?)

 

[phinnsfotos]

All my bottles get a good rinse and shake as they're getting drunk

Then I use a bottle brush and bottle wash detergent when I've got a batch of them up. I notice the water does get ever so slightly cloudy after about 15 bottles (so I change water and detergent), but it does make me think that even after a good shake and rinse the still need some mechanical cleaning with the brush.

Then they get the starsan on brew day.

 

[Jamieman]

My system may be a little basic but seems to work.
Triple rinse after pouring into 2 schooner glasses
Lid back on & into a milk crate
Day before bottle day, double rinse then fill to the brim with bleach/water to the ratio of 1 cup to 30L of water.
Let sit for 24hrs
Give a good hit with bottle brush.
Triple rinse immediately prior to bottling.
Never had an infection related to bottling.
Big water bill tho.
Need to go to kegs.

 

[Dazza_devil]

I think I might be over the top with my bottle cleaning methods but I figure it's better that way than under-cautious.
All bottles get a thorough rinse with hot water after emptying of contents, sometimes in the morning, OK mostly in the morning.
Any new bottles with labels get a two day soak in napisan diluted as directions on the container.
Bottles already in the system get a half hour or more soak in PBW or that pink stuff and a whippin with the bottle brush, the one with a tail to scrub the bottoms.
Then comes a rinse in cold water followed by a rinse in hot which includes an agitation with another bottle brush.
Then they get filled with boiling water from the kettle, sit for 10 mins and then emptied and put on the bottle tree.
Next day they get a flush with starsan or H2O2 using my bottle rinser, they then drain on the bottle tree for an hour or so before being filled with God's nectar.

 

[Siborg]

shit, after reading some of your methods, I hope I haven't f**ked it up! I just shook the shit out of em a few times, then brewcraft no rinse san and shook again. Time will tell.

 

[kelbygreen]

I used bleach and vinegar last time and I know you shouldnt use scented bleach but I needed to bottle and was a sunday and wasnt going to the supermarket (been drinking) so I used it not a sign of bleach taste or anything the head didnt retain to well but I cant say if that was from the bleach or not.