Sanitizer use by date?

[onescooter]

I have had a persisting problem with every beer I have made for some time now. The only thing that I can think of that is constant throughout is the sanitizer that I'm using. It is a bottle of Starsan that I have had for a while. I wouldn't have thought that this could be my problem but I can't think of much else.



Not sure if the lot code on the bottle says anything about when it should be replaced. Is starsan something that should be replaced from time to time?
Any help would be appreciated.
Thanks, Scott.

 

[AHB_Admin]

Hey Scott,

Found out it does have an expiry. Hope this helps.

https://www.homebrewfinds.com/2016/...ext=Star San Shelf Life,are over 2 years old.

 

[yankinoz]

The above article refers to diluted Star-San. I believe the question pertains to a stock bottle.

Star-San contains phosphoric acid and dispersant/foam agents. So long as there is no contamination, the phosphoric acid should not degrade. If it keeps foaming, keep using. Many casual brewers have had a bottle on the shelf for years.

 

[mblwest]

Not sure if I am missing something but what is the problem?

 

[onescooter]

The problem I have been having for probably the last ten plus batches of beer is that there is something off with them. Not sure what it is but every beer ends up tasting the same as the last. Hoppy beers don'y have any hop flavours. Lagers don't taste like lagers. They all just taste like bland stale beers. Doesn't matter whether I brew them myself or FWK. Have tried different fermenters and different packaging. Have even tried brewing in different states. All beers end up marginally better than a drain pour. The only thing that I can think of that is common to all brews is the fermentation fridge and the sanitizer. The fridge shouldn't have any effect as the fermenter is a sealed unit, which only leaves the sanitizer. This doesn't make a whole lot of sense to me either as I would have that that a bottle of Starsan wouldn't cause issues. At the moment I am clutching at straws. I have honestly thought about giving up the hobby but I am a persistant *******.

 

[Grok]

Maybe its your tongue......

 

[mblwest]

I know Grok is joking but that could be a thing i.e. Covid, but assuming you have also tried bought beers that taste fine then that rules that out. For the small cost of a new bottle of sanitizer you should do that anyway. I have also wondered about the shelf life of mixed sanitizer, end up just dumping and mixing new stuff on the day to be sure. Stale to me comes from oxygen exposure as per all other foods. If you are gravity fermenting and racking then there is a lot of opportunity for oxygen ingress, check your seals on your fermenter. Don't give up!

 

[simonflowers]

i have had a similar thought about shelf life...

my stellar-san is going cloudy (looks like some milk mixed in the water) when making a larger batch. i changed containers (HDPE still), but within a week its still cloudy (but still foams). It isn't in the sun either. I'm mixing at 1.5ml/litre.

Anyone had this, but more importantly, is it still ok?

 

[Grok]

As Yankinoz says, being phosphoric acid and a surfactant/foaming agent (probably just "Labs Acid"), then it should be fine, but check the pH, it should be less than 3.5 and it will do its job apparently.

You can make your own if you want, source some 85% Phosphoric acid (normal lab acid concentrate), and some Linear alkylbenzene sulfonic acid (LABSA) "Labs Acid" (look it up!) from your local industrial chemicals supplier, say 0.5~1 Litre of H3PO4 and about 100~500ml or less of "Labs Acid" and you're good to go.
Mix ratio about 2ml of 85% Phosphoric acid per Litre of water + 0.5~1 drop (I'm not kidding) of surfactant and there you essentially have Starsan.
I just use an old "plastic chop stick" and dip it the tip into the surfactant then mix that in to the acid solution, you need very little of it, a little goes a long way!
Bunnings also sell "PH DOWN" in the hydroponics/irrigation section that is also 85% Phosphoric acid.
Test the solution so its about pH3 or less.
Much cheaper to make your own!

 

[onescooter]

I did consider that maybe my mouth was the problem, but no issues with store bought beer. Not sure about the oxygen as I was not having any problems for 10+ years and if anything I am more anal about cleaning and purging now than I have ever been. Last batch was split into two different fermenters and three different packages and they all tasted very average.