sanitizing correctly

[jstrausss]

just want to know how carefull do you need to be when sanitizing. when I clean my Equipement, I'm not sure if I should let in dry completely , or Dry it off with a towel or paper towel ?? Can I touch these thing with my hands after sanitizing ?? I have this sanitizer that is said to be rinse free , and it seems to work , but I want to know the dos and don'ts of touching stuff , drying stuff off . what are some common things you guys do ??

[GunNut76]

I use One-Step (NAYY) and I do not rinse. My hands are in the sanitizing solution so I figure that they are clean enough to not worry about touching anything. I usually have a 1 gallon batch made up to sanitize anything that I may have forgotten. I think I am going to switch to Star-San tho. I usually shake off the excess solution and go from there. Havn't had a bad batch yet by doing it in this manner.

[tjones_jr]

Is this the same as B-Brite? I've been using it, and so far haven't noticed anything wrong, however, I'm a novice soooooo everything might be wrong.

[GunNut76]

From what I understand One-Step and Oxy Clean are the same thing...but I could be wrong.

[b3s]

i use a one-step sanitizer (iodophur). i never let things get completely dry, and i don't worry about touching things that are sanitized. on the bottle of iodophur it says to never dry the items sanitized with a towel.

[fuji6100]

Yup, I agree with b3s. A towel is a perfect environment for little nasties to collect and grow, especially after picking up a little moisture.

Basically, don't touch anything that has been sanitized with anything else that has NOT already been sanitized (or packaged sterile to begin with)

[jstrausss]

cool - thanks for the tips . was kind of wondering what everyones procedures where in this area.

Thanks

[badogg]

Here is what I do.

To sanitize everything for the brewing:

I put 2 tablespoons of iodophor in my 6.5 gal carboy and fill with water all the way to the top. I let this sit there while I start my brewing. By the time I get the boil going, the carboy should be sanitized. So I start transferring the iodophor solution with my autosiphon into my 5 gal secondary carboy and put my wine thief in it to sanitize the theif (This seems to keep the sanitizing solution from dissipating also as it doesn't seem to lose any of the amber color from the iodine in the iodophor). When the transfer is done I put some of the remaining solution from the 6.5 gal carboy into another container so I can sanitize things like the airlock/stopper/whatever as I need to. I just make sure to let them sit in it for at least 5 mins to ensure that they are in fact sanitized. After the 6.5 gal carboy is empty, I don't dry it, I just put it upside down in the box it came in to prevent anything from falling into it (nasties fall down not up).

So now, both of my fermentors are sanitized, the autosiphon is sanitized (I make sure to leave some of the iodophor solution in the siphon hose until I use it and set it in a cooler with more solution).

Here is what I do when I am getting ready to bottle:

Make sure all my bottles are clean, give them a good rinse and put them in a cooler that is filled with iodophor solution (make sure to let them fill up with the solution). I also put my siphon and bottle filler in their also. After about 10 mins in the solution, I put them upside down in the boxes they came in to prevent any nasties from getting in them.

I can usually get about 3/4 of a box of the 12oz bottles in at once, and a whole box of 22oz bottles per soak.


I hope this helps.

[brewmonkey]

Set up an area for sanitizing and put down some tin foil for the parts to rest on. Go to the liquor store and buy some of the cheapest vodka you can and put it into a new spray bottle.

Spray the tinfoil with the vodka (lightly) and allow the parts to air dry. When you need a piece just lightly spray it with the vodka.

The vodka also works well for when you take a sample later on from the carboy, all you need to do is spray the stopper and the mouth of the carboy before you put it back in.

[evilredlight]

questions for brewmonkey
why vodka?
could i use rum or gin as well?

and are you serious?

Do you use this meathod in the brewery?

[toneyc]

He may be pulling our collective leg. I would think that anyone who promotes StarSan as much as Brewmonkey would be using it in a spray bottle, instead of Vodka, which becomes a sticky mess as it dries.

:eek:
Toney.

[wortchillergoal]

Vodka is good to use as it is flavorless and you can drink it. Alot of books say to use vodka in your airlock. The other spirits can flavor your beer. Starsan does not go down as easy.

[GunNut76]

Originally posted by wortchillergoal
Vodka is good to use as it is flavorless and you can drink it. Alot of books say to use vodka in your airlock. The other spirits can flavor your beer. Starsan does not go down as easy.

I also would like to say that Starsan is not good for your 3 piece airlock. I used it in the airlock for my last batch and it would not allow it to bubble. I went and sanitized a new airlock and as I have no vodka lying around I filled it with water and a tiny dash of rubbing alchohol. Pulled out the old airlock and heard a sound like a small cork poping.