Hygiene - varying standards?

[feral_hermit]

Greetings,
Having just completed another bottling, I wondered just how widely the term "hygiene" is interpreted amongst home- brewers. Thinking back to my first attempts as a student, attention to detail wasn't necessarily a strong point although it was nothing that lashings of sodium metabisulphite and citric acid couldn't seem to fix. We used old Newcastle Brown bottles which cost us the 5p each deposit from the Union shop, capped off with plastic caps. Cleaning them out was a chore as often the remnants of the contents would have provided a welcoming habitat for various moulds :sick:. I don't remember spending an awful lot of time cleaning them up but it must have been sufficient as we never had a batch go off on us.
As far as my "default" routine goes with regards to hygiene, I fill all my bottles with VWP solution and leave for about 24 hours (it would be less but I'm busy!). Then a good rinse using the rinser (sterilised with VWP) then left to drip dry on a bottle tree (cleaned but not necessarily sterile). As for bottling, the siphon tube I sterilise, especially the internal bore, before flushing through with clean water. I still start off the siphon using the Mk 1 mouth but generally having had a good rinse out first with cold water (more for show than effect probably). I discard the first 1/4 pint of beer flowing through the siphon then give the output end a rinse in Oxypro (sp?) solution followed by more clean water. Then bottling commences. The Crown Caps I just fire onto the bottles as is, I tend not to bother sterilising or cleaning them. Where I refer to "clean water", this is straight from the tap and is not pre-boiled.
Having said all of the above, I would alter my routine where circumstances dictate such as dodgy looking matter inside the siphon etc.
I would tend to veer towards action so as to be on the safe side so as to protect one's time & efforts already invested. However, this is where I see things taking on a vicious circle effect: the more effort already expended, the more likely that further smaller &/or "fussier" cleansings and sterilisations are deemed necessary. Where to stop?
So that is my question to the forum. I'd be interested to hear of other people's routines and of disasters where attempted short cuts lead to re-appraisals.
In summary, all that cleaning and sterilising is thirsty work - easily quenched :drink:

 

[prolix]

I don't do much bottling, just a few pints per brew as I can't stand the effort.

wash the bottles asap after pouring just hot water and a shake, if soiled washing soda for 24 hours, if still soiled recycle and get new one. leave to dry inverted. cover top of bottle with a bit of tin foil to stop ingress. store.

bottling day, rinse out, then add no rinse iodine solution, shake leave for 30 secs, drain leave inverted. fill with co2 fill with beer, Crown immediately, crowns washed in no rinse sanitiser and left in pot until I take them out to crown.

 

[Moley]

Beer bottles, rinsed as soon as they are emptied, damn good shake, rinse again. When I've got a dozen or so in my ‘unclean‘ bucket I'll soak them in a sink of Steri-Clean, rinse twice with hot-as-it-will-run tap water, drain, cover with foil and put them in my ‘ready-to-go’ milk crate. Crown caps straight out of the bag.

Demijohns sterilised, rinsed, left holding one inch of water plus one camden tablet, covered with foil, swirled occasionally, sterilised again before use.

Siphon tube rinsed well immediately after use, soaked in steriliser before next use and rinsed through.

Wine musts in lidded buckets, daily stirring with steel spoons straight out of cutlery drawer and briefly dunked in a jug of boiling water.

My hydrometer lives in a platic tube and I really can't be bothered to soak it in sterilising solution every time I want to use it. Its storage tube is full of vodka: remove from tube, quick rinse under the tap, drop into beer/wine to be tested, quick rinse under the tap, back into the vodka. Periodically, pour vodka into wife's glass (well it's a girlie drink after all) and refill tube with fresh.

 

[SheyMouse]

Do any of you know how long you can keep a bowl/bucket of sterilising solution / VWP for before it is useless? I am currently taking about three days over making a brew. Moley helped with one question of stirring wine must. However, if I wanted to sterilise everything every time while I am making a brew, could i make up a large bucket of VWP and dip everything in before use over the 3 or so day period?

 

[Aleman]

You don't need 25L of sanitising solution, a couple of litres in a bucket and wiped (using a clean sponge/cloth) over 15-20 minutes will be more than enough. Or even shake and swirl the solution over the surface.

As long as you clean the equipment / bottles / kegs immediately after use, a very simple sanitising regime is often enough. . . . however I have picked up a couple of infections in my cornii so more drastic action is required and I will be boil sanitising them . . . the benefit of this is that having cleaned the kegs, I then boil water in them for 15 minutes . . . then put the lid on and blow out the water with CO2 . . . cleaned sanitised and purged kegs ready to recieve beer.

Bottles - Rinse well three times with hot water immediately after use. Invert and allow to drain/dry. When I have enough (6 or so) Into the sink with some chlorinated caustic (VWP chempro) to get the labels off and sanitise. . .. rinse 3 times with hot water invert allow to dry . . . cap with silver foil until ready to use. . . . Spray with no rinse sanitiser . . . invert and allow to drain . . . fill with beer cap.

The times I get slack with this I end up with a few infected bottles from a batch . . .

 

[SheyMouse]

The times I get slack with this I end up with a few infected bottles from a batch . . .

:sick:

You don't need 25L of sanitising solution, a couple of litres in a bucket and wiped (using a clean sponge/cloth) over 15-20 minutes will be more than enough. Or even shake and swirl the solution over the surface.

Thanks. That is helpful. Have you or anyone else reading this kept sterilizing solution for a day or more to re-use during a whole brew process? I'm not really trying to be a skinflint, but I am trying to think of more efficient use of the equipment at hand.

Thanks for your help as usual. :thumb:

 

[pjbiker]

kept sterilizing solution for a day or more to re-use during a whole brew process

Not quite, looks like everyone has varying SOPs for sterilising, havn't read all of them. However, I often leave a VWP (chlorine) solution in the bottom of my cleaned kegs until next used. I just rinse, rinse again and rack.

Personally I think I've had more problems with chlorine tainting my brews in the past. I have read of the TCP/chloramine taste :sick: coming from the chlorine in tap water and the whole debate about drawing liquor the day before and adding 1/2 campden tablet/5 gallon. A couple of brews had that TCP taste I put it down to not sufficiently rinsing the sterilising solution from the lid seal of my fermenter. Not had a bad one since I started rinsing everything to death (though I still draw my liquor at least 8 hours before brewing anyway).

The only other infection I've had in my 19 brew history resulted in a distinct acetone flavour. I use yeast cultures collected from the slurry of each brew and keep jarred in the fridge. If it smells of nail varnish remover, I chuck it and use a different one.

 

[Aleman]

The other source of TCP like taste is - Infection.

If you are treating your water with a campden tablet . . . you don't need to draw it the night before it works more or less instantly. . . Crush Tablet in FV, run water into FV, Stir . . . Use.

I store brewing vessels clean and dry . . . . I have found that leaving sterilising solutions in plastic containers can have a detrimental effect on the plastic.

Things like VWP/Chempro and professional Brewing cleanser/sanitisers are designed to be easily rinsed . . . and one of the most effective ways of ensuring that it has rinsed,is to use a dilute sulphite solution as a final rinse. . . the slight acidity cancles the caustic element, and the sulphite removed the chlorine . . . Sulphite can then be removed using a pint of hot/boiling water shaken around the vessel.

 

[SheyMouse]

Wanting to brew my first beer tonight and so getting myself prepared-ish. :whistle:

From Aleman's last post:

If you are treating your water with a campden tablet . . . you don't need to draw it the night before it works more or less instantly. . . Crush Tablet in FV, run water into FV, Stir . . . Use.

I'm making a 10 litre brew tonight. How much campden should I add to my liquor to remove chlorine, etc. Definitely wanting to avoid TCP taste. Also, how long after adding campden will the water be ready to use?

 

[ano]

A quarter tablet would be enough, but a half is perhaps easier to get. As aleman said, it's ready to use instantly. Add the tablet make sure it's dissolved (no powder at the bottom) and you're good to go.

 

[SheyMouse]

Fantastic news. Today is now officially a brewday! WoHoo! :party:

 

[The Seer]

I use five teaspoons of VWP (gone are the days of Chempro?) diluted with warm tap water in the barrels. Empty,rinse four times with cold tap water.

As for bottling, five teaspoons of VWP diluted with warm water, making up 25 litres in barrel. Then add the crown caps to the sterilising solution. Using the smooth flow tap at the bottom, fill each bottle. I tend to leave the bottles once they're all filled for one to three days (judging when the brew is ready for bottling). When the beer is ready, empty bottles and rinse with cold tap water. Bottle beer accordingly.