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Cleaning and Sanitation Quaff General Meeting September 2010 By Paul Gagnon DISCLOSURE I AM NOT A CHEMIST! Why clean or sanitize? • It’s been said that most of a brewers job is essentially to be a glorified Janitor • Without clean equipment, it doesn’t matter how perfect your brewing skill is … you’re brew is likely to be negatively impacted • It takes time, and some money, but both are worth it to be a successful brewer Cleaning ≠ Sanitizing You cannot sanitize without first cleaning What is the Difference? CLEANING • Removing soils, both organic and inorganic • Remove bulk of potential contaminants • Expose base material to sanitizing agent SANITATION • Reduce spoiling agents (bacteria, yeast, other molds, etc.) to a negligible level • NOT the same thing as sterilization (100% of microbes) Cleaning Four keys to effective cleaning • 3 T’s – Time • Generally the longer the contact time, the more effective the solution – Temperature • Warm to hot is best, but not too hot! – Turbulence • Agitation of the solution, or scrubbing, will get the job done quicker – More of any of these three T’s means less of the others, to a point • Concentration – Mix cleaning solutions according to manufacturers directions! (more is not better, but more expensive and possibly harmful) Why use a cleaning agent at all? • Alkali based cleaners dissolve organic substances, greatly aiding in cleaning • Acid based cleaners dissolve inorganic substances • The surfactants in most cleaners help get cleaning solution into nooks and crannies • Sometimes you can’t easily see or reach what you are cleaning, and need to be reasonably sure it’s being cleaned (e.g. counterflow chiller, kegs) • The better cleaning agents include a mix of the best chemicals for brewery cleaning (alkali’s, percarbonate, chelators, surfactants) Some commercial cleaning agents • In order of MY preference – Five Star PBW (powdered brewery wash) – Oxyclean – Barkeeps Friend (Oxalyic acid) – Caustic (careful!) – Others: Dish detergent, baking soda, iodine-based Things to keep in mind • Scrub when applicable, soak when appropriate – Do NOT scrub plastics, soaking is best – Carboy brushes can be a PiTA, a 24-hour soak in PBW will take care of almost anything • Wear gloves when handling chemicals – Unless it’s been a long time since your last chemical peel exfoliation • Try to be efficient – Hot water from chiller is excellent base for final clean up – Transfer cleaning solution around, especially when cleaning kegs Sanitizing What to sanitize? • Focus on cold-side equipment – Don’t worry about HLT, Mash Tun, Boil kettle (pre-boil at least) – Basically boil kettle valve onward through the brewing process – Don’t forget tools • Sanitize all transfer lines frequently, but replace regularly • If there’s a remote chance it’s going to touch cooled wort … sanitize it – Keep a spray bottle of sanitizer handy • Not a bad idea to sanitize hot-side equipment now and then as well Different sanitizers require different handling • Star-San – Mix according to instructions, one ounce per 5 gallons, adding Star-San to water, not vice versa; avoids foaming – Cool to warm water (not hot, <110oF) – Only need a few minutes of contact time – DO NOT RINSE! (and don’t fear the foam … take advantage of it) – Use distilled water, and as long as ph above 3.5, it’s still good! • Iodophor – Again, use proper concentrations (1 tablespoon per 5 gallons) and you won’t need to rinse with 2 minute contact time – May start turning plastics yellow, but not harmful • Bleach – – – – Use 1 tablespoon per gallon of water 20 minutes contact time RINSE VERY WELL with boiled water That said … saving a few cents by using bleach is not worth it considering the far better alternatives available, in my opinion Sanitizing Tips • Careful how you dispose of sanitizers • Keep a spray bottle of sanitizer handy • You don’t need to fill a carboy with Star-San to sanitize it, use a gallon and shake it • Boiling is an effective way to sanitize well – Especially good for oxygen stones, stainless parts • Oven can be used too for dry sterilizing – Check out How-to-Brew site or book for detail on time/temp – http://www.howtobrew.com/section1/chapter2-2-3.html • Make sure it is CLEAN first! Special Topic: Keg Washing • Drain and rinse dead kegs, stash away • Wait until have 3-4 kegs to clean • I disassemble each time, cleaning parts while keg soaks in hot PBW for 30 minutes • Reassemble and push hot cleaner into next keg • Repeat with remaining kegs, followed by hot water rinse, then sanitizer • Clean kegerator lines at same time • Save final keg of sanitizer to use later • Some custom keg cleaner rigs on the internet – http://www.homebrewtalk.com/f35/my-cheap-easy-kegwasher-109684/ Cleaning and Sanitizing is important Don’t skimp, it’s pennies per batch to do it right and time well spent QUESTIONS?