TOPIC:

That Basic Brewing Radio Podcast IS very long and the announcer's voice is pretty boring but it is an INCREDIBLE treasure trove of sanitization advice.

-It includes a couple gems on using Iodophor, too such as: Iodophor can be degraded within 3 hours of mixing it with water in worst-case scenarios so far that it's no longer effective so only mix the amount that you need right before you use it.

-Iodophor, unlike most other sanitizers actually works MUCH worse and becomes LESS effective at higher temperatures.

Cool or COLD water should be used with Iodophor.



Adam

"EoinMag":1ghfmu9h wrote: I've tested my star san with a proper pH meter, it's 3.4 when cloudy mixed with my tap water and 2.8 when used with water from Halfords. The guy from five star says pH3 is necessary to be sure to be sure, I know what I am happier using. I have had two infections that were extreme and the errors were one time with laying a lid down on a baby chair wrong way up, and one time putting an unsanitised ladel in the brew while taking a sample, normally I pour some star san into a jug and put the ladel in it. star san has not failed me yet.[/quote:1ghfmu9h]

The acidic action of StarSan by itself isn't what sanitizes (it CERTAINLY won't sanitize in 2 minutes just because of the PH); [b:1ghfmu9h]Cloudy StarSan is acidic soap; not short contact-time sanitizer.[/b:1ghfmu9h]


Adam

"Biertourist":1yds7ju1 wrote:

"Spud 395":1yds7ju1 wrote: I mostly clean things straight after use, FV's, bottles, boiler/mash tun. Its very easy and water and a soft sponge will do most of the work, some soda crystals if anything needs soaking, €1 in Dunnes

I sanatise everything with thin bleach/vineger solution.
20L 3 tablespoons of each, this is supposed to make a no-rinse solution, but I rinse anyway.

Others dont like this method but it works for me and hasnt let me down in over 20 brews.
It's extremely cheap, I'm on my 2nd 5L of Lidl bleach @ €1.39 and 7th Lidl vineger @79c.[/quote:1yds7ju1]

Spud, this is EXACTLY the method that the owner of StarSan talks about in the Basic Brewing Radio podcast I linked to. He also says that the cheaper and more generic the bleach the better and also mentions that bleach's killing power starts degrading the moment it leaves the factory so you should buy small bottles if it's dedicated to brewing. The other obvious thing is to mix the bleach thoroughly with the water FIRST before adding the vinegar or you'll gas yourself. SAFETY FIRST! (He also mentions that if you're keeping the bleach to 80ppm it can be used as no-rinse sanitizer like you mentioned.)


Adam[/quote:1yds7ju1]
Thats where I got it from Adam, good point on the mixing, I forgot to mention that!

[quote:2121qiwt]Read the Basic Brewing Radio link that I posted; it's an interview with the Owner and Inventor of Starsan and in it HE specifically explains the reaction that occurs between StarSan and high mineral content water and explains that this makes it go cloudy and that when it's cloudy it isn't sanitizing. StarSan is called an "Acid anionic" solution; the acid on it's own can't kill and the anionic detergent on it's own don't kill but both of them together kill EVERYTHING including spores. When StarSan is cloudy, it's not sanitizing; it's just a really expensive soap. [/quote:2121qiwt]


Thanks for that. All I can say is that in my experience(thats all I care about) iv had no problem with cloudy starsan. Iv had fermenters left open in my shed for weeks/months and have given them a scrub and then used starsan and iv had no problems with infection. I doubt thats been blind luck. Maybe its super awsome cloudy soap <!-- s:D --><img src="{SMILIES_PATH}/icon_biggrin.gif" alt="" title="Very Happy" /><!-- s:D -->

&amp;quot;scaloban&amp;quot;:3vyj9ark wrote: [quote:3vyj9ark]Read the Basic Brewing Radio link that I posted; it's an interview with the Owner and Inventor of Starsan and in it HE specifically explains the reaction that occurs between StarSan and high mineral content water and explains that this makes it go cloudy and that when it's cloudy it isn't sanitizing. StarSan is called an "Acid anionic" solution; the acid on it's own can't kill and the anionic detergent on it's own don't kill but both of them together kill EVERYTHING including spores. When StarSan is cloudy, it's not sanitizing; it's just a really expensive soap. [/quote:3vyj9ark]


Thanks for that. All I can say is that in my experience(thats all I care about) iv had no problem with cloudy starsan. Iv had fermenters left open in my shed for weeks/months and have given them a scrub and then used starsan and iv had no problems with infection. I doubt thats been blind luck. Maybe its super awsome cloudy soap <!-- s:D --><img src="{SMILIES_PATH}/icon_biggrin.gif" alt="" title="Very Happy" /><!-- s:D -->[/quote:3vyj9ark]


And in my experience, my magic voodoo doll that I hang over my fermenter has permitted me to brew 12 batches in a row without infection; that correlation doesn't prove causality. If the science says it's not going to sanitize with a short contact time, it's not going to sanitize with a short contact time.
Psychology is an interesting thing.


Adam

Ye, short contact time is not a good idea, Id never be as brash as to expect SS to sterilise on contact. Leave it to steep for a few mins and it works fine in my experience. That or my voodoo doll is waaaay better than yours <!-- s:D --><img src="{SMILIES_PATH}/icon_biggrin.gif" alt="" title="Very Happy" /><!-- s:D -->