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Mold in Bottles
Alright, I have a few bottles that were not cleaned after use and a little mold has built up in the bottom of them. Should I even try to reuse these bottles? Or are they too far gone?
Also, whats the best way to clean them if they can be reused? I have about ten 22 oz. bottles that have a little mold in them and I'd hate to have to throw them out. Thanks in advance for any and all input.
Soak them good in PBW and clean them with a bottling brush.....rinse good and sanitize before next use.....should be good as new..... 
Glass is pretty much non-porous, and most of the beer cleaners I've seen are low-level organic acids. A good soak and a scrub should set them right, since that mold is probably just growing on a film in the glass rather than on the glass itself.
-R
Gotta love that PBW!!
BrewLuva wrote:
Gotta love that PBW!!
Doesn't mean you have to like the gunk......I brewed an IPA and gave a case to my brother's former boss (he's a lawyer !! never know) and told him to rinse out the bottles real good after opening.....well 3 or 4 still had some serious gunk in them from not rinsing....enough it made me gag.....anyway this was this evening after the post..... a little PBW and a good shaking and some soak time and all is good.....didn't need to get the bottle brush out........hope he rinses all the bottles out this time.....
I find that just the PBW rinse is enough to get the gunk out. No scrubbing needed. I usually fill a large tub (party tub) with water and PBW. Then I'll soak 3 cases of bottles (12oz) in there for a few days. I blast them with my bottle jet washer attached to a garden hose and they are perfectly clean. No scrubbing.
I do the same with carboys, long soak, no scrub.
I found that amonia works really good too.
Some friends and I had been saving bottle for months in preparation for my first batch. Unfortunatly most were not rinsed afterwards. After reading here that amonia works wonders for removing labels (and it does) I filled a cooler with water and added about a cup of amonia. I was able to fit almost two cases worth of bottles and that amonia had most labels off within 30 minutes.
I was a little disgusted when I realized all the little floaties coming out of the bottles were mold but it came loose almost immediatly and after a couple days of soaking I gave them a good soak/scrub in bleach then rinsed before running through the rinse and dry cycle in my diswasher.
Amonia is cheap (.89 at W-mart) and effective for initial soaking and label removal and any mold just floats right out.
Just watch getting ammonia and bleach around each other......I buy my sanitizers and cleaners in bulk......although the initial cost is higher, the savings in the long run are great......2oz PBW = $1.50......4lbs = 17.95.......32 2oz packs in a 4lb tub= 32* $1.50 = $48............$17.95 / 32 = 56 cents.....less than ammonia and environmentally safe and doesn't harm your sewer or septic and it's made for brewing purposes and is multifuctional......bottles, kettles, mash tuns, wort chillers, etc.
Alright, so what does PBW stand for and where do I get it?
Rooster wrote:
Alright, so what does PBW stand for and where do I get it?
Powdered Brewery Wash .......it's made by Five Star Chemicals they also make StarSan, SaniClean, and 5.2 PH Stabilizer among other things.......it is readily available at most homebrew stores.....I usually buy it at Midwest when I place an order ($17.95).....other places are usually around $20 for a 4lb tub.....look around and get it in the 4lb. tub .......they like selling you 2oz packs and 1 lb containers because they make more money ......they will get my MORE MONEY in bigger purchases, so we we will both benefit....
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