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Old Equipment - Still Good?
Hello,
I've got a couple of brews under my belt and when someone mentioned that they had an old home brewing kit that didn't want anymore I jumped at the opportunity. I know that none of it has been used for about 7-10 years and I am wondering if it is still ok to use. There is a little bit of gunk in the bottom of one of the plastic fermentors. If I can scrub it clean and rinse it out with bleach should it be ok to use?
Thank You
Depends on what the gunk is. I would wash it out real good first, then use electrasol or straight A to get it as clean as you can, sanitize it, and see if it stinks. As long as there are no scratches in it, you are probably ok.
Bleach is fine in a pinch, but don't let it sit long. I don't use it. If it dries, once beer goes in it will leech off flavors and kill your beer. So if you choose bleach, use it VARY sparingly, but its best to just use the cleaners designed for brewing.
I would say let some cleaning solution sit in it for a few hours, even overnight. Just because there is gunk in the bottom doesn't mean it is hosed. Worst case scenario, buy a new bucket.
Some of my buckets sat with crap in the bottom for MONTHS with no use. They were NASTY! I cleaned them up a few times, threw in some elbow grease, and put some brew in it. Turned out fine.
Thanks, I'll definetly give it a shot. Are there any no-rinse cleaners out there that are easily available at a grocery store or do most of the good ones need to be had from a brew supply store?
Personally, the ONLY no rinse cleaner I know of is One Step. I haven't used it in ages. I feel better with two stage cleaning myself.
For a long time I just used electrasol. I would buy the large generic boxes at Walmart for around $3, and that would last me months. I went back to using Straight A, which is around $4, and there are two sizes of Star San, small and large, which run around $7 and $12, depending on where you go.
You can also use iodophor, green bottle, goes on yellow since it is iodine based. You have to be careful because it can stain very easily. If you use it VERY sparingly, you are fine.
The nice thing about Star San is it can be reused MANY times and is food grade. I leave the suds in my keg and pour beer over the top. Never had a problem.
If you google for no rinse cleaners you might find some, but One Step is all I know of. There are several different cleaners out there. You just have to find what works best for you.
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