28 replies to this topic

[Murphy]

two things to note. if you make a solution it is exothermic so only add a little of the NaOH to water at a time (be careful). and if you are going to pour excess down the drain you should neutralize this with some acid to get the pH near neutral. you can do this with vinegar as the acetic acid with take care of this and you will just be dumping a sodium acetate solution (be careful again).

[CaptRon]

the environmentalist gadfly in me says that dumping a high pH solution into your municipal water system would be highly irresponsible. In many areas, Sodium Hydroxide is clasified as an RCRA hazardous waste and it is illegal to dump in the sewer. I know that its very possible to use this chemical safely and responsibly, but I'm wondering why you want to. The big virtue of stainless steel is how easy it is to clean, you shouldn't need anything more than oxygen bleach and elbow grease.

No Bleach with Stainless. That will cause problems with pitting and rusting on stainless.

[chuck_d]

When you use it be careful I wear rubber gloves and eye protection.

This needs to be reiterated...again. Also ensure proper rinsing after use. Do not put caustic into a CO2 environment as it will cause a vacuum and collapse the container.I honestly cannot imagine why you need this in a standard homebrewery. There are so many other cleaning chemicals available that are much safer to work with. You are talking about doing 2 hour long soaks, which to me begs the question, why caustic? You aren't taking advantage of the stronger cleaning. Pro-breweries are businesses, and cleaning cannot take a long time. In order to shorten the time they use stronger cleaning chemicals, caustic for breweries often has additional ingredients to improve its cleaning power, it's used hot and it's pumped at high speeds to create turbulence. Why do you think you should use caustic instead of PBW or oxyclean to soak SS vessels?

[HerrHiller]

This needs to be reiterated...again. Also ensure proper rinsing after use. Do not put caustic into a CO2 environment as it will cause a vacuum and collapse the container.I honestly cannot imagine why you need this in a standard homebrewery. There are so many other cleaning chemicals available that are much safer to work with. You are talking about doing 2 hour long soaks, which to me begs the question, why caustic? You aren't taking advantage of the stronger cleaning. Pro-breweries are businesses, and cleaning cannot take a long time. In order to shorten the time they use stronger cleaning chemicals, caustic for breweries often has additional ingredients to improve its cleaning power, it's used hot and it's pumped at high speeds to create turbulence. Why do you think you should use caustic instead of PBW or oxyclean to soak SS vessels?

I probably won't. I knew it was a hazardous material, but after reading all these posts it seems a lot more hazardous than I though previously. I was more or less curious about it. I don't think curiosity will kill this cat,yo.

[chuck_d]

Word, yeah. I just use PBW, BLC, Oxiclean and BKF at home, and of course also StarSan/Saniclean.

[cj in j]

I think some of you guys worry too much. Yes, caustics are dangerous chemicals, but with care they aren’t difficult to use. We use three different kinds of caustics in the brewery along with several types of acid cleaners. As many have said, gloves and goggles are mandatory. Use them and be normally careful and you’ll be fine. I’ve been at the brewery for a year and a half now and have never been splashed with concentrated caustics (or acids) -- and only a very few minor splashes with diluted cleaners. No burns, no problems at all.I also agree that it’s not necessary to use that crap in a home brewery. PBW, Barkeepers Friend, BLC -- those three are pretty much all you need to keep things shiny and new. Spend the extra money and be safe.

[ChefLamont]

I am somewhere in the middle on the whole thing. I too understand the dangers of NaOH, but like guns, fast cars, and fast women, if you know what you are getting into, use proper precautions, and are careful about it, it can be very rewarding. If not it can be downright dangerous.Having said that, I havent found a stain or whatever that couldnt be removed with warm oxyclean solution. Since I dont have to clean in place and can get a scrub brush on every surface, I dont really see using it. If you have something that oxy isnt getting good enough like a plate chiller or something, I say get smart and prepared and let 'er rip.Another thing that probably goes without saying but will be said is be EXTRA careful to keep caustic away from the little one. That would be reason enough to keep it out of the house for me.

[HerrHiller]

I am somewhere in the middle on the whole thing. I too understand the dangers of NaOH, but like guns, fast cars, and fast women, if you know what you are getting into, use proper precautions, and are careful about it, it can be very rewarding. If not it can be downright dangerous.Having said that, I havent found a stain or whatever that couldnt be removed with warm oxyclean solution. Since I dont have to clean in place and can get a scrub brush on every surface, I dont really see using it. If you have something that oxy isnt getting good enough like a plate chiller or something, I say get smart and prepared and let 'er rip.Another thing that probably goes without saying but will be said is be EXTRA careful to keep caustic away from the little one. That would be reason enough to keep it out of the house for me.

ya audrey is one of the MAIN reasons I'm prolly not going to do it.

[AiredAle]

To me, it's all about minimizing the risk of hurting myself or someone else. Risk is a combination of exposure to a hazard and the severity of the hazard. You can manage risk two ways, by reducing the severity of the hazard - don't use caustic when safer chemicals will do the job, or by reducing exposure - lots of precautions and protective equipment when you use the caustic. None of us need to use caustic in our homebreweries, so why exposure yourself to the the risk of burning your hands, face or worse, your eyes? Since it't not necessary to use the caustic, reduce your risk of harm by using an inherently safer chemical, that will do the same job, just a bit slower.