18 replies to this topic

[HerrHiller]

Ok...so I used a better bottle for the first time...and I was able to get most of the "stuck in the upper corner trub" out but there still a couple tiny pieces. I assume a carboy brush is out of the question here since you don't want to scratch it. How do you guys clean urs? I was thinking a good half hour PBW batch but at the time I was in a hurry...so I was just trying to shake and slosh as much as I could with hot water in 5 minutes. Any suggestions of what I should do to finish the job tonight?

[DaBearSox]

i just let it soak with oxyclean over night...always works

[HVB]

Fill it up with hot PBW and let it sit. Carboy brush is a no -no as it will scratch. I seen on one site they used a carboy brish with a sock over it but I think that will still scratch. You can also fill it with some hot pbw and force a rag into it and shake the bejezus out of it and that usualy works. I actualy think that is what BB has on their site as a cleaning method.https://www.better-b.../technical.html look under washing.

[jammer]

i just let it soak with oxyclean over night...always works

This.

[ThroatwobblerMangrove]

Initial rinse. Then warm (but no hot) water about 1/4 full. Shake the hell out of it. Rinse. Fill with warm water and oxiclean and let sit 24 hours. Drain, rinse, dry.

[BrewerGeorge]

i just let it soak with oxyclean over night...always works

Yep.If you need it clean faster, use more oxyclean and hotter water. Two oz and hottest tap water will get almost everything except the most stubborn wheat proteins in about an hour. Anything that comes out of a domestic water heater is safe, but much hotter will deform the bottles. I will also occasionally gently use a bottle brush to get those stubborn proteins after a soak to loosen them up. They are loose enough that a rag inside or a good blast of water would do the same thing, but the brush is easier. I don't have any scratches, and I think the bristles themselves are okay if you're gentle. The wire center is what scratches.

[ThroatwobblerMangrove]

Yep.If you need it clean faster, use more oxyclean and hotter water. Two oz and hottest tap water will get almost everything except the most stubborn wheat proteins in about an hour. Anything that comes out of a domestic water heater is safe, but much hotter will deform the bottles. I will also occasionally gently use a bottle brush to get those stubborn proteins after a soak to loosen them up. They are loose enough that a rag inside or a good blast of water would do the same thing, but the brush is easier. I don't have any scratches, and I think the bristles themselves are okay if you're gentle. The wire center is what scratches.

just be careful with the super hot water on better bottles. I can't remember the threshold but there is a limit - maybe 140F??

[HVB]

just be careful with the super hot water on better bottles. I can't remember the threshold but there is a limit - maybe 140F??

Yes those plastic carboys do not like really hot water. I will not not go hotter than tap water after having 2 deform.

[ThroatwobblerMangrove]

Yes those plastic carboys do not like really hot water. I will not not go hotter than tap water after having 2 deform.

yes - I just checked - 140F is the upper temperature limit.

[Recklessdeck]

I use my BB only for secondary fermentations, means cleanup involves little beyond a thorough rinse. Honestly I don't see any reason why they would be preferable to buckets when doing primaries. Using them exclusively for conditioning means you will never worry about bits of krausen in those hard to each spots.

[BrewerGeorge]

Yes those plastic carboys do not like really hot water. I will not not go hotter than tap water after having 2 deform.

I accidentally pumped 180F water into one of mine once. It did certainly deform, part of the side fluting near the top relaxed and flattened, but I still use it. The affected spot is only about 4" x 4". My point is that 140F isn't going to do much.

[HVB]

I accidentally pumped 180F water into one of mine once. It did certainly deform, part of the side fluting near the top relaxed and flattened, but I still use it. The affected spot is only about 4" x 4". My point is that 140F isn't going to do much.

I had done it in the winter. When the BB was about 32* sitting on cold cement. The hot PBW that I was using to clean the kegs did not mix well at all. It deformed the bottoms so the BB's would not stand. My tap water is 130* and that has been working pretty good.

[Rick]

I was browsing my new LHBS's online shop and they carry a carboy brush for PET containers. I haven't looked at it in person yet, but it is advertised as red. My guess is that it is not a hard plastic, maybe rubber? Anyone every use these?

[Thirsty]

I remember seeing on the old site a couple years ago, someone made a drill attachment that slipped a rag through the end. Kind of like a swab end for a shotgun cleaning rod, but with a rag large enough radius to reach the carboy wall Then like a wine degasser, spin the drill so it smacks the sides cleaning carwash style. I just fill mine 1/4 way with hot PBW, cap it, invert and soak overnight.

[WhiteSoxFan]

+1 on hot PBW or oxyclean soak overnight.

[HerrHiller]

I use my BB only for secondary fermentations, means cleanup involves little beyond a thorough rinse. Honestly I don't see any reason why they would be preferable to buckets when doing primaries. Using them exclusively for conditioning means you will never worry about bits of krausen in those hard to each spots.

I like to really watch fermentation, but don't want broken glass everywhere???

[Kansan]

What about making a carboy\keg washer out of a sump pump and a 5-gal pickle bucket ? 10 minutes of recirculating, under 140 deg, with PBW should make it whisper clean!

[HVB]

What about making a carboy\keg washer out of a sump pump and a 5-gal pickle bucket ? 10 minutes of recirculating, under 140 deg, with PBW should make it whisper clean!

This is what I did. Use it for carboys, kegs and have an attachment so I can use it in my conical. Makes cleaning those really bad carboys a lot easier.

[HerrHiller]

I was browsing my new LHBS's online shop and they carry a carboy brush for PET containers. I haven't looked at it in person yet, but it is advertised as red. My guess is that it is not a hard plastic, maybe rubber? Anyone every use these?

That would make sense. I would think the talk on rubber is so much lower than the talc of the plastic that no matter you could scrub pretty good and not scratch the PET...