Sanitation with Oxy Clean Free

Johnv 2018-12-01 16:52:07 UTC #1

Fairly new brewer (I’m into my 7th Brew) and had a sanitation question. I have been using One Step no rinse sanitizer on brew day, but for general cleaning after brewing (carboys, bottles, equipment, etc.) I am using Oxy Clean Free. I generally rinse the Oxy Clean off after using it. Can I use Oxy Clean on brew day as a sanitizer and do I need to rinse it?

squeegeethree 2018-12-01 17:40:51 UTC #2

oxyclean doesn't kill anything it just cleans. you cannot trust it as a sanitizer. get some Starsan

loopie_beer 2018-12-01 18:59:52 UTC #3

As @squeegeethree said you’ll need a sanitizer like Star San.

Some tips:
- get a food safe bucket that has a lid. This way you can store it. It is good as long as the pH remains at or below 3.
- make only a half batch (2.5gals vs 5gal). It’s a lot more than you think and will allow your product to last longer.
- it’s effective as long as the items are “wet.” They don’t necessarily need to be submerged.
- fill a spray bottle and fill it with your StarSan solution for easy sanitation.
- use distilled/RO water for it to last longer.

There’s probably many more that I’m missing. Feel free to check around for more tips.

sneezles61 2018-12-01 19:24:05 UTC #4

I have one of my kegs dedicated to star san... Some times after its sat for a week, you can push a cup out, riddled with debris that I'll toss... I can stuff hoses into the keg to soak just before using... Pour into another keg, the push back into the Star san keg ... You know purging.. The spray bottle is a must... I do check mine from time to time with the pH meter too... Sneezles61

wilcolandzaat 2018-12-01 20:53:32 UTC #5

For a while did use oxyclean to clean my kettels. But had a strange feeling. So went back to dpw powder. Combined with starsan spray bottle

brew_cat 2018-12-01 21:50:38 UTC #6

I wash all my equipment with oxyclean it's good stuff works great on beer glasses no worries about soapy film. Still need starsan for sanitizer

radagast 2018-12-01 22:45:56 UTC #7

I keep a bucket of star san in my basement by the swamp cooler bucket. Call me lazy but I just keep it until it's gone and make up a new 5 gallon batch. Everything that will have any contact post boil goes into it. I use my old bottling bucket since I keg now and don't need it anymore. I've never checked the ph even though I realize I probably should as a bucket can last me 3-6 months depending on how often I brew. Bottling bucket is nice because then I can hook the hose up after I've cooled the wort and push star san through my chiller. I dunk bottles in it when I bottle off tap, give a quick dunk to caps before putting on bottles, very handy bucket to have around to keep stuff sanitary.

When I empty a keg, I clean it out and then put about a quart of star san from my bucket in, seal it up and slosh it all around, then push it out through my taps. This serves to sanitize the keg, the lines, and the taps before hooking up a new keg.

For reference, I keep a tub of PBW for cleaning purposes as well.

Rad

dannyboy58 2018-12-02 16:56:28 UTC #8

I used Oxy in place of PBW for a while for cleaning. It seemed to leave a residue on glass carboys that PBW did not so I went back.

Agree with all above...star san is your best bet for sanitizing.

dannyboy58 2018-12-02 16:57:16 UTC #9

radagast:

I keep a bucket of star san in my basement by the swamp cooler bucket. Call me lazy but I just keep it until it's gone and make up a new 5 gallon batch. Everything that will have any contact post boil goes into it. I use my old bottling bucket since I keg now and don't need it anymore. I've never checked the ph even though I realize I probably should as a bucket can last me 3-6 months depending on how often I brew. Bottling bucket is nice because then I can hook the hose up after I've cooled the wort and push star san through my chiller. I dunk bottles in it when I bottle off tap, give a quick dunk to caps before putting on bottles, very handy bucket to have around to keep stuff sanitary.

When I empty a keg, I clean it out and then put about a quart of star san from my bucket in, seal it up and slosh it all around, then push it out through my taps. This serves to sanitize the keg, the lines, and the taps before hooking up a new keg.

For reference, I keep a tub of PBW for cleaning purposes as well.

Rad

THIS^^