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1 month old starsan

Northern Brewer General
#1

I mixed 5 gal of starsan about a month ago and stored it in a spare glass carboy and have kept it covered. I went to the pool supply store to buy pH test strips to see if its still below the 3 pH suggested elsewhere. The guy said I’d be fine with the ones I bought and I got them home and their range is like 6.2-7.5…even after asking the owner if they would detect down to 3pH.

Anyway, back on topic. I was wondering if you guys think this is still usable for sanitizing. I plan on bottling this weekend and want to avoid mixing up a whole entire batch cause I’m kinda frugal. Should I risk it or just be safe and mix up some new stuff?

#2

I think I read somewhere that it turns slightly cloudy when it loses its sanitization properties

#3

The cloudiness is a hard water issue. It’s best to use RO or DI water with StarSan.

Here is a pod cast with Charlie Tally from 5 Star Chemicals.

http://hwcdn.libsyn.com/p/3/9/0/390da96 ... 87fce95eba
#4

Any chance you can paraphrase the video. I’m unable to watch the video right now as I’m at work all night. Thanks

#5

It’s an audio pod cast, not video.

I don’t have a transcript of the interview. Sorry.

You might be able to download it in itunes and listen to it off line at work?

March 29, 2007

http://www.basicbrewing.com/index.php?p ... radio-2007
#6

I’ll just make fresh to be safe and stop being so cheap :slight_smile:

#7

Cheap. Understood. But I always keep a gallon mixed for gravity tests, etc. I have found that it works well for up to several months. As Nighthawk pointed out, pH is key.

#8

As to cloudiness, my starsan is always cloudy the second I mix it up. Strangely enough, it turns crystal clear after a few days in an airlock. So I never pay attention to clear/cloudy. To satisfy cheapness, I swirl two gallons around in a five gallon fermentir, then put some leftovers in a spray bottle. I’ve never kept it longer than a month, but it isn’t really that expensive to start with.

#9

It is not expensive, but if it isn’t sold where you live (as is my case) you learn to stretch it. If it was good a month ago when you sealed it up in that carboy, it should be good now. I’ve kept batches for up to three months without problems, until I start to see some precipitate then I mix up fresh. Strangely, I’ve never seen a batch get above pH 3.0.

#10

I reuse my Starsan water for a couple months until it gets cloudy, then dump and make a new batch. It should work fine for a few months.

#11

I use the cheap Ph tests strips. When it’s not red, it’s dead. This system has worked for me for years and has saved me some $. Dude at NB said he used a fresh batch every time. Not only is that expensive, it’s probably not that great for the environment.

#12

The real test of starsan is its ph. As long as its below 3 you’re fine. If you’re really cheap you can even freshen it up with more concentrate at that point. Cloudiness is due to minerals precipitating out of hard water, and it can be a sign that its time to replace but it doesn’t always mean that.

My water is soft enough that it never gets cloudy, and I used to check pH but my internal “its probably time to replace the starsan” meter always went off before the pH was ever too high. These days I don’t bother with the pH, and I reuse the same starsan for 2 or 3 batches typically. 1 month is no biggie.

#13

Interestingly, I live in the city where the water isn’t as hard but mine clouds up a couple hours after mixing it. I mixed a new batch this weekend just to be safe. I’ll order some pH test strips on my next NB order.

#14

When I mix up a batch of Starsan, it goes cloudy almost immediately. I save a batch for a month and sometimes more with no problems.

I’ve used distilled water to make up batches in the past, but it’s not worth the cost IMO.

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