Ok, I have bottled and am drinking my first beer. It turned out good (I think), but now I am getting bottles back. It is best to clean them as they come in or just store them and clean them all together? I was thinking maybe keeping some mixed star sans in the brew room, dropping in bottles as they come back, and then putting them in a drying rack.
Thoughts?
Clean as they come in, so on bottling day, you can just sanitize.
I make sure they are rinsed as I get them back.I wait until I have a bunch then fill my cooler with hot water and oxyclesn and soak overnight. The labels fall right off. My reused bottles get the same treatment just because. Rinse dry and store. No muss no fuss. Don’t do the statsan until ready to bottle
Clean them as quick as you can so the yeast and crud doesn’t dry in the bottle. Giving them out? Tell friends to rinse them or they get cut off.
In addition, get a bottling tree/bottle rack. Rinse them with sanitizer and store them upside down for the next use.
Ok, so oxyclean when they are dirty and starsans before bottling. Which oxyclean?
I always wash and rinse. I have a shelf just for bottles. I cut out holes and turn them upside down.
I’ll second the rinse them ASAP sentiment. I began saving my bottles for a few months prior to receiving my kit, and that was my practice. One bottle managed to escape the rinse process, and the mold on the inside had evolved into a completely new sentient species. They had a full city complete with traffic problems and even smog. Houses near the lip were going for $750,000.
If you rinse them well right after pouring you really don’t need oxyclean or PBW. I would only worry about soaking them if they are NOT rinsed right away.
You want oxyclean versatile . It’s void of perfumes and chlorine.
If you are really frugal you can try generic oxyclean. I was getting mine from the Dollar Tree until they started stocking the kind with perfume.
do clean them with the jet bottle wash device .do let them soak than in some bleach . quick rinse cover top with alu foil on bottle day rinse with starsan and ready to go
My process:
Rinse well after drinking, by filling bottle halfway, put thumb over top, shake, rinse again.
Inspect bottles returned from friends, soak in oxyclean if any have residue.
Bottling, night before, run thru sink, warm water Oxyclean thumb shake, rinse 2x, then to dishwasher, no dtergent, on sanitize rinse and heated dry.
My bottling setup is convenient to reach into dishwasher, fill, set on counter for capping.
Sanitize caps in StarSan.
It works for me.
I found a bottle brush ineffective in cleaning yeast residue by observing the process with clear bottles. Oxyclean soak is best if someone leaves the yeast layer in your bottle… it slides out like a brown wad of snot, yuk. Brush doesn’t clean the bottom of the bottle.
Exactly!
