BeerBorg

Hey fellow brewers! I recently joined and posted a question about the 3-4 rule and really appreciate all the quick replies and helpful comments. Well, this Wednesday is my first bottling day and I currently have my LBK cold crashed in the fridge. I basically know what to do when bottling, my only question is about the cleaning of the LBK afterwards. MrBeer suggests using their Craftmeister Oxygen Brewery Wash, but its too late to order that. They also suggest just using liquid hand soap which has to be non-scented, non-lotion and no anti-bacterial. Now, I have tried to find a post on cleaning in this forum and haven't found anything. I have just found small mentions of certain products people suggest using, such as Oxiclean-Free and PBW. Can someone please tell me if these are basically the same thing? I do know of a Homebrewing Supply store about 30 mins from my home that sells 1lb of PBW for $12 and thought that sounded like a good deal. They also sell Star San, but that's just like the sanitizer Mr.Beer sends with each beer isn't it? Which cleaner is the best to use? Or should I just stick to liquid soap? Also can someone explain how much(PBW/Oxiclean-free/whatever you suggest)to use and how? Thanks guys!

Lot's of different products you can use, but here's how I clean mine.

Rinse out all the gunk with cool tap water.
Fill 3/4 of the LBK with cool tap water and add a scoop of Oxyclean Free.
Let it sit for a few minutes.
Shake/swirl the crap out of it (do this over sink, as the lid is not water tight...)
Use soft cloth and wipe down the inside thoroughly (do not use anything abrisive. You don't want any scratches).
Rinse, rinse, rinse.
Sometimes I will fill it up with cool water again and add more Oxyclean Free, shake it up and let it sit overnight. Then rinse rinse rinse again.

Also, remember the lid and spigot. The spigot can be taken apart. Make sure to get all the goobies that can hide in there.

I'm sure others will chime in with their methods as well, but this has worked for me.

Cheers!

I use the OxiClean Free after wiping and rinsing everything out of the LBK. After bottling, I rinse all the trub out, and then wipe out the entire inside with a sponge until I can't see anything. I take the spigot apart and make sure the threads and the hole are clean, then I put it back, fill up the LBK completely to the lid with water, and drop in approx 1/8 cup of oxiclean and let it sit overnight. Next day I drain that out rinse and reinspect in case I missed anything, then set it upside down on my bottle rack to dry.

Monty

GWCR is right on the money as far as the procedure, but we all have our tweaks.

I use warm water. The only thing to NOT put into the LBK is very hot water. It a) can distort the plastic and b) can bake in flavors.

Rinsing out all the trub is key to cleaning. You rinse off your car before washing it, to get much of the dirt off. Same here. So hit the trub with water, swish it, rinse, repeat. When no trub is left on the bottom, you can fill it part way and put the lid on, then shake it, then dump that out.

Now, time to clean it. Most of the time I use unscented dish soap, currently Kirkland brand. The reality is that if you wash it with almost any non-scented dish soap, gently wipe with non-abrasive sponge/cloth, and then rinse, it really doesn't matter. Yes, remove the spigot after that, wash the area inside and outside where the spigot was, and rinse again. And the threads for the lid, as well as the lid. And remove the spigot and disassemble it.

I almost never need Oxiclean. It is helpful for dried on stuff. So if you had very healthy krausen that then receded, it may dry on and be somewhat stubborn (I've found soaking in the soapy water, upside down in the sink, cures that). It's also helpful if you didn't clean your LBK right away (I do).

Yes, Star San is not for cleaning, it's for sanitizing. And you don't need anything like PBW.

I rinse out the trub and gunk with warm water, then I throw a tablespoon of Oxyclean Free in it, fill it up to the top, and let it sit for an hour while I do other things. Then I come back and wipe the inside with a clean rag, rinse, then air dry.

I'm sure you've seen Oxyclean at the store. The important part is to get the "Free" version which has no perfumes, etc.

gwcr wrote:Also, remember the lid and spigot. The spigot can be taken apart. Make sure to get all the goobies that can hide in there.

How on earth do you get that thing apart? There must be some trick, because I just about busted my hand just trying to pull it apart.

I got the spigot apart by putting the lever in the middle, then taking a small screwdriver and inserting it in the crack, then gently twisting. You'll hear a pop, then you can pull them apart. Wash thoroughly (my wife had a tiny bottle brush that is perfect). Then, when try, put it back together gently pushing as you near the point where it clicks into place.

Something that should be pointed out, and the original poster did touch on it, is that this thread has been about cleaners. Cleaners. Sanitizers are usually something completely different. Although One Step is both a cleaner and a sanitizer.

What I do before I brew Turn water up to all the way hot (Water in my house seems to get hotter than any where else I have resided)...Fill and rinse out LBK.....Remove spigot, clean and sanitize...Re install spigot, sanitize with one step and hot water again........

What I do after a brew - rinse out LBK with aforementioned hot water, Grab sponge and clean out with scentless, colorless dishsoap......Rinse out several times.

Used my LBK for all of my brews except 2, no problems thus far

jgm038 wrote:What I do before I brew Turn water up to all the way hot (Water in my house seems to get hotter than any where else I have resided)...Fill and rinse out LBK.....Remove spigot, clean and sanitize...Re install spigot, sanitize with one step and hot water again........

What I do after a brew - rinse out LBK with aforementioned hot water, Grab sponge and clean out with scentless, colorless dishsoap......Rinse out several times.

Used my LBK for all of my brews except 2, no problems thus far

I would actually do some a good rinse with cold water first. Then once most of the goobies are gone you can use hot water.

Hot water can "set" off flavors/aromas into plastic.

Right. And very hot water can distort the LBK.

Oh yes of course - should have said after the initial dumping out of the trub - i do the same thing for my glass as well

I don't think it's hot enough to distort it, i wouldn't go throwing it in the dishwasher but it's been fine

I'll just chime in and say that my cleaning routine is pretty much the same as what has been stated above. I do want to add that the OneStep cleanser is quite different then StarSan or PBW. I put together a list of different cleaning and sanitizing products that are available to brewer. That I refer to quite often myself. You might find it helpful too. http://www.beerborg.com/index/resources ... s/cleaner/