Star San - how long does it keep?

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Bashley

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Hi All

I'm new to the World of homebrewing. I have a few star san questions:

1. What temp should it be stored undiluted?
2. How long does it keep for once diluted?
3. Do I really need to ph test it?

Thanks for any help!
 
1. Any you want
2. Ages
3. Nope

I'd use Tesco Ashbeck water to dilute, as it has low pH to start with and low alkalinity. I make up 5L at a time then add it to a spray bottle and spray as needed. 5L diluted like that lasts me about a year without going cloudy.
 
Cheers Iain! So I only need to worry if it's cloudy?

Sort of. If it isn't cloudy then it's fine, and if it is cloudy then it may or may not be fine, depending on pH. Best to use something like Ashbeck water from Tesco, or Eden Falls from Asda, as these are low in carbonate/bicarbonate and the star san can lower the pH more than enough. If you live in a soft water area then your tap water should be good too.
 
I'm in France, so not sure what the equivalent would be. Will have a check.
 
1. Any you want
2. Ages
3. Nope

I'd use Tesco Ashbeck water to dilute, as it has low pH to start with and low alkalinity. I make up 5L at a time then add it to a spray bottle and spray as needed. 5L diluted like that lasts me about a year without going cloudy.
IainM do you use untreated tap water for your star san? - I've always used low alkaline bottled water (under 7.0 ph) because of the fear of the chlorine/chloromine in the tap water causing the yeast in the beer to give off tcp type flavours. I know there may not be that much compared to doing a whole brew with untreated tap water, just wanted someones actual experience on this, cos I've not had to chuck a single brew and I wouldn't want to start now :roll:
 
IainM do you use untreated tap water for your star san? - I've always used low alkaline bottled water (under 7.0 ph) because of the fear of the chlorine/chloromine in the tap water causing the yeast in the beer to give off tcp type flavours. I know there may not be that much compared to doing a whole brew with untreated tap water, just wanted someones actual experience on this, cos I've not had to chuck a single brew and I wouldn't want to start now :roll:

No, I've always used low bicarbonate < pH 7 water from the shop.
 
I use de-ionised water with star san. (We have a big 25l bottle of it for our iron etc)
 
Sorry, I'm not sure what I'm looking for!

Just go to the local supermarché, and look at the labels on big bottles of water. You are looking for a pH of 7 or below and/or low hydrogénocarbonate/bicarbonate, below 100 mg/L should do the trick.
 
OK, so tried volvic. The liquid is very cloudy! Guess I'll look for another brand!
 
Go to a garage or petrol station and buy deionised/distilled water. That will be perfect

If you use that with Star-San it should last for months
 
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