how do i clean out my glass demijohns safely ?

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Personal91

Landlord.
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heya everyone

i recently bought a shed load of used demijohns off ebay that were 'preloved' to say and after leaving them outside with water in them for a week or 3 they have grown green muck inside

after trying to wash it out with hot water and also with a steraliser im still haveing trouble getting it out. any advice ?
 
I bought one of these which you attach to a drill, my DJ's have never been so clean (and it only takes a few seconds to clean them)

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Carboy-De...-Drill-Cleaning-Brush-Beer-Wine-/390841720010


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I have had mine ages and it gets a lot of use, it is showing no signs of wear whatsoever, remember once you have the stubborn mess removed cleaning them after that is not as difficult, i used to use a bottle brush but always struggled to clean the inside shoulder part of the DJ, this makes it a doddle.
 
Way back when I bought some demijohns, they had crud stuck to them that was years old! Best result I had was to buy the cheapest vinegar I could get my hands on (Asda Smartprice), let them soak a bit, chuck in some rice grains and shake the living daylights out of them :grin:

It did the trick bar a couple that had like some kind of stain/tint on them. I tried a few things but the one thing that worked instantly was Wilkos own make cleaner - Bruclens. You could see the stain drifting off into the water... all ended up sparkling.

I use Oxi these days (Lidl) but not sure how good it would be to a task like this. Cheap enough to give it a shot.

Do remember though that cleaning and sterilising (sanitising) are two different tasks :thumb:
 
un-scented Oxyaction from the pound shop plus hot water will do the trick...may need a couple of treatments tho
(Makes my cricket whites come up as new, so it must work!!)
 
I haven't used oxyclean on my demis yet because it seems to need hot water to work properly, and hot water & DJs don't always mix - do you need to prewarm the DJs to prevent cracking? Or am i just being too cautious (which seems odd :whistle:)
 
Always used Ritchies powder cleaner and sanitiser in one,never had a problem shifts dirt easily.But you have to rinse afterwards.Plastic buckets and stainless but not tried demis
 
I have read members use marbles or dry rice to agitate the hard to remove gunk so that combined with some oxyclean should do the trick.
 
I have had mine ages and it gets a lot of use, it is showing no signs of wear whatsoever, remember once you have the stubborn mess removed cleaning them after that is not as difficult, i used to use a bottle brush but always struggled to clean the inside shoulder part of the DJ, this makes it a doddle.

i think i may have to give it a go then cheers :D
 
Way back when I bought some demijohns, they had crud stuck to them that was years old! Best result I had was to buy the cheapest vinegar I could get my hands on (Asda Smartprice), let them soak a bit, chuck in some rice grains and shake the living daylights out of them :grin:

It did the trick bar a couple that had like some kind of stain/tint on them. I tried a few things but the one thing that worked instantly was Wilkos own make cleaner - Bruclens. You could see the stain drifting off into the water... all ended up sparkling.

I use Oxi these days (Lidl) but not sure how good it would be to a task like this. Cheap enough to give it a shot.

Do remember though that cleaning and sterilising (sanitising) are two different tasks :thumb:

i think that wand thing will work but till it arrives i have bout a bottle of vinegar from lidl for 21p so cant go wrong with that :pray:
 
A tip - only put a drop of washing up liquid in the DJ (if that's what you intend to use) or you will be rinsing it for ever more :lol: (yes i learned the hard way)
 
tesco thin bleach and then a good rinse and sterilise or else a bag of sugar and a 48 hour turbo yeast (don't drink the produce)
 
folks,

I struggled with bottles in particular. In the end I borrowed a trick that the bottle collectors use.

I bought a bag of stainless steel shot that the bottle collectors and jewellers use in tumbling barrels for polishing bottles dug out of old landfills and stones.

The shot is a range of shapes and will shift anything. They last indefinitely and can be caught in a kitchen sieve when you empty the bottles out - works every time with little effort and no chemicals.

Col P.
 
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