Santisation - Reusing of sterilising fluid from Demi to Demi

[Polymath]

Hello All,

At the minute I have a setup where there is several demi's in my house full of sterilising fluid. When I do a re-rack, I will tip it out of the first Demi into a washing up bowl, add a touch more powder and use that to sterilise stuff. Then I clean and use the "fresh" demi as it is. But then the "unclean" demi (Say for example that I just racked out of). Well I then put the sterilising fluid from a 3rd "fresh" demi into this one. Seal it up for a few days in the expectation that it will sterilise that as well.

However, it appears that sterilising fluid has a lifespan. It only works for about 24 hours, eats up/kills the little germies (thats germs, not Germans!) then that's done. Suggests to me that my current system isn't going to work for much longer.

My dad (an older homebrewer from 10 years back) suggested the following. Clean one demi normally, pour it then into the next demi, a touch more powder. Then put an airlock on the first demi, some sterilising fluid into the airlock, and this will keep the first demi secure. You can then "reuse" the fluid several times within a few hours for a whole load of Demi's.

Complicated question, but is my dads technique here correct. Is this something people actively do with Demi's? Its also the longest process at the minute for me.

On the plus side, another two wines tonight started. A Wurzel Rose, and a erm 3 Juicer (Pineapple, WGJ & Apple). 2 Re-racks and I told one of my Demi's off for pissing itself all over the floor at the start of the week. A successful night ...

 

[Moley]

I wouldn't disagree with your Dad but our methods differ slightly. If my DJs are washed and scrubbed (soapy water and a bent DJ brush) I will sterilise the first, leaving the solution in usually for 30 minutes, and then pour that solution into a 2nd and possibly a 3rd, half an hour apart. A DJ which has just been racked from should usually only need a quick swill, probably with the bent brush to get around the shoulder. I wouldn't re-use a solution any more than that, and I wouldn't leave a sterilising solution in a DJ for more than an hour.

DJs are rinsed afterwards with hot water to the brim, left for a few minutes and repeated, and then if I'm putting one away for a while I give it about a third of a tsp of metabisulphite powder and a pint of hot water, shake well and cover the neck with tinfoil. Give them a shake once a week and they should stay ‘sweet’ and good-to-go for a couple of months, not that mine are every lying idle for that long.