Sterilising issues

[Binkei Huckaback]

As several others have said, go for a no rinse sanitiser. The problem is not that the water you'll be rinsing with is kit clean, but the tap it comes out of. Even the cleanest tap generally has some kind of buildup on it. If you live in an area with hard water, there will be plenty of limescale for bacteria to hide in.

Other benefits of no rinse sanitisers such as StarSan and iodophor are:

-Less water meaning less money spent if you have a water meter

-Less time spent rinsing

When I stated brewing, the most frustratig thing for me, was that if I dropped something, I had to wait ten minutes until it was sanitised and then spend more time rinsing.

Any extra cost of no-rinse (if there is any) is, in my opinion, far outweighed by the time I get back and the amount of water I save.

 

[kelper]

A tap in regular use is very unlikely to harbour bacteria. A quick flush is all that is necessary. A disused or rarely used tap is a different matter.

 

[Binkei Huckaback]

A tap in regular use is very unlikely to harbour bacteria. A quick flush is all that is necessary. A disused or rarely used tap is a different matter.

Maybe. If I get around to it and can get hold of any the test trips Amazon sell, I'll test my kitchen tap and post the results.

 

[kelper]

Maybe. If I get around to it and can get hold of any the test trips Amazon sell, I'll test my kitchen tap and post the results.

That's a good idea! What tests do they perform?

 

[Binkei Huckaback]

It's a strip you dunk in water. The ones I was looking at are out of stock. Amazon do have others, but as they're over £40, I think I'll give it a miss and leave it to someone who wants to know how clean their water/tap is and carry on using iodophor as a no-rinse sanitiser!

 

[pgk]

I;m new at home brew but came across an inernet radio blog from basicbrewing re using white wine vinegar and thin bleach as no-rinse sanitiser. It was an interview with the guy who makes starsan. It works out as approx 9ml each per imperial gallon and a 30sec contact time (mix them in to the water seperately). Hopefully it proves itself 'cos that's what iI'm using - more because there's no messing about getting oxy-stuff to dissolve and it's always in the house.

 

[Nidger]

As people are mentioning not to use tap water to rinse equipment since it may carry contaminants.
Do you not use tap water for the brew ?

I'm about to start brewing again after a few years but always used rinse sanitiser and tap water in the past.
I only had one "off" batch and put it down to probably missing out sterilising a piece of equipment.

I was much more careful and methodical afterwards, even using surgical type gloves
Very tempted to give the Bleach/vinegar a go.

 

[pgk]

There's tapwater and tapwater! UK water quality is supposed to be closely monitored/chorinated to keep out harmful bacteria but that's not the same as keeping out all bacteria. My own water supply is from our own borehole which hasn't been analysed since it was first drilled 10+ years ago when contamination levels were below significance and it's 200 feet down. My neighbour (1/4 mile away) has a shallower borehole and needs to use filters & UV on his supply.
I boil my brew water before use but that's as much to remove some minerals. I don't boil the sanitising bleach/vinegar water. I do wash hands and then plunge them in the bleach solution when messing about cleaning stuff and all parts like funnels/siphons sit in the bleach before use, DJ's etc get rinsed with it.
So far so good on 5DJ's and 4 more on the go..

 

[kelper]

UK water quality is supposed to be closely monitored/chlorinated

It IS closely monitored!
E. Coli is used as a proxy for other, harmful micro-organisms. The level of these is far too low to cause harm. You don't need zero microorganisms for brewing, you just need them to be below a safe threshold.

 

[kelper]

You could buy a test kit Quick™ 15- Minute Bacteria (2 Tests)Default Title
It has two tests so you could test before and after flushing the tap.

 

[pgk]

It IS closely monitored!
E. Coli is used as a proxy for other, harmful micro-organisms. The level of these is far too low to cause harm. You don't need zero microorganisms for brewing, you just need them to be below a safe threshold.

I can recall water coming out of the taps looking brown when I live in East Anglia. It also must depend on how old/new the house is. Potable water directly from the mains is as it should be but some older dwellings still have it via loft tanks?

 

[kelper]

A loft tank is ok if the lid is properly fitted and there is a gauze over the overflow / vent.