Bleach

[GavinSR]

Bleach is a common cleaning product these days.
I have seen an instruction manual suggesting cleaning the boiler between batches
Bleach will remove the chromium from the surface of stainless steal so don't over do it and rinse thoroughly after use

[MDH]

Indeed, I Don't recommend this. Use TSP instead.

[bearriver]

+1 If you do use it, keep it away from your stainless goodies.

I instead use fores for cleaning metal. Rubbing alcohol in a spray bottle works exceptionally well also, and is cheap. Unfortunately it makes the joint smell like a hospital.

Star San is also a great product, being acid based makes it a no rinse option. It's not as available or as cheap however, making it a hobby loser of sorts...

[HDNB]

DO NOT use bleach in your still. that would be stupid. i'm no chemist, so below, is a C&P from wikipedia.

Follow appropriate cleaning methods. start your search here: http://homedistiller.org/forum/viewtopi ... 63&t=15489


From Wikipedia:
"Chlorine-based bleaches are found in many household cleaners. The concentration of chlorine-based bleaches is often expressed as percent active chlorine where one gram of a 100% active chlorine bleach has the same bleaching power as one gram of chlorine. These bleaches can react with other common household chemicals like vinegar or ammonia to produce toxic gases. Labels on sodium hypochlorite bleach warn about these interactions.

Chemical interactions

Edit: Mixing a hypochlorite bleach with an acid can liberate chlorine gas. Hypochlorite and chlorine are in equilibrium in water; the position of the equilibrium is pH dependent and low pH (acidic) favors chlorine,[13]"

while ethanol is close to neutral, wash can be low in ph. (acidic) Vinegar may be present in a still. ((Ammonia may be present too (eww yuk)- read up on blue distillates)

again -i'm no a chemist- but what the hell you would want (or knowingly put) a poison in your still for would baffle me. bleach i'm sure, would not be a favourable flavour additive.

[hamshine]

your still makes likker, likker kills germs

[wv_cooker]

Bleach is a common cleaning product these days.
I have seen an instruction manual suggesting cleaning the boiler between batches
Bleach will remove the chromium from the surface of stainless steal so don't over do it and rinse thoroughly after use

Dude after all your other ill given advice and now this. I have to join with Rad and call Troll !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1

[Tokoroa_Shiner]

Bleach is a common cleaning product these days.
I have seen an instruction manual suggesting cleaning the boiler between batches
Bleach will remove the chromium from the surface of stainless steal so don't over do it and rinse thoroughly after use

Dude after all your other ill given advice and now this. I have to join with Rad and call Troll !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1

+1

[bearriver]

Despite the nature of the source, I don't see anything wrong with this particular thread. All the research I've done on this subject mirrors what this fella is saying.

However if you did damage that layer on a SS object, fret not. Strong acid will easily passivate it again.

Bar Keeper's Friend (a weak acid) plus manual scouring with a Scotch brand non-scratch pad has worked for me in the past, to clean up welds that were beginning to rust after just 1 use. Once cleaned it never rusted again which is what my research told me to expect...

[hamshine]

next thing it will be pouring sugar into your still when it's running to boost the proof. LOL lets just ferment sum Koolaid in 4 gallons of water with 20 pounds of sugar and run that sum bitch with turbo yeast through a gardon hose into a gas can...... sounds safe to me

[bearriver]

He did us the courtesy of not bringing nonsense from the other thread here to this thread, so I don't see why any one else should.

I'm not defending GavinSR, but how is the OP of this particular thread wrong exactly?

[hamshine]

He did us the courtesy of not bringing nonsense from the other thread here to this thread, so I don't see why any one else should.

I'm not defending GavinSR, but how is the OP of this particular thread wrong exactly?

sorry Gaven SR

[MichiganCornhusker]

Bleach is a common cleaning product these days.

Bleach is cheap and easy for sanitizing. I used it for years homebrewing. Gotta rinse it a lot. I lost a lot of clothing because of it.
I used it once on copper and I think there is a problem using it with on copper, lots of discoloring and I think maybe even some blue distillate. I don't really clean my still anymore though, just rinse after using.
I still use bleach to clean out my fermenters between batches.

[moosemilk]

Don't use bleach on my still. Just a good rinse after, put the hose on the coil and let it run for a bit. Never had any green on my copper or distillate (except one strip run ran too hot, green-blue floating flecks after few days in the low wines...filtered and ran no problem).

I use bleach to clean my ferment buckets and airlocks. Cheap and effective. Gotta be unscented. And rinsed very well. Mostly worry about sterile with my beer, and with the ferments that are higher cost or lots of work or little of (like my apple going...only scrounged enough apples to do 5 gallons so didn't want that going to vinegar).

Bleach has a place. I am one that says it doesn't belong in your still. No reason for it. Do a vinegar run then steam to clean.

[cob]

http://homedistiller.org/forum/viewtopi ... h#p6949179
bleach is bad for stainless. it's an old thread but worth reading.

[Saltbush Bill]

I have no idea why anyone would want to sterilize a boiler, Mines never had anything other than a good squirt inside with a garden hose or on occasion a cheap pressure washer. Its had Rum , UJ, TPW and a few other things through it on a regular basis over the past few years, its still shiny clean inside.
In short I don't see any reason to use another method to clean or sterilize it.

[shadylane]

Bleach and stainless steel don't play well with each other.
What I don't understand is the need to sterilize the inside of a still.
Boiling hot ethanol vapor does and a rinse with the garden hose, does a pretty good job.
I some times use bleach for the same reasons as saltbush, cornhusker and moose.

[LG11]

If you use bleach (Sodium Hypochlorite) with say plastics etc or anything that wont react then fine. The correct method to neutralize bleach is with a solution of Sodium Thiosulphate (easy to get hod of and safe) then rinse.
It might also help to note that sometimes our little friends make acetone, add acetone to bleach and you get Chloroform via the Haloform reaction. We make all our own Chloroform fresh in the lab (great for extracting compounds from plants etc) by simply mixing chilled acetone and chilled strong bleach together. The last bit is just info and I am not suggesting there is a tangible risk of making chloroform by using bleach to clean with. BTW dont make Chloroform like this yourself unless you then add 1% pure Ethanol to stabilize it, the reason for this is chloroform over time will react with light to form phosgene. On the science madness forum a young man (15) tried to intentionaly make phosgene (actually its classed as a chemical weapon), he did in fact succeed, however he died shortly afterwards.
We make it fresh because we dont add Ethanol, we then dispose of by adding sodium hydroxide

[waster]

I once cleaned with bleach, and got bleach-flavored beer despite plenty of washing. Even if it were safe to use (which I'm not saying), it adds off flavors.

[LG11]

I once cleaned with bleach, and got bleach-flavored beer despite plenty of washing. Even if it were safe to use (which I'm not saying), it adds off flavors.

Hence the need to add sodium thiosulphate, it neutralizes the bleach completely. People with aquariums pay alot of money for chlorine remover, in fact its plain old sodium thiosulphate, or in days gone by the fixitive in photographic process.
And as a side note we use it in the lab to titrate sodium chlorite solutions (bleach) to determine the strength of solution.

[goinbroke2]

I use bleach in my fermenting pails/bucket and my plastic 45gal drum. Never used it inside my still...why would I? As previously mentioned, it's steam cleaned with alcohol/water every time I use it.

As far as health risk, don't know how many of you are in the Army but when I was in Germany I watched some GI's filling a water trailer and then dumping in 4 jugs of bleach to disinfect it. This was a 750 gal trailer and it was their drinking water for the regiment. We had some other stuff we dumped in ours, (maybe it was bleach too I don't know) but yes the US army used bleach in the water trailers on a regular basis for disinfection. They said the only harm was if you used too much you got the shits, but normally you would taste it before it got to that level.

[LG11]

Until recent times you brought MILTON fluid or tablets to wash baby stuff with and clean vegetable etc, this was also bleach!!!! used in small amounts it will do no harm, adding sodium thiosulphate will neutralize it completely. Dont use bleach on copper!
Just as an aside why do people think micro organisms cants survive at high temps with ETHANOL? many archea do this and do it at great pressure in the deepest parts of the ocean. Ok they dont live in fresh water but there are organisms that can easily survive 100C, this is why we use autoclaves! They have a temp of around 130-140 and pressure of 2-5 AT, even this isnt enough for some bugs..............
LG

[W Pappy]

The best thing you can do to clean your keg is just rinse it after you make a run.After 4 or 5 runs put about 3 gallons of water in it turn your burner up and let her steam for a bit.
When she hits 180F and steams for awhile inside it will kill anything in there.If it's good enough for the USDA then it's good enough for me.

[LG11]

My point was more one to do with context, you can spend a great deal of time and money to make something sterile. But rarely do you need to go to such extreme lengths.