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Droid cleanse or commercial sanitiser ?


Paul84

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I've been using both but once I run out of Droid Cleanse I will stick to Starsan.

Also it's so ridiculously cheap - only using 0.75ml per 500ml distilled water in a spray bottle.  I bought a 236ml bottle for $15.95 so at this rate should last me about 314 brews lol.

Am still wrapping my head around not 'fearing the foam' as it's a no-rinse sanitiser but that will still take some time for me I think.

I'm sure the other gents can provide further details on it.

Edited by Darran Haynes
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Starsan is definitely the go for sanitising. It’s cheap, reusable many time and has absolutely no adverse effects on the beers.

However, remember it is a sanitiser not a cleaner and sanitises the surface only. Therefore if you leave crap and just sanitise over it, if the crap dissolves or opens up so to speak then you have a potential for infection.

Because the surface of the droid interior is like a non stick frying pan I’ve found that cleaning straight away with water and and a chux cloth works well. Ensure you push the chux up the tap and bung spouts and flush out with water.

When I do need to clean I use pure sodium Percarbonate (main ingredient in nappy san). It breaks down, is harmless but needs to be rinsed. Look up on the net.

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I clean my droid out as soon as it's emptied into kegs , I generally just use clean water and a chux no detergents at this stage , but flush it with loads of hot water. Starsan sounds like the way to go. The tablets just seem to be an expensive way to go, plus they leave sediment at the bottom, I know it's also harmless but still I end up flushing again with water lol

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7 hours ago, Paul84 said:

I clean my droid out as soon as it's emptied into kegs , I generally just use clean water and a chux no detergents at this stage , but flush it with loads of hot water. Starsan sounds like the way to go. The tablets just seem to be an expensive way to go, plus they leave sediment at the bottom, I know it's also harmless but still I end up flushing again with water lol

No shot at Brewart but the tablets for sanitising means 10l plus of water and the time recommended. Whereas with starsan in a spray bottle it’s done. A few minutes to allow exceed to drain and off you go.

A keg/bottle - clean - sanitise - new brew off and running = under an hour or not much over depending on your set up.

The interesting thing is if you flush out your sanitiser with water then the sanitation is only as good as the water used.

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3 hours ago, Barrelboy said:

No shot at Brewart but the tablets for sanitising means 10l plus of water and the time recommended. Whereas with starsan in a spray bottle it’s done. A few minutes to allow exceed to drain and off you go.

A keg/bottle - clean - sanitise - new brew off and running = under an hour or not much over depending on your set up.

The interesting thing is if you flush out your sanitiser with water then the sanitation is only as good as the water used.

 Yeah this is also a plus for the Starsan because the 2 hours I have to wait to put a new brew in is a bit long. And yeah only as good as the water I am using . But its the same water I using to make beer with lol.

Looks like I am shopping online today lol 

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I do understand but its literally a litre of water that flushes through before i brew. Would like to think any left over bacteria or yeast has been killed off by then. And if the water is compromised it will be in the brew anyway. But eitherways , would like to get better at sanitising and using a different one . For cost and ease really 

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2 minutes ago, Paul84 said:

I do understand but its literally a litre of water that flushes through before i brew. Would like to think any left over bacteria or yeast has been killed off by then. And if the water is compromised it will be in the brew anyway. But eitherways , would like to get better at sanitising and using a different one . For cost and ease really 

I understand your logic but there is a reason why they manufacture non rinse sanitiser. When rinsing with water even if left for a short time, as it is a surface covering, it is open quickly to bacteria. However volume water is not so vulnerable (like your rain water tank, in a way) and then is protected by fermentation co2 and alcohol.

Hope this explains it in a rough way.

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28 minutes ago, Paul84 said:

Well i know with the starsan i wont rinse out as i kmow its good. The chalky residue of the droid tablet always looked a little worse. Ill leave it from now on anyways 🙂 . Cheers for the info

No sir, with those Brewprint tablets you have to lightly rinse out. But you then need to use the droid straight away, add 10l etc.

Cheers Mark

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  • 3 weeks later...
  • 1 month later...

So I am having dramas getting starsan up here .... hopefully it arrives today . However I have a mate who gave me some no rinse sanitiser . Its a powder and its Sodium Percarbonate( same as droid tablets I believe) . This just says dissolve in water , rinse and go , no time limits. Thoughts , suggestions , plan to start a brew as soon as I can this morning. 

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I'd need to check, but I'm pretty certain the Droid Sanitizer video says specifically that rinsing is a optional step. I do anyway as, like you guys, the crust gives me the heebie jeebies.

 

I think them might be better for sanitizing lots of small parts at once where you need to get into little crevices. But the interior of the droid seems like a spray bottle would be a much more efficient way to go.

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Sorry i should rephrase that , it says drain etc then good to use. Id be keen to see how much residue is left . My question is more based on time , as the droid cleanse need 2 hours . This is same active ingredient and says spray, remove and good to use . 

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Sodium percarbonate has two basic functions 1) mainly as a cleaner, for this there needs to be a soak thus the reason for the hour wait with the tablet. It is effective up to about 6 hours. 2) As a sanitiser after the item (droid) is clean. Put half a teaspoon in a container, big soup bowl? and add some boiled water to activate it quickly then pour in some cold water. With a spray bottle or clean cloth spray/wipe all the internal surface of the droid, leave 5min. Make sure if sprayed any surplus is drained off or wiped out. Don’t forget the tap and bung and lid. Use the droid straight away.

Cheers Mark.

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Ps Incase you haven’t read the “Cleaning Tips for Beerdroid” thread. I only use cold water to clean. Don’t mean to brag but I prepare, keg, clean, new brew in droid in under an hour. One of the secrets is to clean the droid straight away so the ring of crap (krausen) doesn’t dry too much. I give it the water spray to moisten and wipe off as the first thing.

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This is where I hope to get to once the Starsan arrives. My droid has been cleaned properly as soon as I finish kegging . So "clean" at this stage and yeah if I could get to the point of a quick sanitizer and straight back in I would be happy . See what shows up in the mail today. Would so much prefer to be able to drive somewhere and just get what I need haha 

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49 minutes ago, Paul84 said:

This is where I hope to get to once the Starsan arrives. My droid has been cleaned properly as soon as I finish kegging . So "clean" at this stage and yeah if I could get to the point of a quick sanitizer and straight back in I would be happy . See what shows up in the mail today. Would so much prefer to be able to drive somewhere and just get what I need haha 

As a quick sanitiser you can do what I said in 3rd post up (think you missed it)

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26 minutes ago, Paul84 said:

Yeah 100% , just glad a mate could help out with a sanitiser. I am driving down to Perth in May , so will be stocking up a lifetime supply of what I need to keep the droid running . Make my machine work TOO hard before Fathers day 😉😉😉

Yeah work them hard. I haven’t had one of the droids out of action for more than an hour. When stuffed for Brewprint ingredients I’ve used tins. An idle droid is money wasted, I want to recoup the cost as soon as possible and if that means drinking brews then it’s a sacrifice we must make, lol.

ps what a great reason to 🍻🍻🍻🍻🍻🍺

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So Brewmart delivery came today ... no Starsan . To say I am upset with Brewmart is am understatement . I tried ordering a couple of weeks ago and after a few days of radio silence called to say they didnt have some things (one being starsan) and if I wanted to continue with the order. I said no my order was primarily for star san and then some goodies to fill the box. 

So I waited a couple of weeks then put an order in again. Again radio silence and then just an Austpost tracking thing so thought it was all sweet. Again no starsan or a hop steeper. 

Talking to someone at work who also has to order homebrew supplies said this isnt new , they just sell what they have an not try to upsell or change the order. 

Oh well back to the drawing board for finding supplies lol

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