# Ewwwww......



## cohenhouse77 (Mar 20, 2013)

I had some friends attend a party this past weekend made up of amateur winemakers. 1 of my friends purchased me a glass 5 gallon carboy for 19 dollars as a gift. I received it last night and found a dead Roach inside of it. It is a brand new glass carboy but apparently these were all stored outside. Up on trying to clean it out I also found a roach egg attach to the bottom of the glass. Part of me wants to just chuck the thing. Another part of me wants to just sell it back on Craigslist as is. Deep down I will always know that whatever wine is in there used to have a roach egg in it. Does anyone have any really good suggestions for scrubbing out something of this nature?


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## Polarhug (Mar 20, 2013)

Don't toss! Fill with a bleach/water mixture to kill anything & sanitize for several days. Use a carboy brush then scrub. 

Can you mix it up with other carboys so you won't know what one it was? Once you get past that mental block you will be fine. 

Or you could make wine with a roach in there... kinda like the tequila with the worm in the bottom


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## Brew and Wine Supply (Mar 20, 2013)

Don't use bleach, use a regular wine/beer cleaner, ie: one step or craftmeister. Don't worry about the roach, just think as the grapes are picked in the field how many bugs of all kinds (and other things) get mixed into wine and must.
Clean it good and enjoy a free carboy.
You could always label the first batch of wine from that carboy "Roach Wine, good till the end of the world"


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## Julie (Mar 20, 2013)

I agree with Brew and Wine Supply. Do not use bleach. Actually don't use bleach on any of your wine making supplies. T


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## Polarhug (Mar 20, 2013)

Wow really? I use a small amount of bleach in my carboys due to the fact that my husband and I share beer and wine making equipment. There are things I use that he certainly doesn't want to taste in his beer, and likewise for my wine. Brett wine anyone?

I always use only 1tsp per gallon, soak then rinse thoroughly, Then scrub with a neutral cleaner, Then rinse again, and then sanitize with a wine sanitizer. I only do with the equip we swap back and forth. Bad?


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## Julie (Mar 20, 2013)

You should not use bleach in wine or beer making equipment. IF you do, it has to be rinsed very well and to be honest I would not take that chance.


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## jimmyjames23 (Mar 20, 2013)

I always use bleach. 

I fill the carboy with water. 
Add a cap full of bleach. 
Get the brush in there and scrub. 
Top up with water again and let sit a few days. 
Drain. 
Fill 1/4 way with clean water. 
Scrub. 
Drain. 
Fill 1/4 water a final time. 
Scrub a final time. 
Drain. 
Add k meta and drain. 
Sterile and ready for use. 
Been doing it this way for almost 20 years.


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## cohenhouse77 (Mar 20, 2013)

You guys are awesome. Had me spit my drink out a few times there.


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## jrvernon (Mar 20, 2013)

cohenhouse77 said:


> You guys are awesome. Had me spit my drink out a few times there.



A party? And I wasn't invited? Ok...now I'm offended! Lol

I agree with the bleach comments, but use pool chlorine. Then to neutralize the chlorine you can use tri-sodium phosphate. You can pick it up at most pool suppliers. I use it for sanitizing rocks and shells for my aquarium. Bleach sometimes has other acids in it or fragrances that are difficult to get out.


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## dralarms (Mar 20, 2013)

jrvernon said:


> A party? And I wasn't invited? Ok...now I'm offended! Lol
> 
> I agree with the bleach comments, but use pool chlorine. Then to neutralize the chlorine you can use tri-sodium phosphate. You can pick it up at most pool suppliers. *I use it for sanitizing rocks and shells for my aquarium*. Bleach sometimes has other acids in it or fragrances that are difficult to get out.




Please do tell.


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## Julie (Mar 20, 2013)

jimmyjames23 said:


> I always use bleach.
> 
> I fill the carboy with water.
> Add a cap full of bleach.
> ...


 
To be honest, Jimmyjames, a capful of bleach in a 5 or 6 gallon carboy full of water really does nothing. For bleach to be a sanitizer you need about a capful per one gallon of water.

Again, bleach can taint a wine or a beer if it is not rinse out completely.


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## jimmyjames23 (Mar 20, 2013)

Well after I dump the first full carboy it reeks of bleach. 
Plus I got a used carboy 3 months ago that had a nasty red wine ring below the neck. Bleach ate it where scrubbing failed. 

Never had a taint or bacteria problem with any of my wine. 

I guess... to bleach his own. Lol.


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## jimmyjames23 (Mar 20, 2013)

You're gonna hate me Julie. 

I bleach my bottles too if they've been left out unrinsed. 

The horror!


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## WVMountaineerJack (Mar 20, 2013)

Back to EWWWW! I was stirring my must yeasterday and notice something floating on the cap, a whole big snail shell, fresh, guess the yeast at him after he was frozed with the berries. I would take a few roach eggs over a whole snail any day! WVMJ


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## garymc (Mar 21, 2013)

Wine and escargot all rolled into one.


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## Julie (Mar 21, 2013)

jimmyjames23 said:


> You're gonna hate me Julie.
> 
> I bleach my bottles too if they've been left out unrinsed.
> 
> The horror!


 
LOL, you are incorrigible


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## jrvernon (Mar 21, 2013)

Omg, I woke up in the middle of the night realizing that I said something terribly wrong. You want to use Sodium Thiosulfate and not TSP to neutralize the chlorine. If you mix TSP and chlorine, the results would not be pleasant.


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## MNwino (Mar 21, 2013)

Why are people still using bleach or heck even Sulfite to sanitize their bottles and equipment? Just mix up some Starsan and put it in a spray bottle and just spray down your stuff. No need to rise and it sanitizes in like 1 minute


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## jimmyjames23 (Mar 21, 2013)

MNwino said:


> Why are people still using bleach or heck even Sulfite to sanitize their bottles and equipment? Just mix up some Starsan and put it in a spray bottle and just spray down your stuff. No need to rise and it sanitizes in like 1 minute



I have never seen starsan sold at any of the LHBS around me. So I use bleach and elbow grease.


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## Polarhug (Mar 21, 2013)

I use Star San to sanitize. Star san doesn't remove the grape aroma and ring around the carboy no matter how much I scrub.


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## Julie (Mar 21, 2013)

Polarhug said:


> I use Star San to sanitize. Star san doesn't remove the grape aroma and ring around the carboy no matter how much I scrub.


 
The aroma should go away fairly quickly as long as you are not sealing the carboy. Use oxyclean if the carboy is getting that stained but stay away from the bleach, especially if you are using the carboys to make beer as well. Bleach will hamper head retention on the beers.


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## JoyofWine (Mar 21, 2013)

Roaches...snails...and wine?! <gag> Those are some images that are gonna stay with me for a while! Lol


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## Brew and Wine Supply (Mar 21, 2013)

Polarhug said:


> I use Star San to sanitize. Star san doesn't remove the grape aroma and ring around the carboy no matter how much I scrub.



Starsan is only a sanitizer not a cleaner, use oxyclean, onestep or craftmeister cleaners, then sanitize with Starsan.


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## Brew and Wine Supply (Mar 21, 2013)

JoyofWine said:


> Roaches...snails...and wine?! <gag> Those are some images that are gonna stay with me for a while! Lol



You forgot bird poop, other bugs and just plain old dirt that blows onto the grapes


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## WVMountaineerJack (Mar 21, 2013)

Stink Bugs are the worst!


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## jimmyjames23 (Mar 21, 2013)

Just picked up 50 free bottles. They sat in a basement for 2 years and were never rinsed. 
Black mold!

Star San, elbow grease or bleach?
I'm willing to post a YouTube vid on this one.


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## dralarms (Mar 21, 2013)

Oxi clean and cut the loop off a bottle brush so it fits in your drill.


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## Polarhug (Mar 21, 2013)

Oxy clean feels so slick and slimy to me, I feel like I can never get the residue off


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## REDBOATNY (Mar 21, 2013)

Polarhug said:


> Oxy clean feels so slick and slimy to me, I feel like I can never get the residue off


Oxyclean gave my carboys a white haze I can't remove, One step left white water spots, I have used both bleach and ammonia(not together). I have to admit, the ammonia did the best. My carboys sparkled. It was recomended in Vines to wines but frowned upon here. I am now using oxy to clean and k-meta to sanitize. Most of the carboys (10) now have a cloudy haze from the Oxy. Am I the only one who has noticed this?


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## jimmyjames23 (Mar 21, 2013)

The battle is on!

I'll try every sanitizer known to man in my bottle cleaning YouTube vid.


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## Brew and Wine Supply (Mar 21, 2013)

According to one of my suppliers:
Cleaners are not sanitizers
sanitizers are not cleaners

that said. cleaners will sanitize a little and sanitizers will clean a little, I prefer to use each for their own use.


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## Polarhug (Mar 22, 2013)

I can't wait to see your vids Jimmyjames!! Let the battles begin!! 

Will you link them for us?


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## jimmyjames23 (Mar 22, 2013)

Definitely.


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## MNwino (Mar 23, 2013)

REDBOATNY said:


> Oxyclean gave my carboys a white haze I can't remove, One step left white water spots, I have used both bleach and ammonia(not together). I have to admit, the ammonia did the best. My carboys sparkled. It was recomended in Vines to wines but frowned upon here. I am now using oxy to clean and k-meta to sanitize. Most of the carboys (10) now have a cloudy haze from the Oxy. Am I the only one who has noticed this?



It has to do with your water. I have heard of this befor. I dont know if its too soft or hard but their is a reaction between your water and the Oxyclean. I use Oxyclean (without perfume) to clean out my carboys after making beer. Sometimes I get lazy and it will sit in their for a week. Water doesnt turn cloudy and no residue.


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## saramc (Mar 23, 2013)

I inherited a 40+ year old blue glass six gallon carboy...with a petrified mouse in it. Carcass slid right out, and I cleaned, sanitized and used steam for quite a while & then repeated for a few days. It is my favorite carboy...so not telling if I make wine in it!

Edit: no bleach allowed in my winery


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## novalou (Mar 23, 2013)

saramc said:


> I inherited a 40+ year old blue glass six gallon carboy...with a petrified mouse in it. Carcass slid right out, and I cleaned, sanitized and used steam for quite a while & then repeated for a few days. It is my favorite carboy...so not telling if I make wine in it!



I received a one gallon glass jug with mice "evidence". After cleaning and sanitizing it, I can't bring myself to use it, even though it is fine!


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## Brew and Wine Supply (Mar 23, 2013)

saramc said:


> I inherited a 40+ year old blue glass six gallon carboy...with a petrified mouse in it. Carcass slid right out, and I cleaned, sanitized and used steam for quite a while & then repeated for a few days. It is my favorite carboy...so not telling if I make wine in it!


 

+1.......


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## GreginND (Mar 24, 2013)

My $0.02 on bleach. 

You don't want bleach splashed around your winery space. Specifically you don't want bleach to contact your wine, corks or other wood products that may have wood preservatives on it. That is what creates potential for cork taint.

Washing glass and steel with bleach is fine if it is not going to touch your wine right away. Rinse and dry well and it will be just fine.

I presume these soiled bottles will be cleaned and stored for some time. They will then be cleaned and sanitized again before filling with wine.

You can use bleach carefully.


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## robie (Mar 24, 2013)

Bleach is a lot better at bleaching than it is sanitizing. I know that sounds sort of nutty, but really, bleach (chlorine), compared to a true sanitizer is just not that good at killing critters.

Oxyclean is a much, much better cleaner. Do you want to bleach the color out of your stain or do you want to remove it completely?

Bleach bleaches really well (go figure!), but there are better cleaners than bleach; better sanitizers than bleach.


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## Abrnth3 (Mar 24, 2013)

Wash with hot water and Dawn dish soap scrub bottom with carboy brush, rinse well and sanitize as usually. If this does not kill all germs the next time you make wine should kill everything.


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