Can I use my dishwasher to steralize bottles?

[sjors86]

My dishwasser can go up to 70 degrees celsius, it that enough to clean my bottles or should I stick by hand cleaning them?

I'm planning not to use soap, just the hot water.

 

[Runningwolf]

I would not trust the dishwasher to get inside the bottle. Yours may be different then mine though. There are some folks here that do use it.

 

[Jimyson]

Dishwashers can only sanitize and not sterilize. Based on the fact that you discuss bottles, makes it sound like you just mean sanitize. With that said, RW is correct that some do trust the dishwasher and many don't. You could always use your oven as an alternative to a solution based sanitizer. This would also yield sterilized bottles if done at the correct temp for the correct duration.

The following is taken from How to Brew by John Palmer:

Dry Heat Sterilization

338°F (170°C)- 60 minutes

320°F (160°C)- 120 minutes

302°F (150°C)- 150 minutes

284°F (140°C)- 180 minutes

250°F (121°C)- 12 hours (Overnight)

 

[DoctorCAD]

I have used mine to sanitize bottles after they are clean. Tried it once just to see how it would do. Dishwasher takes a LONG time to sanitize, like an hour. Much easier to use k-meta. Takes about 10 seconds a bottle.

 

[seth8530]

What I tend to do is to clean the bottles out really well to ensure their are no big bugs in the bottle. (usually rinsing a few times will accomplish this). Then I use either a no rinse or kmeta to ensure that their are no little bugs in my bottles.

 

[ibglowin]

Only one I would trust is that PVC rack that someone custom built and plumbed into an old dishwasher where each bottle sat on top of a PVC water jet. That I would trust to clean, not sanitize.

I would not trust the dishwasher to get inside the bottle. Yours may be different then mine though. There are some folks here that do use it.

 

[Jimyson]

Only one I would trust is that PVC rack that someone custom built and plumbed into an old dishwasher where each bottle sat on top of a PVC water jet. That I would trust to clean, not sanitize.

But when we talk about sanitizing in the dishwasher, its the steam that will do the work. What you mention is cleaning.

 

[ibglowin]

Exactly what I said, I would not trust a Dishwasher to sanitize only clean. I would always pump some KMETA into the bottle before bottling. Even with new out of the box bottles.

 

[Jimyson]

Exactly what I said, I would not trust a Dishwasher to sanitize only clean. I would always pump some KMETA into the bottle before bottling. Even with new out of the box bottles.

Gotcha. Misunderstood.

Carry on. [emoji12]

 

[Floandgary]

The outside of your bottles will certainly sparkle, but it's highly unlikely that the action of a dishwasher would be able to have much effect on the inside. As said above,,, hot water rinse then K-meta flush!

 

[djrockinsteve]

Fill a 6 gallon bucket with hot water. Add K-Meta

Insert 7-8 bottles into the bucket and hold under water till they fill. Take bottle brush and brush them out quickly.

Remove bottles after a few mins and rack on a bottle tree to drain a bit.

Start bottling while slightly damp.

I will de-label and clean out prior and store. When ready to bottle I do the above. Quick and simple. No need to dishwasher them. It would be easier though.

 

[JohnT]

Sorry for the following long post....

When it comes to bottles, my thinking is that I am too old and too Hungarian (impatient) to deal with used labeled bottles. I did my fair share of that in my younger days, but it got really old, really quick.

Instead, I purchase new and then reuse them. It is fantastic not having to scrape labels and have each bottle identical in shape. Makes storage easier too. I also found that once I developed a stock of bottles, and save them for re-use, I only need to purchase a couple of cases each year to replace ones that have been gifted to others.

My very first step in washing bottles is to RINSE IT OUT AFTER USE!!! If you are religious about rinsing your bottles the minute you are done with them, you will find that cleaning bottles is a walk in the park. I have these big boxes on wheels that (after use and rinse) I throw my bottles. This box (aka bottle bin) will hold about 20 cases of bottles and rolls right under my work bench.

When it come time to clean the bottles, I do not use the dishwasher, but I do use dishwasher detergent (the liquid kind). This stuff is AMAZING!!! Here is my process..

1) I first rinse each bottle with screaming hot water and drain.

2) I then take a bottle, add 1/2 full of screaming hot water, and add 3 or 4 drops of the liquid type automatic dishwasher detergent.

3) With thumb over the bottle's opening, shake well. Almost immediately any of that staining on the inside of the bottle simply melts away.

4) For really stubborn and filthy bottles, let the solution sit and then shake again.

5) If still not clean, use a bottle brush.

6) Pour out the soap solution, and rinse the bottle with screaming hot water a minimum of 3 times, shaking the bottle each time the bottle is rinsed.

7) Drain on bottle rack.


The way I see it.. Automatic dishwashing detergent is designed to not foam up, to clean and sanitize, and to rinse away cleanly. Face it, people eat off the dishes washed in the stuff!! I have been using this stuff for years and have yet to find a better cleaning solution for bottles!

8) I consider that the bottles are clean at this point and can store them for a good length of time (once they are fully dry). Prior to actual use (bottling), each bottle gets a rinse with warm water (just to remove any dust that may have collected in the bottle) then a rinse in strong k-meta solution.

9) Once rinsed in k-meta, I place them onto the bottle rack for draining. Each bottle is then plucked off the rack and filled.

10) Once each bottle is filled and corked, it is quickly plunged into a bucket of cold water to rinse off any spilled wine or k-meta solution that may be the outside of the bottle.

11) The corked bottle is dried with a towel, then either boxed or stacked.

Sorry to go on about this, just felt that describing my entire process may help others and also invite suggestions for improvement.