K-Meta / Star San

[wineview]

Some folks say Star San loses its potency when it gets cloudy and definitely when the ph is above 3.0. Does K-Meta loose its sanitation properties after using it multiple times? If so what are the indicators?

 

[winemaker81]

Take a really deep sniff of the K-meta -- if you're still alive afterward, it's gone bad.

Just kidding. NEVER sniff deeply of any chemical.

I continue to use mine as long as it stinks. Or when the gallon jug gets down below half full, or it looks ugly. I've kept K-meta solution as long as a year, but in general I replace it every 6 months.

AFAIK, there is not a definitive test. But your nose knows.

 

[BigDaveK]

Seems to me since kmeta bonds with free oxygen that every time it's out of the jug it degrades a tiny bit and has to go bad eventually.

 

[winemaker81]

Seems to me since kmeta bonds with free oxygen that every time it's out of the jug it degrades a tiny bit and has to go bad eventually.

Agreed. But like Star San, it's good for a while.

 

[Mister ED]

I don't buy the cloudy Star San = not good. Mine is always somewhat cloudy right when I mix it.

 

[CDrew]

The cloudy StarSan is associated with minerals in the water I think. It's usually best to mix up your Starsan in distilled water. Then it can last for months and you don't have to worry about it.

Mine is a bit cloudy here if I use tap water to mix, and I generally would not use the same "batch" above 1 weekend. StarSan is cheap and plentiful. No reason really to worry about storing it mixed up. If I start a wine making day, my first step is mixing up a couple of gallons in Distilled water.

 

[wineview]

Distilled water is the way to go.