239: Scrub-a-Dub Valves & Vessels

Cleaning considerations for 3 different cider operations - DYI, Farm Winery and Production with Stormalong Cider. (l-r) Ben Roberts-Sano, Bright McConnell, Shannon Edgar DIY - Home Cidermaking  It is soak and scrub for the DIYers. Soak carboys parts nylon bags airlocks all threaded parts Rinse with copious amounts of water thoroughly and sanitize. Boil with hot water, if possible. Drainage and setup are a major consideration Due to the common lack of pumps/ floor drains. Effluent should not affect your septic, if you brew a batch or 2 per year. Biggest maker hang ups Using low quality materials which can't stand the cleaning Not scrubbing enough Not disassembling/boiling threaded or other  non sanitary parts Farm winery set up Have some sort of floor drain, and some sort of pump capable of driving a spray ball. Rinse by pumping into a spray ball Drain to floor when rinsing tanks Always pump the water from a fully clean and neutralized tank, to the tank being cleaned Spray gross soils in the tanks out before starting to clean Tanks must be vented during cleaning, and all parts should be removed. Any areas under manways or probes that might obstruct the spray must manually be scrubbed. Take off and clean manway gaskets, and ensure sight lines are cleaned Clean and sanitize throughly racking arms and carb stones for best results Biggest hangups for Farm Winery Not Enough hot water Not having adequate drainage and wastewater handling Some small cideries with no wastewater handling will skip all of this in lieu of a steam or hot water pressure washer. They spray the tanks to remove soils, then partially close them up and allow the metal to reach 170-180 degrees to sanitize, then purge out any air with nitrogen argon or CO2. Commercial scale Set Up Automation and verification, regular inspection and replacement of parts Rubber parts and hoses that become cracked can no longer be adequately cleaned and must be thrown out. Even steel parts can become too scratched to be cleaned properly. Chemicals are tested for potency to determine if they are depleted by cleaning, and to insure adequate rinsing The inside of the tank may be tested for microbial action by plating or ATP test Commercial Plants at this scale invest in better Jet or rotating spray balls Dedicated cleaning tanks / pumps, caustic recovery, re heat, and re use More, and hotter water for cleaning To sanitize commercial cider makers may use plant steam/  PAA with a dosatron or CLO2 to kill remaining microbes Biggest hang ups for Commercial operators Not inspecting enough Not rinsing enough Trying to be too efficient  Mentions in this Chat Listen to initial Season 1 recording with Stormalong - 36 Shannon Edgar and Ben Roberts-Sano | Stormalong Cider, MA Cidermaking Series Part 1 - How to Make Cider at Home Part 2 - Maker Tips for Growth and Cleanliness Part 3 - Cidery Sanitation Tips Contact info for Stormalong Website https://www.stormalong.com/ Help Support Cider Chat Please donate today. Help keep the chat thriving! Find this episode and all episodes at the page for Cider Chat's podcasts. Listen also at iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher (for Android), iHeartRadio , Spotify and wherever you love to listen to podcasts. Follow on Cider Chat's blog, social media and podcast Twitter @ciderchat Instagram: @ciderchatciderville Cider Chat FaceBook Page Cider Chat YouTube