Need a cleaning method for carboys

I’ve been seeing hazy residue of something that seems to remain on the inside of my glass carboy. It’s not organic debris, just a faint, cloudy film that I only see when it’s dry and the sun is hitting it. I’ve scrubbed with a bottle brush and used a spinning aparatus that has the chamois strips on a steel rod, but these don’t seem to clean the material that is there. I haven’t had any problems with infection because I’ve always soaked the carboy in a heavy concentration of iodophor, yet I’d like to know if there is something that I could try that will do a better job of scrubbing the inside walls. Anyone have a suggestion to pass along?

Thanks!

Soak in PBW solution?http://www.northernbrewer.com/shop/powdered-brewery-wash.html

Are you sure you’re rinsing properly? I use PBW for a long soak and then triple rinse with warm tap water. Never had a problem with residue. What kind of cleaner are you using? Iodophor is only used for sanitizing.

Doesn’t PBW sometimes eventually leave a buildup such as this? I’ve heard people say you have to soak in vinegar or something to get it off... I’m sure someone will chime in.

Originally posted by drowland
Doesn’t PBW sometimes eventually leave a buildup such as this? I’ve heard people say you have to soak in vinegar or something to get it off... I’m sure someone will chime in.

Might be true, I haven’t tried it... I try to keep vinegar away from my carboys (even if it is distilled vinegar)

Pretty sure PBW only leaves a film if you don’t use warm enough water to mix or rinse.

I think I need to build one of these:


But you can also buy an Keg & Carboy Washer from MoreBeer.

I used some straight A last night and there was a light brown film of some sort of organic substance that was lifted from the inner wall of the carboy. Some remained, so I applied Straight A again and then attempted to bottle brush off what I could still see sticking to the glass. I think I got most of it, but I’ll clean it again to see what lifts off. Weird membrane like substance that can only have been some old microorganism colony that was dead but still clinging to the glass. Wish I knew what it was...

Originally posted by drowland
Doesn’t PBW sometimes eventually leave a buildup such as this? I’ve heard people say you have to soak in vinegar or something to get it off... I’m sure someone will chime in.

FWIW, StarSan will neutralize PBW. If you ever have organic stuff stuck to your kettle, you can do a two stage soak of PBW followed by Star San to clean it up.

film/residue may be related to local water & minerals, no?