239: Scrub-a-Dub Valves & Vessels - a podcast by Ria Windcaller: Award winning Cidermaker | Craft Libations Columnist | Podc

from 2020-09-16T07:00

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Cleaning considerations for 3 different cider operations - DYI, Farm Winery and Production with Stormalong Cider.

ep 239 Stormalong Cider Tream

(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 

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