Sanitising taps

[trucker5774]

Just wondered what others do. I'm thinking particularly when the beer has been in an FV for a week or two, or in a conditioning barrel and is to be transferred to bottles or another vessel via the tap. I guess a lot use a no rinse spray. I turn the tap upside down and bleach it then flush with a kettle of boiling water. I also guess a lot have just read this and suddenly realised its an item they miss

[boingy]

I give it a half hearted wipe with a videne-soaked cloth and stick the first couple of pints into bottles in the hope that any infection will end up in that first bit of run off.

[Kev888]

I used to syphon as I saw taps as a weakness to sanitation, but I'm gradually being converted. My feeling is that if the tap was thoroughly clean and sanitised before filling then not much will need to be done before use. So I give it a healthy squirt or three up and around the nozzle with starsan a minute or so before letting the flow begin (I only go further with cleaning it if the wort tried to escape the FV all over it).

So far (fingers crossed) no problems, but I do take apart and soak FV taps after use to make sure they're thoroughly cleaned each time.

Cheers
Kev

[Aleman]

Taps get sprayed with 70% iso propyl alcohol prior to filling and sealed in a new polythene bag. . . .If I'm taking a sample, then a wash with cleanser followed by no rinse sanitiser . . . sample taken . . flush nozzle with water, then dry and follow it up with IPA and seal in another new plastic bag.

OCD . . . Moi?

[Naich]

I'd say the most important thing to do with a tap is clean it properly. There's not much point in spraying with Star San if there is a chunk of gunk lurking inside, waiting to dissolve into your beer. Where feasible, I dismantle my taps as much as possible and give them a good clean with a brush and detergent. After that I rinse thoroughly, put them back together and then steralise. I also give my taps a good flush through with water as soon as possible after use, before the beer or wort gets a chance to dry out.

The drum taps on my kegs get completely dismantled and the individual pieces are cleaned seperately. The ball valves on the boiler and mash tun get a brush poked through them and twizzled round to get the gunk out. If I could find a huge allen key to fit the internal hex shape in the body I would dismantle them too. The tap on my bottling/racking tub gets a brush poked up it as best I can. That one can't be dismantled at all, unfortunately.

Of course, if it's a plastic tap it's important not to scratch it while cleaning, as scratches can harbour gunk too.