bleach

[shaffick]

can i use bleach to clean my fermenting bucket and equipment?. as i haven't got any sterilising fluid/powder. i am desperate to make my homebrew tonight.

[MightyMouth]

yes you can, 1/2 cup per 5 gallons of water rinse very well, then rinse again with water treated with sodium metabisulfate(campden tablets) if you have it. Try to use unscented thin bleach if you have the option. You could also try the acidified no rince bleach method.

[Jim]

Provided the bleach doesn't have any perfumes or thickeners* added to it, yes. Most value bleaches from supermarkets are OK, though the chlorine content (which is important for sterilising) varies considerably. A cupfull of bleach in 5 gallons (scaled down depending on what you have to sterilise) should be OK.

* Thickeners are added to some bleaches to make them stick to surfaces - we brewers prefer it to be easy to rinse off!

EDIT: MM beat me to it!

[shaffick]

thankyou for your reply, cheers.