Beer Forum

Hey all, i have a quick question about PBW. I mixed some up the other day but only needed a little bit, so the rest of the gallon has been sitting closed in a glass jar. this got me wondering how reusable PBW is and how long it lasts when it's mixed up with water.

Thanks,
Thom

geekbits wrote:Hey all, i have a quick question about PBW. I mixed some up the other day but only needed a little bit, so the rest of the gallon has been sitting closed in a glass jar. this got me wondering how reusable PBW is and how long it lasts when it's mixed up with water.

Thanks,
Thom

Hey Thom. I can't give you a definitive answer on how long it will last. There is a Brew Strong episode where they talk with the guy from 5 star at length and they go over a lot of the different times with various materials.

If I remembered what they said, I'd certainly divulge.

I'd use it as long as it still feels slick and doesn't stink. I think I remember a story about a restaurant using the same bucket for days to soak plates that had been under the broiler and had stuff crusted all over. Even though the liquid was black by the end of the week, it still worked.

I usually cycle mine through fermenters and kegs, then into a bucket for soaking the labels off bottles. Works great, but I suspect the glue is where the stink eventually comes from.

cool, thanks. i'll have to listen to that Brew Strong show, thought I listened to all of them but dont recall that one.

yeh i guess it's not as big a deal as keeping sanitizer around too long, since you can for the most part actually see if the PBW is working or not. good tip about feeling if it's still slick...and i hadnt thought to use it to get the labels off, anxious to see how quickly that works since it's such a pain otherwise.