What do you do with your used Star San?

Ward Chillington

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I usually have about 2 to 3 gallons of the foamy sanitizer left in my 5 gallon bucket I use for cleaning tools, tubes and my carboy for every brew session but I have been dumping the leftover down an abandoned groundhog hole at the far side of the property as I do not want it impacting my septic tank's balance. The reason I ask is somewhat looking for an acceptable and smart reuse of a brewing "by product" as I wear my well worn cheap bastard hat, but I also live on a well and septic. I am very watchful of both systems as repairs are costly and the impact of any failure is really an upset to daily life!

So all you guys on town sewers and such, are most likely dumping it down the drain but what about other users out there? Are there other uses or is it simply a disposable necessity? The folks at 5 Star say it's fine in septic systems but to dilute it heavily so that means more water use and I hate to over use water!
 
I have a similar concern. Same with PBW. I live in the country and have a septic system and occasionally pour both down the drain, but add plenty of clear water at the same time. Most of the time I pour brewing cleaner/sanitizer in gravel areas but see no negative impact on weeds or grass.

I have a greater concern with some fabric softeners that don’t dissolve well in cold water going into the wash machine. We always use warm water now since our well water is very cold.

Thanks for the question. Good to hear comments from others.
 
I usually have about 2 to 3 gallons of the foamy sanitizer left in my 5 gallon bucket I use for cleaning tools, tubes and my carboy for every brew session but I have been dumping the leftover down an abandoned groundhog hole at the far side of the property as I do not want it impacting my septic tank's balance. The reason I ask is somewhat looking for an acceptable and smart reuse of a brewing "by product" as I wear my well worn cheap bastard hat, but I also live on a well and septic. I am very watchful of both systems as repairs are costly and the impact of any failure is really an upset to daily life!

So all you guys on town sewers and such, are most likely dumping it down the drain but what about other users out there? Are there other uses or is it simply a disposable necessity? The folks at 5 Star say it's fine in septic systems but to dilute it heavily so that means more water use and I hate to over use water!
It's acidic so it should be good to water acid-loving plants, a big plus here in the High Plains where we have very alkaline soils. When I make cheese, I dump the whey on our roses for that reason. But normally it winds up in the South Platte river via the City of Aurora's sewage treatment system.
 
I'm on a septic tank but I never make more than a gallon at a time. I typically get months of use out of it and what little is left usually goes down the drain. My PBW is usually put in the washing machine or dumped on the grass.
 
I have a rotation, the clean star sans starts when sanitizing kegs, between 2 kegs that gets poured into a 6 gallon bucket and used to sanitize the next brew day, eventually it gets contaminated with wort and yeast but I keep it until I clean the next set of kegs, throw that down the toilet or back yard then start the whole thing over with new
 
I have a cycle and I rarely have more than a gallon and a spray bottle full.

I use it to sanitize my keg lines. I start by running hot pbw through until it runs clear then I let it sit in there for about an hour. Then I run star San through until it fills the lines and I let that sit until I flush it out with beer.

On brew day I make a gallon and I use a window box planter to sanitize all the long things like hose and siphon and such. When I'm done I put the leftovers in a gallon jug and fill my spray bottle for next time.

On racking day I use my window box planter again for long items. I pour the gallon of star San in there. I rack into the keg then I clean the fermenter with pbw rinse and put some star San in there from the planter box. Maybe two pint and shake it around and leave it in there until I need to fill it.

Same with kegs.

I have a septic too and I don't worry much because I don't make more than a couple of gallons for any procedure. I don't let it get dirty and I save everything for next time.
 
Replace the StarSan in the spray bottles I use for those small things between brewdays.
 
I throw both the cleaner and phosphoric acid on lawn here and no dead grass so it's good in that department. Like the acid on plants that like it I'll be putting some on my blueberries next time I dump some.
 
I keep starsan solution in jugs, and use it over, and over ... and over

Me too. I mix up a gallon at a time, and use it for about 6 months or longer. I spray things down, soak things, etc, and never make more than a gallon. I usually spill it by accident and don't have any left to pour out except for the smallest amounts.

I mentioned in another thread that I've been brewing for a long time, and using star-san for about 15 years, and I'm on my second bottle (which is mostly full!).
 
Me too. I mix up a gallon at a time, and use it for about 6 months or longer. I spray things down, soak things, etc, and never make more than a gallon. I usually spill it by accident and don't have any left to pour out except for the smallest amounts.

I mentioned in another thread that I've been brewing for a long time, and using star-san for about 15 years, and I'm on my second bottle (which is mostly full!).

Gallon at a time in distilled water and a spray bottle and it lasts a long time. I used idophor for several years thinking I was saving money, as it cost less for a bottle. Went to starsan and never looked back. With spray bottle it is simple and efficient. Not enough going down the drain at a time to be an issue for me. PBW and BLC ? NOT sure.
I do add septic treatment a couple times a year as we do use bleach and other household cleaners.
 
Same here, but I do four gallons at a time, that way I have plenty for all the stuff I need to sanitize. It lasts until it's collected so much dust and gunk I can't stand to use it any more.
 
Same I have a tub of it that I use for bulk cleaning things and eventually I just dump it in the alley. I have a growler I use for day to day starsan that tends to empty fairly quickly as I'm pretty liberal with it.
 
I've been using StarSan for 7 years and I have just started my second 16oz bottle. I mix a 5 gallon bucket of it and fill a few spray bottles from that. The rest stays in the bucket so I can just dump stuff in the bucket to sanitize. I will occasionally top up the bucket with a fresh gallon, and I rarely have to mix up a new 5 gallons. When it is time to start fresh I just pour the old solution down the drain.
 

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