Root Beer World - root beer history, brands, recipes, news

Root Beer World - root beer history, brands, recipes, news
A World of Root Beer Resources

 

In Association with Amazon.com



Nickname

Password


Don't have an account yet? You can create one. As a registered user you have some advantages like theme manager, comments configuration and post comments with your name.

  
Root Beer World: Forums

 Forum FAQForum FAQ   SearchSearch   UsergroupsUsergroups   ProfileProfile   Log in to check your private messagesLog in to check your private messages   Log inLog in 

Cleaning droppers
 
 
Post new topic   Reply to topic    Root Beer World Forum Index -> Home Brewing
View previous topic :: View next topic  
Author Message
KarateExplosion
Root Beer Follower
Root Beer Follower


Joined: Jul 01, 2007
Posts: 15

PostPosted: Sun Jan 13, 2008 4:16 pm    Post subject: Cleaning droppers Reply with quote

I've recently been trying to make my own root beer recipes using herbs and wintergreen oil, with propylene glycol. I'm using a dropper, since the amounts are very small. Currently when I switch from propylene glycol to wintergreen, and when I'm done with the dropper, I just rinse it in water and/or soap water, fill it a few times (which is tough because I can't take off the end), and squirt it out. Then I toss it in the dishwasher, although I don't really think much soap water gets up inside from that. I'm not sure how effective that is in cleaning it.

Does anyone have suggestions on the best way to clean a dropper? Will detergent effectively clean it when it has been filled with oils that don't necessarily dissolve in water by themselves?

Also, currently I'm using around 10 drops of propylene glycol to 1 drop of oil. Is that a good amount? If I wanted to use gum arabic as a foam stabilizer, how much would be good to add of that?

Thanks in advance.
  
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
parsa
Home Brew Guru


Joined: Dec 15, 2003
Posts: 50
Location: Escondido, CA

PostPosted: Mon Jan 14, 2008 12:00 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Both methyl salicylate (oil of wintergreen) and propylene glycol are fairly polar molecules and miscible with water (the latter more so of course). Just squirting a bit should be good, especially if that's all you use it for. Using the oil first, then the PG might help. They're basically chemicals, so I can't see it as much of a problem anyway. There are also disposable plastic transfer pipettes of many types and sizes that you can buy in large quantities if you want.
Just google: disposable plastic pipettes
  
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
aruzinsky
Root Beer Connoisseur
Root Beer Connoisseur


Joined: Oct 13, 2004
Posts: 161
Location: IL, USA

PostPosted: Mon Jan 14, 2008 1:51 pm    Post subject: Re: Cleaning droppers Reply with quote

KarateExplosion wrote:

(which is tough because I can't take off the end)


The ends on my droppers are easy to take off. I bought my stoppers at http://www.camdengrey.com/ . I just run hot water through the droppers with the ends removed. If there is residual odor left from a distilled essential oil, the oil evaporates along with the water in a couple of days. If you can't smell the residue, it is practically clean. However, if the essential oil is expressed rather than steam distilled (not the case for wintergreen), then it will leave non-volatile residue that is very hard to clean.
  
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Visit poster's website
crazylawnguy
Root Beer Follower
Root Beer Follower


Joined: Dec 20, 2007
Posts: 28
Location: mich.

PostPosted: Tue Jan 15, 2008 11:10 am    Post subject: Re: Cleaning droppers Reply with quote

try, a little dishwater in a glass dish squeze a couple times.then rinse.then do it again in bleach solution. the bleach will also take the rootbeer smeel out of rubber.
  
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail
KarateExplosion






PostPosted: Tue Jan 15, 2008 3:58 pm    Post subject: Re: Cleaning droppers Reply with quote

Dishwater in a glass, then squeezing it up has been one of the things I do to clean, and it seems to be ok. I haven't tried bleach though.

Thanks for the help you guys. By the way, aruzinsky, I think I got my droppers from camdengrey.com but I'm not sure. I know I've browsed that particular page before. So I'm wondering now if the end can come off and I just haven't been doing it right. How do you get yours off? I've tried unscrewing it, and lightly just pulling on the end and stuff, but I don't want to pull too hard in case I break it.
  
Back to top
Display posts from previous:       
Post new topic   Reply to topic    Root Beer World Forum Index -> Home Brewing All times are GMT - 4 Hours
 
 Page 1 of 1

 

Jump to:   
You cannot post new topics in this forum
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum
You cannot delete your posts in this forum
You cannot vote in polls in this forum

Powered by phpBB © 2001-2008 phpBB Group
Forums ©
Page Generation: 0.06 Seconds