PBW & the Chemistry of Clean

[ZC]

Hmm okay. So maybe heat up some water in a pot, mix in the PBW, and then submerge the glass for 20 min?

 

[duff]

Definitely dissolve the PBW in very hot water and then put your piece in @ZC.

I don't boil, but have my hot water heater cranked up a bit so it gets pretty hot.

I mix in a plastic (I guess) bucket, with a wooden spoon until I can't see the granules.
Run the glass under a bit of hot water and dip it into the bucket.
Once it's submerged I agitate it a bit and let it sit for five minutes.
Remove from water and thoroughly rinse the outside and let the water run through the piece for another minute or so.

Sometimes I'll do the process again.
Lately I've been following up with some ISO, a quick shake and a drain.
The last ISO bath really makes it sparkle.

 

[virtualpurple]

I've also learned that less is more recently. I used to make it super concentrated but it was leaving mark's on the glass and felt caustic to my skin. I get much better medulla using small amounts dissolved in hot water, then I'll usually pour water into the bubbler (if I'm cleaning stems I just place them in a tall glass of solution) and microwave till near boiling, then just let it stew for 20 minutes before rinsing out with hot water.

I now no longer have to fiddle with extra soaks or anything like that.

 

[Hogni]

Why are all dissolving PBW BEFORE you put your dirty pieces in? It's a oxi cleaner too. This part of the recipe doesn't work anymore when the PBW is dissolved!?
I put my pieces in a box or fill PBW into my glass pieces, use boiling water, shake all until PBW has completely dissolves. So the oxi cleaner can work first and let all rest for at least 10 minutes up to half an hour. Long rinsing with hot water afterwards and dry it with a micro fleece towel for glass. Works great in this way.

 

[t-dub]

I read somewhere that you should actually not put the pbw inside the glass.

I always mix in vitro however I use my flush device which dissolves the PBW completely and rinses thoroughly under pressure. (see below)

Why are all dissolving PBW BEFORE you put your dirty pieces in? It's a oxi cleaner too.

Exactly.

I've also learned that less is more recently. I used to make it super concentrated but it was leaving mark's on the glass and felt caustic to my skin.

I have said for a very long time in this thread that less is more . . .

 

[duff]

Thanks @Hogni and @t-dub.

I dissolve in the water first to limit any residue. I may be being overly cautious, but it seems to work just as well for me and gives me piece of mind.

Love that setup @t-dub. I need to replicate that somehow.

 

[t-dub]

Love that setup @t-dub. I need to replicate that somehow.

Its just a couple drilled #2 stoppers for 18mm joints, IIRC use a drilled #00 for 14mm joints, and some silicone whip tubing. The cushions are a Spill Stop bar service mat on the counter and standard bar mesh in the sink, both available at your local restaurant or bar supply shop.

The toughest part is having a faucet that you can plug the stopper into since many don't allow this.

 

[duff]

The toughest part is having a faucet that you can plug the stopper into since many don't allow this.

That is the issue!

 

[t-dub]

That is the issue!

One idea is a universal faucet adapter like the ones used to connect your sink to a portable dishwasher. You will have to find one that fits your particular situation so it could take a bit of legwork to make it happen. Your local hardware store and the internet are good places to start.

 

[Hogni]

Thanks @Hogni and @t-dub.

I dissolve in the water first to limit any residue. I may be being overly cautious, but it seems to work just as well for me and gives me piece of mind.

But what residue do you want to limit? Again, the oxi cleaner component of the PBW can't work anymore after dissolving. Process of dissolving IS PART of the cleaning process bc only while dissolving the oxi component is working.
But to each his own...main thing it works

And agree, sometimes less is more. I relatively use less of PBW for cleaning my vape pieces than for cleaning my brewing equipment.

 

[MonkeyTime]

For the hose portion of the rinsing, I bought a dehumidifier hose, it has a standard hose bid female end and about a 5/8"soft 10' hose, a barbed fitting from hose to #2 stopper for 18mm, for 14mm I pull the barb out and push the hose in directly.

Hot water rinse for the win!

 

[virtualpurple]

@Hogni and @t-dub,

Thank you for the insight and food for thought. I will try to continue the less-is-more approach and will do it without pre-dissolving the pbw. Always learning!

 

[t-dub]

For the hose portion of the rinsing, I bought a dehumidifier hose, it has a standard hose bid female end and about a 5/8"soft 10' hose, a barbed fitting from hose to #2 stopper for 18mm, for 14mm I pull the barb out and push the hose in directly.

Excellent info @MonkeyTime thanks for the very useful information . . .

 

[MinnBobber]

Thank you for the insight and food for thought. I will try to continue the less-is-more approach and will do it without pre-dissolving the pbw. Always learning!

.................................................................................................
Just to be crystal clear, if you do not pre-dissolve PBW in a separate container ( if you put PBW in your bubbler and then add hot water) it CAN leave white stains that seem to be permanent. A buddy has a Mobius bubbler with some not-so-nice white stains from mixing in the bubbler
Not saying it will do so in all cases and not saying in the majority of cases BUT user beware if you mix in your bubbler.

I'm not sure what chemical action you miss out on by mixing externally ?? When you do laundry with Oxi-Clean, it recommends adding Oxy and detergent to water BEFORE adding clothes so the actual mixing takes place before clothes are added. And with PBW, you are only missing out on 10 seconds of mixing and then mixture is in bubbler or misc pieces.

I would never mix inside a $$ bubbler as it's not worth the risk

 

[Hogni]

No prob. Never. With no piece.
How I've said you have to shake your box/glass until it's dissolved.

 

[Gn0sis]

Can someone please link me to a flexible/curvable brush I can safely use on the inside of my piece? Ones I keep finding all have stainless steel in either the handle, the brush head or both.

I want to get into the circled area with a brush to try and get that build-up off... Have tried doing several long soaks with PBW, Alconox and vinegar + salt... Nothing helped at all so far...

Also, would appreciate any further advice on what I can do to get the stains off my glass.

 

[MinnBobber]

Can you pinpoint what caused the stain, was it vaping buds only or conc too?
Is it a white haze on the glass?? Or did it occur after cleaning?

A white haze is what I've seen from "too much" PBW: too rich a concentration or too much soak time.
It's not been common but less is more with PBW.

I assume you've done a few oz of PBW /water mix and a good shaking of the piece to get good agitation.
Could you add a few small/ hard scrubbers to the mix, like fishing sinkers or BBs, since it looks like very easy to
inject and get out easily??

 

[Gn0sis]

Can you pinpoint what caused the stain, was it vaping buds only or conc too?
Is it a white haze on the glass?? Or did it occur after cleaning?

A white haze is what I've seen from "too much" PBW: too rich a concentration or too much soak time.
It's not been common but less is more with PBW.

I assume you've done a few oz of PBW /water mix and a good shaking of the piece to get good agitation.
Could you add a few small/ hard scrubbers to the mix, like fishing sinkers or BBs, since it looks like very easy to
inject and get out easily??

This was from concentrates. Before i was educated, i used tap water in the piece and dabbed at pretty high temps on a titanium torch nail.

The marks were from before pbw. I used both low and high concentration soaks of Pbw, but it didnt do anything at all.

 

[brucee10]

Can someone please link me to a flexible/curvable brush I can safely use on the inside of my piece? Ones I keep finding all have stainless steel in either the handle, the brush head or both.

I want to get into the circled area with a brush to try and get that build-up off... Have tried doing several long soaks with PBW, Alconox and vinegar + salt... Nothing helped at all so far...

Also, would appreciate any further advice on what I can do to get the stains off my glass.

They make little magnetic scrubbers that might be small enough. Or you could sew a little magnet into a sponge and then you can control size and shape.

 

[Hogni]

Try some acid or vinegar (concentrate) for the hazy glass. Afterwards a run with PBW

 

[Techn!d0n]

Hey quick question. Where do you get this online? Or just local? I'm in the U.S.

 

[duff]

I got it locally at a home brewer's shop @Techn!d0n

 

[Hogni]

Look at sites of homebrewing suppliers or amazon. Just googling.

 

[Baron23]

Can someone please link me to a flexible/curvable brush I can safely use on the inside of my piece? Ones I keep finding all have stainless steel in either the handle, the brush head or both.

I want to get into the circled area with a brush to try and get that build-up off... Have tried doing several long soaks with PBW, Alconox and vinegar + salt... Nothing helped at all so far...

Also, would appreciate any further advice on what I can do to get the stains off my glass.

I think this may be what you want, brother. I got one and find it very useful. I don't know that this will solve your issue, but it should be able to get in there.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B016EF46HC/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o03_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

 

[Gn0sis]

I think this may be what you want, brother. I got one and find it very useful. I don't know that this will solve your issue, but it should be able to get in there.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B016EF46HC/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o03_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

i'm looking for pretty much that, but without any metal wires/parts that can touch the glass.