You can only be a "newbie" for so long...

[Dankrencisz]

Question: when everyone talks about a vinegar bath, is it safe to assume it's white distilled vinegar? Do we just wipe it down with a soaked cloth and rinse it or fill a container and immerse completely?

I ask because I'm going to be making a mix station soon with Brute bins. I can't imagine filling with 36 gallons of vinegar first.

...I have soooo much to learn. :0)

[MondoBongo]

i use the white cleaning vinegar, you wouldn't want to use apple cider vinegar or red wine. you just want to clean, not to season.

if i have a small item, or something that is really dirty, and enough time/money/space you can certainly soak it.

you can also use water to dilute the vinegar to save you a few bucks, as long as you don't dilute it too much, and just let is soak a little longer.

for cleaning the brute, i would probably just get a gallon of cleaning white vinegar, and wipe down the inside real good with a sponge or cloth. then rinse it out well with water.

for smaller items, like my overflow box i just cleaned, i submerged it in a 5 gallon bucket of vinegar and water (50/50) for a few nights.

[dkeller_nc]

FYI - there's absolutely no reason to waste vinegar to clean out your new trash cans. The vinegar isn't going to help get rid of the most likely contaminant - oils/greases from the manufacturing and/or retail environment. Even then, this sort of contamination is going to be unusual.

Simply put a couple of gallons of hot tap water into it, add a few drops of hand dishwashing detergent (Dawn), and use a sponge/washcloth to wash down the inside. Then rinse it sufficiently so that the rinse water doesn't foam even when violently agitated.

Done.

[ca1ore]

Originally Posted by MondoBongo

i use the white cleaning vinegar, you wouldn't want to use apple cider vinegar or red wine. you just want to clean, not to season.

Whaaaaat, you mean I didn't need to be spending all that money on balsamic ....

[DasCamel]

I use 18 year Glen Levit to wipe down my trash cans.

[MondoBongo]

Originally Posted by DasCamel

I use 18 year Glen Levit to wipe down my trash cans.

Philistine.

I only use a mix of Macallan 25 and Midelton.

[HumbleFish]

I use (roughly) a 10:1 (water:vinegar) ratio in a bucket or sterilite container to create a "bath" solution. In this, I soak any equipment I need to get algae/crap off of. After soaking for around 24 hrs, you can scrub and then rinse thoroughly. Doesn't work as well as bleach, but distilled white vinegar residue won't wipe out your tank.

[Sk8r]

For a bin, I wipe down with a vinegared cloth. Straight.
For a tank, I put in a gallon or so of vinegar, rest water, and allow to circulate til clean.
For a pump or piece of plumbing, I use it straight in as aptly fitting a container as possible (to conserve vinegar) and run it.
Also works on shower heads.

[tmz]

I do use vinegar ,plain white supermarket vinegar. It's 5% acetic acid. Just wipe down and rinse. I haven't tired the soap but it seems to make sense and will probably try a very small amount followed by a vinegar wipe in the future. For high volume jobs like an old encrusted tank, muriatic acid is more practical but more dangerous.

[Dankrencisz]

Originally Posted by dascamel

i use 18 year glen levit to wipe down my trash cans.

+1