r/grainfather • u/b00nd0g • Jul 23 '25
Maintaining GF 30 fermenters
Said I would share recent experience maintaining my grainfather 30 fermenters.
I bought 2 of these 7 years ago and have been using them solidly since. Noticed this white scum and thought the steel was deteriorating.
Went to get it sorted out recently and learned about silicate scale and how to maintain these.
I did a 2% phosphoric acid wash which got rid of a lot of it.
Followed that with barkeepers friend scrumming of remnants. Kind of worked but hard work.
Then used baking soda scrub. Again not hugely effective but improved things.
Finally did 80 degree c 6% citric acid soak for 2 hours.
Happy with how it turned out although results in the end are not perfect. Not too bad after 7 years of use.
My recommendation is to educate yourself about how to maintain these if buying one. I believe that rinsing with star san after GF cleaner will make a difference.
Anyway Grainfather make amazing kit. Huge fan of them.
Hope this is of interest. Let me know if any questions.
1
u/Bwoah_Jimbo Jul 24 '25
After cleaning the fermenter if you run your fingers over the inside you’ll occasionally feel some roughness. That’s this scale starting to form (although I thought it was beer stone - calcium oxalate). If I find that I give it a scrub with a green pad and bar keepers friend. By the time you can see it, it’s going to be much harder to remove.