Best way of Cleaning out old bottles??

[mohawkman4081]

What is the best method of cleaning out old bottles? i tried using a brush and soapy water but it just doesn't get the job done completely.

 

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[Harry Pristis]

What is the best method of cleaning out old bottles? i tried using a brush and soapy water but it just doesn't get the job done completely.

You can use just about any cleaning product (except Whink) to clean a bottle. Hydrochloric (muriatic) acid will not harm the glass. LimeAway is commonly used if you have limey deposits or iron deposits. If the glass is "sick," that is, decomposing, no cleaning product will remove the sickness.

What I have found generally useful is laundry bleach.

I fill a bottle with tepid tap-water to which I add a tiny amount of laundry detergent (because it is non-sudsing) and a dollup of laundry bleach. I let it soak for a few hours.

Whatever residue is left I remove with a home-made brush. I use a stiff wire coat-hanger for this purpose. I cut the hook portion away. I bend the smallest possible loop on one end of the wine and a large loop on the other. The larger loop will be the handle.

I cut a lengthwise strip of scrubbing pad (a Scotch-Brite knockoff from the dollar store) wide enough to generously cover the small loop. I roll the strip of scrubbing pad around the small loop and secure it tightly with several wraps of thin copper wire. String or a rubber band could be substituted for the copper wire. The copper is too soft to scratch the glass, but is relatively impervious to chemicals.

If you wish to use a commercial bottle brush, try this. I affix a small patch (about the size of the brush diameter) of scrubbing pad to the tip of the brush using polyurethane cement (Plumbers Goop, Shoe Goop, etc.). This patch not only makes the brush more effective in corners and at the bottom of the bottle, it also cushions the tip of the wire brush from any "hammer effect" in manipulating the brush inside the bottle.

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[Paleopilot]

What is the best method of cleaning out old bottles? i tried using a brush and soapy water but it just doesn't get the job done completely.

I've had some success cleaning old bottles using a bit of 409 and some lead shot from a couple old shotgun shells. Get a small funnel and pour 'em in, shake, shake, shake then pour them back out through a strainer to catch the BBs. You will be amazed at the results!

 

[halfdime]

I generally try most of the above methods except I use sand in water as an abrasive. Does a nice job of removing dirt where you can't reach.

 

[releventchair]

I use water,dishsoap with depending on size an inch or two of uncooked rice and shake shake shake.
Have heard of crushed ice but don,t like temperature extremes of it.

 

[MrSchulz]

I have several different ways I clean my bottles depending on what is needed to be cleaned. Until I get the time to build a automatic tumbler, here is what I do:

If the bottle is dug with lots of dirt on the inside, I drop in a few pebbles that have been cleaned in soapy water (to remove the dirt from them) and fill it 1/4-1/3 of room temp water plug the top (with finger/thumb) and shake. The few pebbles remove the dirt, pour into a strainer, refill with warm water and a very small amount of dawn dishsoap shake and rinse, than add a plentiful amount of pebbles, 1/3 full hot water, a tiny amount (tiny tiny tiny) of dawn, plug and shake. This removes most if not all dirt from the inside.

If the bottle has staining on the inside, drop it in some toilet bowl cleaner for about 25 minutes, than use a baby bottle brush to stir the inside dump and it shines.

I'm sure there are other ways out there, and I have heard things about peroxide, alka seltzer tablets, and McDonalds grill acid..

 

[bottlehunterofcoscob]

I heard tumbled bottles aren't considered "mint". Any truth?

 

[MrSchulz]

I heard tumbled bottles aren't considered "mint". Any truth?

Mint Condition is straight from original manufacture, all original. Having to clean it wouldn't make it original from the factory

 

[bottlehunterofcoscob]

How would anyone know they were tumbled?

 

[MrSchulz]

How would anyone know they were tumbled?

To be honest, I have no idea. Just my 2 cents

 

[bottlehunterofcoscob]

I was just thinking that if it didn't leave any trace or anything you could theoretically say it's mint.

 

[bottles10]

instead of using lead bbs or pebbles. Use copper BBS or 16 gauge cut copper wire. and anyone that handles a lot of good glass can tell if it has been polished or tumbled. it is like oiling a bottle. dose not hurt unless a person tries to hide the fact.

 

[gleaner1]

Pour a handfull o' sand and gravel into it with some water. Shake rather vigorously for a bit. This is the best way to get rid of dump grime inside the bot, by far. No soap please,

 

[Muddyhandz]

All good tips.
Say if it's winter and you have no access to gravel or sand, I've used clean kitty litter and water with good results.
Some bottle brushes just don't reach.
Cheers,
Dave.

 

[Harry Pristis]

All good tips.
Say if it's winter and you have no access to gravel or sand, I've used clean kitty litter and water with good results.
Some bottle brushes just don't reach.
Cheers,
Dave.

What sort of kitty litter do you use, Dave? All the litter with which I am familiar is made of hygroscopic kaolin -- clay. It seems to me that the kaolin would turn to mud in a bottle of water. Tell us what alternatives are available.

 

[gleaner1]

Cheap aquarium gravel works good if you cant get sand and pebbles. This will get rust out of the inside corners of the worst dump bottles in a jiffy.