Moldy buckets...

[Sugar]

:( I bought 20 buckets from a jam place here. I left them in my van, until we were ready to get more sap. When I took them out today, there were some little speaks of black mold in the bottom of most of them. I went and bought 20 more for today...Thankfully they are only 50 cents each...

How should I clean these buckets, so they will be safe for sap and syrup? I read not to use bleach or detergents, since the sap/syrup could pick up the taste. Is washing them out with hot water safe enough?

Thanks for helping!

[BoarsNest]

I've used a little bleach and a lot of water and it doesn't seem to effect my syrup.

[psparr]

Scotch brite pad am some hot water.

[happy thoughts]

Scotchbrite sounds good Baking soda would work, too, to remove any moldy biofilm.
You could also throw them in the sanicycle of your dishwasher and run without the soap

A weak sanitizing bleach solution (200ppm) could also be used after you've gotten rid of as much of the mold as you can by washing- A solution of a tablespoon of PLAIN, unscented bleach, without any added detergents added to a gallon of water is considered food safe and effective in killing germs and mold. It can even be used on fruits and veggies per the FDA. Wipe it on all over the inside of the buckets, let it sit for 1-5 minutes then rinse with LOTS of water. If you limit the contact time and use lots of water to rinse, the buckets shouldn't leave any aftertaste. Just make sure to use plain bleach and not one that has, soap, scents or thickeners in it.


Hope you have a great season!

[Tweegs]

Yep, I use bleach too, at the end of the season to clean all of my buckets.

Usually towards the end of the season I’ll start to see some mold form in the buckets. I’ll hook up the trailer, toss on a tank of hot water and grab a helper. With a couple of spare buckets to get started, it’s easy to set up a routine of bringing in dirty buckets and taking clean ones back out.

[Sugar]

Yep, I use bleach too, at the end of the season to clean all of my buckets.

Usually towards the end of the season I’ll start to see some mold form in the buckets. I’ll hook up the trailer, toss on a tank of hot water and grab a helper. With a couple of spare buckets to get started, it’s easy to set up a routine of bringing in dirty buckets and taking clean ones back out.

Thanks...That's what I did...I bought new buckets, then today wiped out the little specks of mold, and rinsed with hot water. There wasn't a lot of mold, just little spots, so wasn't a big clean up. I used to live in Howell..Never saw anyone tap trees...

[Sugar]

Scotchbrite sounds good Baking soda would work, too, to remove any moldy biofilm.
You could also throw them in the sanicycle of your dishwasher and run without the soap

A weak sanitizing bleach solution (200ppm) could also be used after you've gotten rid of as much of the mold as you can by washing- A solution of a tablespoon of PLAIN, unscented bleach, without any added detergents added to a gallon of water is considered food safe and effective in killing germs and mold. It can even be used on fruits and veggies per the FDA. Wipe it on all over the inside of the buckets, let it sit for 1-5 minutes then rinse with LOTS of water. If you limit the contact time and use lots of water to rinse, the buckets shouldn't leave any aftertaste. Just make sure to use plain bleach and not one that has, soap, scents or thickeners in it.


Hope you have a great season!

Thanks...I am going to take a day and just do that with all the buckets. It's getting harder to even find plain bleach and now it is concentrated. The mold I had this time, was an easy clean up...Just don't like mold, anywhere, especially near our food or precious maple sap. You have a good season as well!