How To Dry the Inside of a Bottle: Methods To Make It Easy

Knowing how to dry the inside of a bottle is important for anyone who is bottling their homemade beer. Bottles are the best choice for homebrewers looking for a reliable storage vessel.

You can use these water bottles over and over again, but this means that you have to wash and dry them thoroughly. In this guide, we cover the answer to how you can dry the inside of a bottle effectively, using four main methods. 

Different Ways To Dry the Inside of a Bottle

The different ways to dry the inside of a bottle include using a paper towel, placing the bottle in a dryer rack, air drying the bottle, or using couscous. Drying the bottle thoroughly is important to prevent the residue liquid from mixing with your beer.

If you’re putting your newly crafted beer into a reusable water bottle, you will definitely have to wash it once you drink the beer. But pouring your beer into a wet bottle can affect the taste and even cause it to spoil during fermentation. 

Below, we cover four easy and effective ways to make your bottle dry without contaminating it, so you can pour your beer in without worrying. Before drying the bottle you have to properly clean it in order to avoid beer infections.

– Use a Paper Towel 

For this step, the only thing that you need is a paper towel, but make sure it’s clean, or you will have to wash your bottle again. Take a clean paper towel and roll it into a tube. Then, you can insert the towel into the bottle and make sure it goes all the way in.

Leave the paper towel in the water bottles for a couple of hours so that it can absorb moisture left in the bottle. When you unroll the towel, it touches the sides of the bottle and takes all water left from rinsing. 

– Place It in a Dryer Rack 

If you’re worried about germs in your paper towel affecting your water bottle, you can use a dryer rack instead. The rack will take longer since you have to wait for the water to drip out by itself, but it is cleaner than using a cloth or towel to wipe the inside.

Simply place the bottle upside down on the dryer rack, not right side up. If it’s the latter, the water will remain in the bottle for longer. You can arrange all the bottles you have on the rack so that they stay in place and dry over time. This process is a bit long, so you should put it in a bottle dryer in advance. 

– Air Dry the Bottle 

Sometimes, you only need to air dry the glass bottle for it to dry. This is the easiest way to dry your bottle, and it is faster than the second method. To do this, place a clean towel on the table and balance the bottle upside down on it.

You can prevent the bottle from falling down, since it is upside down, by propping it up or placing it against the wall. After a couple of hours, place the bottle the right way so that air gets into it and it can fully dry. 

– Use Couscous 

An uncommon way to dry the inside of a bottle is to use couscous. This is a kind of pasta that is made from semolina flour. Purchase couscous and pour a teaspoon or more into the bottle. The amount that you put depends on the size of the bottle. 

Now, shake the bottle with the couscous to absorb all the moisture. It will fluff up a bit, and this is a sign that it has taken the water out. Pour the couscous out of the water bottle after this.

You can repeat the process if you still notice water inside. Finally, you can use a paper towel to clean the inside in case the couscous leaves any stains. 

How To Clean and Dry the Inside of a Bottle for Beer 

To clean and dry the inside of a bottle for beer, there are different methods you can try such as using a bottle brush or rice with soapy water. Then you can use a paper towel or a dryer rack to dry the bottle and prepare it for beer.

Here are some ways to carry out bottle cleaning.

• Use a bottle brush and dish soap to clean the inside of the beer. It’s not advisable to soak the bottle in soapy water since it can cause a bacterial infection. Instead, wash it and dry it immediately. 
• Fill the bottle with a quarter of raw rice and soapy water. Then, shake the bottle so that the rice and soap will clean the sides of the bottle and remove any sticky residue. Dry it out immediately with the steps provided.
• Use a mix of vinegar and warm water to clean the inside of the bottle. You can leave the bottles in a pot and set it at low heat with vinegar to remove stains. Afterwards, you can add salt to the bottle and shake it to clean the inside.

How To Clean and Dry a Carboy Bottle

To clean and dry a carboy bottle for beer, you can easily use a carboy brush and hose, however, drying the bottle will be harder. Carboys are hard to dry because they have a thin opening and a wide body, so you can’t place it upside down to dry.

Homebrewers usually leave the carboy open for a while and use paper towels to clean the inside, but if you want to dry your carboy quickly and efficiently, you can use a carbon dryer. This is equipment that allows you to place a carboy upside down, so it will drain the water and dry without tipping over and getting destroyed. It will not get contaminated by germs either with the carboy dryer.

If you have more than one carboy, you can stack these on top of each other on the dryer. This will help you save space and dry all the carboys at the same time. A carboy dryer is an ideal choice for homebrewers making multiple batches of beer. 

The carboy is another important container that you use when making beer. The carboy is fantastic for fermentation, but after using it, you need to dry it, and that’s when it becomes difficult. Follow the steps above for best results.

FAQs

1. Is It Good To Wipe a Bottle Dry After Sterilizing? 

No, it is not good or advisable to wipe a bottle dry after sterilizing it. If you wipe the bottle after sterilizing it, you might end up adding germs to it, so air dry it instead. Contamination can result from touching the bottle, which will render the sterilization useless.

2. Can You Dry Your Beer Bottle in the Oven?

No, you cannot dry your beer bottle in the oven. Heating a bottle can reduce its lifespan and make it fragile, especially when you do this too often, so it is not a good idea. You can dry a bottle quickly by using clean paper towels instead.

Rather than leaving the towels in for a few hours, you can use the towel to clean the inside. Do this with new towels until the bottle is dry.

Conclusion 

You now have all you need on how to dry the inside of a bottle before pouring beer inside.

Here’s a recap of our guide:

• You can dry the inside of a bottle with paper towels by placing it in a dry rack, air drying it, or pouring couscous in it.
• Clean the inside of your beer bottle with dishwashing soap and a bottle brush or a mix of vinegar and warm water.
• The best way to dry a carboy is with a carboy dryer.

With the recommended techniques on how to dry the inside of a bottle, you can take care of your bottles and pour your beer in anytime!