My ration of bad batches to good is under 50%.
I have a full kit, not a Mr. Beer or other mini-kit. I buy good ingredients/kits from places like Williams or a local shop where I used to live (just found one where I live now - hope to get there this weekend!).
Normally I soak the primary (glass) carboy for 24 hours in a bleach/water mixture, filled to the top.. All of my utensils are soaked in a cleaning mix I got from the last brewstore.
My last batch fermented 21 days in a primary - I wanted to move to a secondary after 7-10 days but my schedule wouldn't allow it. Then I went to bottles.
The bottling bucket (plastic) was cleaned the same way the fermenter was - I think that was only for a few hours though. Then it was drained through the spigot to clean it as well. Each was rinced thoroughly.
The flavor of the mixture at the time it went to bottles was good, so I am thinking i was OK at that point. So I am thinking it was the bottles themselves that caused the problem. How do YOU clean your bottles?
I've tried everything from soaking them in a cleaning mixture and scrubbing them, to putting them in a dishwasher. Caps are always boiled before installation. Still when I open one there is definetly something wrong more often than not. And it is not limited to just one bottle.
Is there something I am missing or not doing right? Any tips you have would be greatly appreciated!
Lou Frustrated and thirsty in Long Beach, CA