FastWasher - Bottle Washer for 12oz Bottles

I've used this product for a few year now, right from the beginning it leaked, I tried sealing it but to no avail. It has cracked by almost all of the screws and is now almost useless. I'm shopping for a new bottle washer, but it won't be this one

I've been using this over a year now and its a decent product but could be a great product. Unlike other reviewers I've never had a problem with leaks or cracks. But like some reviewers I constantly have the problem of the bottles loading up with the wash fluid because there's not quite enough room for the water to drain out. It happens on probably 25% of my bottles every time I use it. I might try to 3D print something to keep the bottles lifted off the nozzles a little more or like another reviewer noted use an on/off timer. On the positive side the pump has plently of power and produces a strong jetting action. Another negative (to me) is the wash tub it comes with is really large so it takes a lot of water to fill. So if you wanted to do a pre-wash with hot water, then a PBW wash, then several rinse cycles that's a lot of water. I switched to a smaller plastic tub that just barely is big enough for the wash tray and I like it a lot better.

I give a lot of beer to friends and family that we have carbonated in the bottle. Some bottles come back sparkling clean while others come back with yeast cakes on the bottom that have been sitting in a garage for 3 or 4 months. Using the dishwater is too much of a hassle and really doesn’t get in the bottles anyways, so I settled on the FastWasher to see how it would work. My first test run was with a case of VERY bad bottles that I had already settled on just tossing. An hour later all but three where clean and ready. After round two the final three are clean now. So does the FastWasher do what is says, Yes. That doesn’t mean it is perfect in any way. Here are my thoughts:

Pros:
- Easy to use once you put it together.
- Effectively cleans the bottles as advertised when using PBW solution
- Although not included, the FastRack makes it easy to just set a new group of bottles on the cleaner

Cons:
- It is plastic, so don’t expect this thing to last.
- Leaks very badly on all four sides. There are probably a few ways to fix this problem, adding small clamps to all for sides sealed it up nicely (see included pictures)
- Although assembly is easy, it is a pain in the butt with all the little screws
- Bottles sometimes do not drain completely which stops water from actually spraying. This could be due to suds from cleaning solution or just too much water flow. Since I am obviously not going to sit there and watch it work (contrary to the directions which say do not leave unattended) I came up with a work around. I used my home automation to simply turn the power off to the outlet for 1 minute after 5 minutes of run time to allow any bottles full of water to drain.

My final thoughts on the FastWasher. It worked for what I needed but will be questionable if it is worth the cost in the long run. It saves me from needing to bring bottles up to the kitchen which will make the wife happy. It is not really designed for sanitizing bottles with Star San as it would create a mess. I use with PBW and am happy. I dinged it a star because it really doesn’t rate a 5.

It works as advertised. It does have small leaks on sides but it does not affect the washing of the bottles nor the flow of liquid. The plastic used is well made and I have found no problem in just placing one rack after another.

I used this rack for several rounds of washing. Just pulled it out to find that the many of the screw holes had cracked as well as the pump input port. The rack had been sitting on a shelf so assume cracking came from residual stress in the plastic and temperature fluctuations...huge bummer. I loved this thing...

Very difficult to assemble, leaks like crazy, Doesn't work that well. VERY disappointed.

We put our Fast Washer in our laundry room utility basin and it works perfectly. We use it to clean both our 12 ounce beer and 16 ounce swing top bottles. We bottle 14 gallons of kombucha at a time; so this saves a tremendous amount of time.

The idea is good but it’s finiky. The bottles have to be set on it just right or cleaning liquid doesn’t spray all the way to the bottom of the bottle. The bottles just don’t drain fast enough and as they fill the cleaning spray is not effective. Star San is too foamy you’ll need a no foam sanitizer.