We use one-step cleaner to sterilize everything immediately before use (1 TBSP / gallon). We quickly rinse the items in hot water and lay them carefully on a clean towel. Be sure to keep your hands clean when handling equipment and rewash any item which contacts anything unsterile.

If you blame one thing for a spoiled batch, it will likely be due to some item contacting the wort which harbored a culprit that made it past your efforts to sanitize the environment.

Even your breath and particles floating in the air can contaminate your beer. A clean room with little air movement is ideal for brewing. Consider burning a candle during the final stages of wort transfer from boiling pot to fermentation bucket and when bottling.