re: Cleaning a dog's ears

Epi-otic is just a routine cleaner. It also has a drying agent in it so using it after he swims is important to prevent that moist environment which is ideal for yeast and bacteria. Careful with qtips. He shakes his head and you punch that thing through an ear drum you'll have a real problem plus qtips can irritate skin in ear canals. Just flush repeatedly with Epi otic to get all wax out. May take 3-4 seperate flushes. But if there is any infection that needs to be cleared up or else the natural flushing action of the skin in the ears is hindered. Ask vet to culture ears.
Allergies especially food allergies cause recurrent ear infections as well as hypothyroidism. So those are things that can also be looked at. You can have the best food on the market And still have a food allergy to it.
As for homemade cleaners. 50/50 water and alcohol is fine but if you have any irritation or infection it's going to burn like hell so be careful of that.