Lurch69

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I'm currently doing 2.5 gal batches and want to move up to 5 gal BIAB all grain batches. I'm going to also get a Bayou Classic SP10 propane burner and move my operation outside. I'll need a new brew pot and am looking for recommendations.

I'm thinking I'll need at least a 40 quart pot ideally and would prefer stainless steel although, yes, I'm aware aluminum is safe as well. Any thoughts on whether getting a pot with a steamer basket is a good idea since I'll be doing BIAB? If you have any ideas on where to get a cheap pot I'd love to hear it. Thanks!

houndsbreath

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I used a 40 qt pot for several successful BIAB batches & used the steamer basket to hold the bag as it drained but did not mash with the basket. The 40 qt gives you plenty of "free board " to mash and boil a larger volume.

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pentachris

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I am not associated with, nor do I know anything about, the vendor, but the 42 qt PolarWare pot with valve for $115 in this announcement looked like a good deal.

goybar

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I do BIAB with the SP10 and a 40qt aluminum pot (apt-40).

At times I wish I had a little more room. I would recommend the 62 or 82 qt Bayou Classic pot with basket.

Chris

SpikeBrewing

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Without trying to bash another product or promote ours I'd advise against that kettle. When I talked to Polarware they said the thickness of the kettle was 26 gauge which is about .5mm thick. That's the thinnest kettle I've ever seen on the market.

-Ben

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pentachris

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Let me rephrase my original statement...

"I am not associated with, nor do I know anything about, the vendor, but the 42 qt PolarWare pot (which I only know of by positive brand name recognition, which doesn't mean that I know anything specific about this item in particular)..."

SpikeBrewing

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PolarWare is a great manufacturer but in my opinion dropped the ball on this line of kettle. There USA kettles are great but expensive. This is a cheap Chinese kettle which I'm surprised they would put their name on to be honest.

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Jakeintoledo

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I bought a ten gallon Bayou Classic pot. I"m pretty happy with it. I'd prefer a 15 or 20 gallon pot, to be honest. I'm going to start looking for a stainless keg to convert. The downside of all grain brewing is the time involved, almost six hours. given that fact, I'd rather pop for a couple hundred bucks to get a massive kettle and some extra carboys, and get 15 gallons out of one Saturday afternoon. Besides, I wanna share with the other drunks I know, and if there's not a LOT of time difference between six gallons and fifteen....you understand where I'm going.

I'd like to also add that I'm a noob.

Fid

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I picked up a 40qt aluminum pot from Cash and Carry for ~$50 out the door (no idea what the gauge is but its fairly thick). Sometimes theres just something satisfying about walking in somewhere and walking out with what you want in hand rather than waiting for it to ship to you. Would I have preferred to go stainless? Probably, but I'm kind of of the same mind set as Jake... I'm sure sooner or later I will upgrade my gear again and when I do it will likely be with the main objective of upgrading batch sizes so I figured I'd save a couple bucks by going with aluminum until I decide to throw down the cash on some keggles down the road.

As a side note... Have you considered the SQ14 over the SP10? I know the BTUs are lower of the 14 but IMHO the fact that it has a sturdy, square, four-legged base was selling point enough for me. I don't think I would trust myself around 8 gallons of boiling wort balanced on a tripod. The 14 is also plenty big enough for 5 gallons and many people have reported no problems with it for 10 gallon batches either. As a bonus the 14 is pretty impressively quite too. Just my .02

Fid

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One more thing to add...
I believe that the SP10 now comes with a 10 psi regulator rather the the 20 psi regulator that it use to come with. If I understand correctly that 20 psi regulator was the only thing that gave the boost in BTU output over the SQ14 model.