simps984

Recipes 

http://lifehacker.com/5406192/use-a-spoon-to-prevent-milk-from-boiling-over

The relevant section is:

The quick and dirty fix for the problem is to put a long-handled spoon into the pot as it is heating. The spoon breaks the surface tension and the skim of milk fat and protein forming and allows the steam to escape without violently erupting. It's a trick your grandmother might have known, but not something she necessarily felt the need to pass on in the age of microwaves.

Does the logic behind this technique apply to homebrewing as well?

Edcculus

Recipes 

I think it could help, but it won't completely prevent them. You will probably need something a lot bigger than a spoon for 5 gallons too.

I swear by Fermcap. This is basically a silicone emulsion that breaks the surface tension. I boil a few inches below the lip of my kettle and have yet to boil over.

RDWHAHB

Recipes 

I would be suprised. In the wort the steam isn't building up below a layer on the top of the liquid.

TheFlatline

Recipes 

Actually it does work. I have a long "brew spoon" that I use, and I used to leave it in the kettle. Rarely got boilovers when that happened, and when I did it was because the head foamed up and over.

Sometimes boilovers are caused by superheating, which I notice happens more often in my stainless steel kettles than my aluminum kettles, probably due to the smoother surface of the steel kettle.

Throwing a spoon in can help break the surface tension of the beer, and in really smooth kettles give a rough enough surface to encourage nucleation (formation of steam bubbles).

My ultimate solution was to get a bigger kettle (10 gallon for a 7 gallon boil), but I have noticed that boilovers happen frequently right around hot break, and generally randomly during extract brewing.

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malkore

Recipes 

Not for me. spoon or no spoon, the KAB5 banjo burner will boilover 5 gallons of wort in a 9 gallon pot.

I've had some success with foam control drops. I just need a keggle, or a smaller burner.

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Malkore
Primary: English Mild
On tap: Pale Ale, Lancelot's Wheat, English Brown Ale, Steam Beer, HoovNuts IPA
Bottled: MOAM, Braggot, Raspberry Melomel, Merlot, Apfelwein, Pyment, Sweet mead, Cabernet
Gal in 2009: 27, Gal in 2010: 34, Gal in 2011: 13, Gal in 2012: 10

Revvy

Recipes 

I swear by fermcap...I can have a rolling boil going with it an inch from the top of the kettle, and go take a nap or post on HBT during the gap between a 60 and 30 minute hop addition.

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GoldMiner

Recipes 

+1 on fermcap.

It's great not to have to worry about boil overs.

Makes for a much more relaxing brewing experience.

zanemoseley

Recipes 

+2 on the CAPS, been brewing in my kitchen for almost 10 AG batches and no worry of boil over, heck I mow my yard sometimes in between hop additions.