Element Lock nut damaging/scraping interior of kettle

Hey all.

I just (re)built my ebiab pot, and this time around when tightening the lock nut for the heating element, I noticed gouging in the kettle wall.

This happened the first time as well, but I went with a smaller pot this time, so I assume the curve of the pot is more aggressive. I'm just a little surprised at how deep of a gouge this lock nut dug out of the wall.

Anyone else have a similar issue? Any idea how to prevent this next time around? I'm just not really happy with making already thin walls even thinner. When I saw it, I honestly thought I ruined the kettle.

I really really had to crank it down...everyone else did too, right?

this is why i thought i couldn't get a grip on the threads originally but i just needed to feed it more first. my locknut is pretty beefy but i didn't end up with any damage. what size pot?

you might be able to get away with a large silicone washer, click me daddy!

KramE said:

Any idea how to prevent this next time around?

Click to expand...

Well, you could always add a SS washer. That would prevent the walls from being scratched.

The 42 quart aluminum bayou classic. I'll have to try the washer next time around.

Any time you try and put a flat fitting on a curved surface you're going to run into some trouble. A washer would help prevent gouging of the pot. The only other option would be to find some thick rubber washers to take up some of the slack and 'flatten out' the curve as you tighten down the locknut. I've seen applications in different scenarios where a nylon washer is used, where it is curved to match the radius on one side and flat on the other, allowing you to tighten down uniformly across the curve - chances of finding something like that for your application would be slim though.

So my vote - throw a thick rubber washer under there and a stainless steel washer over it to protect the kettle. Actually - just leave it - the damage is already done, and if it doesn't leak, who cares.

Thanks guys. I guess the chances of it exploding under the pressure of boiling water are slight.

I hope.

The locknut stainlessbrewing.com sells has a slight curve with lettering one side while the other side is flat. I chose to have the letter side facing in. It worked pretty well for a keggle and a 82qt kettle.

+1 for the gasket/o-ring and washer combo.

You can flatten the area where the hole is, or don't turn the lucknut. Turn the heating element until it's tight.

So I added another washer between the locknut and the kettle wall, and it worked perfectly.

Thanks all!