Oh please! How big of a pot do I REALLY need?

No interest in anything more than 5 gallon batches. I just don't drink that much beer, or have that many friends to be going through that much that fast. HOWEVER, I want to start off with a pot for all-grain brewing. Of course my tastes may change in the future, but right now I really am just interested in wheat beers. I thought it sounded like a 10 gallon pot was more than enough for being a mash tun with all grains. I also thought a 10 gallon pot was enough to give plenty of room to avoid boil overs. Now the more I read it sounds like folks push for the 15 gallon instead. So for 5 gallon batches, what works best? Do I really need to be concerned about boil overs in a 10 gallon pot?

I bought a 8 gallon pot when I went to full boil, 5 gallon batches. Though, it works fine I wish a had another gallon or so of extra space. I can do a full 90 minute boil but it gets a little too close to boil overs for me, when the first hop addition goes in. If I were to buy another pot it would be 10 gallons.

I'm doing 6 gallon boils in a 7.5 gallon pot, I have had one boil over in 8 batches (my first) Its all about controlling the flame at hop/fining additions. And a spray bottle too...just don't get one from the dollar store...cause those suck! Anyway its pretty easy to do in my smaller pot, a 10 gallon is more than enough, assuming that you don't/never/ever ever/ want to do anything bigger than 5 gallons

I started out with an 8 gal pot making 5 gal batches. It could be dicey at times. Soon I was making 6 and then 7 gal batches and it became a real chore. Finally went to a 15 gal pot. Can't see myself making 10 gal batches, but the 15 gal pot sure makes 5, 6 and 7 gal batches a piece of cake....

Keqwow said:

No interest in anything more than 5 gallon batches. I just don't drink that much beer, or have that many friends to be going through that much that fast. HOWEVER, I want to start off with a pot for all-grain brewing. Of course my tastes may change in the future, but right now I really am just interested in wheat beers. I thought it sounded like a 10 gallon pot was more than enough for being a mash tun with all grains. I also thought a 10 gallon pot was enough to give plenty of room to avoid boil overs. Now the more I read it sounds like folks push for the 15 gallon instead. So for 5 gallon batches, what works best? Do I really need to be concerned about boil overs in a 10 gallon pot?

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do a 15 gallon u can get one for under 100.00

I used to use an 8 gallon but found it slightly too small. The kettle I have now is 11 and might be a little oversized but works quite well.

I was doing 7 gallon boils in a 30 quart pot. I have to fill it up to the brim to get my 5.5 gallons. Sucks. I just got a 62 quart bayou classic SS pot for $105 including shipping from amazon. doing the first batch in it tomorrow.

doughaas said:

I used to use an 8 gallon but found it slightly too small. The kettle I have now is 11 and might be a little oversized but works quite well.

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This was for 5 gallons.

Depending on your burner and the surface area of your pot you will boil off as much as 2 gallons or even more if doing extended boils.

Boil pot volumes are to the brim. Figure anothe 1/2 gallon for trub loss ( that could be higher if you use whole hops or higher gravity beers; more grain/ more trub/ more trub loss)

So 5 gallon batch in the fermenter+ 2 gallons boil off+1/2 gallon trub loss means your kettle full volume is 7.5 gallons ( maybe more).

In a 10 gallon pot you will have 2.5 gallons of space. In my 10 gal pot there is about 1 inch per gallon. 2.5 inches to the lip is doable.

I do 5.5 gallon batches with my 10 gallon pot and my system is kettle restricted -I can't boil more than 8 gallons in that pot if I wanted to.

Additionally, I cannot do extended boils which can increase your boil off to as much as 4 gallons requiring a fill volume of 10 gallons for my system.

What is your budget? Do you have enough room to store an 8, 10, or 15 gallon kettle? Decide those for yourself, then pick one of the previous answers above.

I had a hard time picking a 10 gallon pot. I had my heart set on a American Made Penrose kettle. When they stopped selling it. I decided to go to Keggles. I love everything about them. Expecially the diy part. Now that my beers are getting better, I don't mind brewing 10-12 gallons at a time.

Oh please! How big of a pot do I REALLY need?

Double batch size at a minimum for convenience...sure you can squeek by w/ smaller, but brewing w/ the right size kettle reduces stress and is more enjoyable IMHO. Problem is too large a kettle is extra work handling, cleaning, and also extra boiloff.

wilserbrewer said:

Double batch size at a minimum for convenience

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40 quarts for 5 gallon batches, that's what I'd say. I could probably get away with less though, have learned to control the boil. *knock on wood", I have never had a boil-over. Well, except maybe that one time when I caught the kitchen on fire. Moved production outside to the propane, all is well.

I make 5.5 gal batches and my boil off rate is 1 gal an hour. I was using a 32 qt pot and it worked fine as long as I used fermcap-s but I recently just upgraded to a 40qt pot and I'm glad I did.

So I bought a 10 gallon SS pot recently for BIAB brewing of 5.5 gallons. I love the construction of my pot but already wish I spent the extra $50 and got the 15 gallon pot. BIAB has me boiling over 9 gallons and that leaves very little space at the rim.

One thing that is not emphasized a lot but matters to me is the bottom of your pot. A lot of the less expensive pots do not have a 3 ply bottom. I believe these thin bottomed pots would tend to allow for burning of ingredients on the bottom if not careful. I also believe if anyone ever really had a BIAB grain bag melt in the pot it was due to a thin bottom. The 18/8 SS and 3 ply bottom offers protection from this and piece of mind IMHO.

If I could do my first buy over again, it would be this pot. I have the 40 qt version. I do wish it had an installed thermometer.
http://www.amazon.com/Professional-Commercial-Stainless-Induction-Certified/dp/B003ATSMJY/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1361019496&sr=8-1&keywords=new+professional+60+qt

You do not need a 15 gallon pot for 5 gallon batches. Get a 10 gallon pot. I have used 9.6 gallon pots for 15 years to brew 6.5 gallon batches.... I have used 20-25 lbs of grain to make barley wines and other big beers. the 10 gallon pot has always been just fine. I would not get 7-8 simply because that would make it a little tough for brew in a bag if you ever wanted to do that.

You can get by with an 8g pot, but you would be far better off going with 10. Anything larger is not necessary, just gives you the option for even larger batches down the road. I'm with cider123 on the recommendation for a pot with a 3-ply clad bottom. Spend the extra $ on this, as it is extremely worthwhile for BIAB. No need for a veggie steamer or a rack in the bottom to keep your bag from burning. It's one less thing to worry about.

I got an 80qt Thundergroup aluminum pot shipped for around $60 a few months back. T'was awesome.

However, I have an 8 gallon stainless bayou stainless that will do a nice boil with plenty of headroom on a 5 gallon batch. A boil over can happen on any size pot I would bet. Just don't look away and keep your hand on the throttle.

I've got a 10 gallon and do 4-6 gallon batches. If I were to do it over again I'd buy a 15 gallon pot. It would give me more flexibility to do bigger beers and party-gyle stuff. I could do 10 gallons, split the batch and do adjuncts like dry-hopping, fruit/flavoring additions and switch up the yeast while being able to keep brews in 5 gallon batches. I'd probably brew 1/month vs 2x/month as I do now, cutting the clean-up in 1/2.

8-10 gallon pots are really too big for 1 gallon brews and barely big enough for 5 gallon brews. I get by but it's one thing I would have done differently.

I agree with the 7.5 gallon boil volume, which means you need a little space and require a brew pot >8 gallon. Typical sizes available are 10 gallon pots which should eliminate concern for boil over.

IMHO, even though you only NEED a 10 gallon brew pot the price difference becomes very little between 10 and 15 gallon pots and I would recommend buying the 15 gallon to prevent frustration a year or two from now.

I agree on a 10 gallon kettle for a 5 gallon batch size. You will be happy you have the extra headspace when the boil gets started. You do not "need" a 15 gallon kettle for this. I would up with the 44QT Bayou Classic kettle and it has been great and was the best bang for the buck when I was looking!

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B000VXHKMC/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20

Spike Brewing has some nice kettles too if you think a ball valve is desirable.
http://www.spikebrewing.com/product/10-gallon/10-gallon-brew-kettle-stainless-steel-with-1-coupler/

Heres a good deal on 10.5 gallon stainless w/lid. Good brand too. $94 free shipping. http://www.ebay.com/itm/42-Quart-Polar-Ware-Brew-Kettle-with-Lid-10-5-Gallon-/290863674717

Nagorg said:

I agree on a 10 gallon kettle for a 5 gallon batch size. You will be happy you have the extra headspace when the boil gets started. You do not "need" a 15 gallon kettle for this. I would up with the 44QT Bayou Classic kettle and it has been great and was the best bang for the buck when I was looking!

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B000VXHKMC/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20

Spike Brewing has some nice kettles too if you think a ball valve is desirable.
http://www.spikebrewing.com/product/10-gallon/10-gallon-brew-kettle-stainless-steel-with-1-coupler/

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And for the amazon one, you can sign up for Prime shipping trial, and get it shipped in 2 days for free :rockin:

BobbiLynn said:

... I have never had a boil-over. Well, except maybe that one time when I caught the kitchen on fire.

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funny...priceless...worth repeating

Do you guys add ball valves with pots this big?

GenIke said:

Do you guys add ball valves with pots this big?

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For spike water kettles and wort boiling kettle, adding a ball valve, thermometer, and sight glass is ALWAYS a great idea, if you have the money and can do it. Adding a ball valve with a mesh screen on the inside is a good idea too, to filter stuff a little.

I didn't read everything above, but yes you have to worry about boil overs in a 10gal pot if you crank the heat and don't watch it. I have a 15 gallon pot did a small 5 gallon batch and was in a hurry so cranked my burner all the way to get the boil going, got busy and it boiled over. That being said if you keep the heat reasonable, and keep an eye on it, a 10 Gallon pot should be fine.

I do BIAB and like the 15 gallon pot, but if I was going to do it again I would have lowered the thermometer to get more use out of it. The default position on my Blichman is too high for most 5 gallon batches, other than on the mash (Which is really the most important)

I personally have done many 5 gallon batches in my 7.5 gallon(30 quart) SS pot. End up boiling around 6 gallons of wort. But yes I agree with everyone you have to watch it close, and get a nice rolling boil, not a spastic one. The main reason I have the 7.5 gallon, I picked it up at my local grocery store for $49.99, so was in my budget range at the time, and even came with a basket. I am currently looking at upgrading to a 15 gallon or higher for when i move up to 10 gallon batches. Then i'll turn my 7.5 gallon into my strike water kettle.

GenIke said:

Do you guys add ball valves with pots this big?

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Once you get beyond 5 gallon batches (10+), a ball valve is almost a requirement for emptying the kettle because of weight and safety. I suppose you could use a racking cane or auto-siphon too. But a ball valve seems to be the better, more adaptable choice IMHO.

Im doing 5.5G BIAB batches in a 12G kettle. I could probably get by with a 10G but the extra room sure comes in handy. I would say you need to get at minimum 10G and at maximum 15G.

Don't know if this has been brought up, but it also depends on where you'll be brewing.

If brewing outside, getting the larger pot for better efficiency is the best choice. It's cost effective, future-proof, etc. If you're brewing on a stove indoors, it may not be possible to scale up in such a way, limiting the pot and boil size.

It's probably safe to assume many people here are not NYC apartment dwellers such as myself, thus making a 10-15 gallon pot an easy buy. This may not be your case, but it's just some food for thought.