seasoning aluminum pot

I have heard that you can condition a new aluminum pot in the oven.
Save me on propane and since it wont fit on top of the stove I shoved it in the oven.
Now I can't get it out it must have expanded, it should come out once it cools, I hope.
I baked it at 350 for 1 hour, will that do it or do I still have to boil water in it?

If you can get it out, try putting just a few inches of water in the pot and cover it with aluminum foil. Bring the water to a boil and keep it there until the aluminum foil lid gets a nice coating of oxide. That should do it.

bosco

You'll be fine either way, the entire thing is overblown to begin with.

I tried to oven condition an aluminum pot the first time. Didn't have any evidence of the oxide layer on it. I then got as close to full with hot tap water as possible and got that to boil on the stove (gas so it could do it with a 32 quart pot). NICE dark oxide layer formed that time.

BTW, with a GOOD propane burner, it won't take that much fuel to get water to a boil. Especially if you start with hot tap water.

Update, pot shrunk and I removed it, only oxide coating on the pot are a few small spots from the little bit of water that was in it from rinsing before putting in the oven.
Dry heat apparently doesn't work. Live and learn.

menerdari said:

Update, pot shrunk and I removed it, only oxide coating on the pot are a few small spots from the little bit of water that was in it from rinsing before putting in the oven.
Dry heat apparently doesn't work. Live and learn.

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As others have stated in previous threads, aluminum forms an oxide layer just by contact with the oxygen in the air. Boiling with water may make this a bit thicker, but largely is probably just discoloration from heat, the oxide layer exists already.

Straight from wiki(Alumina is Aluminum Oxide)

Aluminium oxide is responsible for the resistance of metallic aluminium to weathering. Metallic aluminium is very reactive with atmospheric oxygen, and a thin passivation layer of alumina (4 nm thickness) forms on any exposed aluminium surface.[6]

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menerdari said:

I have heard that you can condition a new aluminum pot in the oven.
Save me on propane and since it wont fit on top of the stove I shoved it in the oven.
Now I can't get it out it must have expanded, it should come out once it cools, I hope.
I baked it at 350 for 1 hour, will that do it or do I still have to boil water in it?

Click to expand...

Nope, baking it in the oven will do the trick. You kettle's ready to use.

I agree with Fuzzy. I did a lot of web searching to find how much aluminum might leach into beer and as far as I can tell, the answer is none. As stated, the oxide layer forms on aluminum within milleseconds of it being exposed to air. Boiling in water might thicken it, but the only studies I've found on removing it showed microscopic pitting of the layer only after extended simmering in very acidic foods with a pH of 2.5 or so. The pH of your wort should be around 5.5.

Armed with that knowledge, I no longer worry about hitting the kettle with a scrubby to get rid of the ring of break material around the top and I've even done the initial brew in my 15 gallon kettle with no "break in" whatsoever. Never once noticed any kind of metallic off-flavor. That said, you have to make sure that it's very clean. New pots will have cutting oil and whatnot all over them and if you take a scrubby to aluminum you'll see how much material you take off. It takes a pretty good rinsing to get rid of all that.

Thanks, I think I will throw caution to the wind and brew a batch this weekend without any further seasoning attempts