Brew Kettle Improvement Opinions

I have a 60qt brew kettle from AHS (Austin Homebrew Supply)

I have added in a ball valve at the bottom from bargain fittings and that's my only embellishment at this point. What are y'alls thoughts on these improvements:


Side Pickup (SIDE pickup - Weldless version drain / dip tube SS kit) - Feel that this would make it so I could stir a whirlpool up - let it settle and then pump from the side with my march pump/counterflow and not have to worry with tilting the pot and getting as much junk in there.

OR False Bottom? Do people put false bottoms in brew kettles to separate the hops? Or is that mostly a mash tun thing? If so, what size type/size would I get for this kettle?

Weldless Sight Glass (11" WELDLESS SIGHT TUBE @ Williams Brewing) - Figure this would make it a lot easier and more accurate to check my boil off/evaporation as well as initial volume than the old notch in my stir paddle.

Just looking for some opinions and other potential options to make the brew kettle a little easier to brew in. Thanks!

Psst. Over here.

I'm not going to argue over which specific sight glass is better than the other but just wanted to make you aware of what I have so you can check it out and decide for yourself.

My side pickup just arrived. I had been using a different pickup, but was still pointed too far out towards the middle of the kettle, and was picking up some hop residue after my whirlpool. Will be trying it out soon.

I just started pimping out my kettle and I only have input for the false bottom. Jaybird (a forum vendor like bobby) sells excellent folding false bottoms for kegs. I used one of his false bottoms with his "hop halter" (secondary filter screen for pellets) with a mixture of whole and pellet hops on an IPA this weekend and my wort came out crystal clear with no whirlpool. I am impressed.

Bobby's sight glasses look great and I'll be buying a pair and a lot of fittings after Bobby gets back to my e-mail.

Awesome! Thanks guys - I'll be checking this stuff out. The sightglasses look really nice Bobby - watchin your vid now and reading more about em. Seems super useful addition for a brew kettle.

The side pickup might be all i need i guess, but I'm gonna checkout jaybird's stuff as well before making a decision on that. Would love to not have to shake all the hops and break material around tipping my pot when I drain it.

Just to follow up. The side pick up worked pretty well. A hell of alot less crap was being picked up after the whirlpool. I need to cut it down a bit more, as it's so tight to the side of teh pot, the pickup can't get enough in it to whirlpool quickly.

I have one of bobby's sight glasses and one from a competitor. I would reccomend getting the one from bobby. It is really nice, and works wonderfully.

stevea1210 said:

I have one of bobby's sight glasses and one from a competitor. I would reccomend getting the one from bobby. It is really nice, and works wonderfully.

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Why is Bobby's sight glass better than the competition? I actually just bought one from him yesterday so I haven't used it yet.

i also have one of bobby's sight glasses, the basic one for welded couplings. I got it because it seemed like the best value for the money, there might be other good products out there, but im happy with the value in his model. I've been using it for ~2 years and will be ordering another one for my HLT soon.