Improved boiling on the stovetop!

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If it's hot outside and you wear a sweater, you are going to be really hot. Same with a pot of hot water. A towel and clip ($0.50 at Loew's) was all I need to get my turkey fryer pot boiling 5 gals with no problem. My pot also holds temperature during the entire 60 mins of mashing (which used to be a big problem). Adding foil around the towel would probably everything even more efficient, but the foil is more fragile. This setup is easy to clean too.

Yes, I use a gas burner.
 
Most of those reflective materials are aluminized plastics. You'd probably be better off with the foil-backed engine compartment insulation sold at auto stores.

I know this quote is old but I did get some engine compartment insulation from Pep Boys and this is what happened when I had the fire all the way up.

Notice that the aluminum did not burn and in fact the fiber insulation only melted. It did flame while the fire was hot, but went out when I turned the flame down.
It burns me up though because the roll cost over $35.
I think I will go to Home Depot and get a roll of water heater insulation which is alluminum foil over fiberglass and see if that can stand up to the heat. It isn't that I can't get it up to a boil, it is that I am impatient and want to get it up to a boil quicker. Brewers are supposed to be patient though, arn't we?

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I used the automotive firewall insulation J.C. Whitney sells (and I used the foil tape to cover it, and the spray glue they sell for the purpose to stick it to the pot) and it's held up. It's not only withstood the stovetop burner, but another 3 1/2 years of duty on a Bayou Classic SP-10 after I went all-grain. It's easy to see from the pix below that there's been no burning of any kind. (The black spots on the outside are just some splashes of wort that have dried on the outside of the foil tape.)

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In fairness to the Pep Boy’s product, I was stressing it quite a bit more than you are. First off, I had the foil side toward the pot and did not cover the fiber side with tape. Second, I had the insulation about an inch off of the pot so that the hot gasses from the fire would go up on the outside of the pot and help with the heating instead of just going off into the wide blue yonder. Third, and this may be the one that did it in, I extended the insulation down below the pot to be even with the fire so that even less of the heat would escape. The damage to the insulation started below the pot, but extended up a few inches above the bottom of the pot.

I still think it is a good idea to catch the heat and guide it up the side of the pot, but insulation is not the solution.
 
Yes- I can see the difference now in how we applied it. I just wanted to get my anæmic cooktop to get a full 6.5 gal. boil going faster. The insulation as shown in my pix cut it from >60 min to <40, so I was happy.
 
Has anyone has any smells coming off of this stuff? I'm just worried about it melting a bit and imparting weird smells or tastes (perhaps even putting something dangerous into the brew).

Thoughts?
 
I didn't notice any smell from my setup after a few batches. I think the key is to keep it well away from the bottom of the pot.
 
Okay, I am a bit afraid of a heat stick, don't want to spend a tonne of money on equipment, and would like to keep things simple. But, I would love to cut down my boil time.

So.... I think I have to try this. I am going to go the tinfoil root. But I am thinking I might use like $10 worth. Crumpling it up along the way so I get lots of air pockets. That should give me a good thermal retention or R-Value while still being completely bombproof heat-wise and keep costs low. I will let you all know how it works out come brew day.
 
Thanks Flyguy - I tried out your method and it indeed worked wonders in getting to boil the wort on my electric stove top. Awesome post!
 
Thanks Flyguy - I tried out your method and it indeed worked wonders in getting to boil the wort on my electric stove top. Awesome post!

ajitnair,
What material did you use to wrap your kettle in? There are a few different materials discussed in the thread. I'm curious which one you tried out.
 
I used the same reflective foil that Flyguy mentioned in his original post. I found it at home depot.

I set it up so that the foil was about an inch above the bottom of the pot. Also in my case, the base of my pot is much larger than the stove top's heating element, so the foil didn't get burnt.

By the way, a few days later when I was at the home brew store, I saw the same reflective foil on sale at the store (for a higher price of course).
 
I used the same reflective foil that Flyguy mentioned in his original post. I found it at home depot.

I set it up so that the foil was about an inch above the bottom of the pot. Also in my case, the base of my pot is much larger than the stove top's heating element, so the foil didn't get burnt.

By the way, a few days later when I was at the home brew store, I saw the same reflective foil on sale at the store (for a higher price of course).

Cool. Thanks for the reply. I am able to get a boil going on my stove with the lid partially covering the kettle. But I am going to try this material and see what kind of results I get.
 
What's Foam Control ( I can guess what it does)? I searched here on hbt.com and came up goose eggs. thanks.
 
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