Don't have a 4-5 gallon pot...

BrewSwag 728
Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum

Help Support Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
D

drb471

Member
Joined
Dec 26, 2011
Messages
15
Reaction score
0
Last weekend I finally took the next step from the Mr Beer kits, and got a bigger kit during a road trip to Tucson. I don't recall the name of the store, but I was blown away the moment I walked in there, and the sales guy was awesome.

Anyhow, the kit consists of a 5 gallon fermenting bucket, and 5 gallon bottling bucket, with all other accessories. However, I don't have a 5 gallon stock pot. I've been combing all of the local thrift stores hoping to find one, as I've seen what the can cost in department stores, and brewing stores. Is there a way around this in the meantime? Is it possible to steep the grains in a smaller pot, and make up for it when adding to the fermenting bucket? Yes, a total "newbie" question, I know...

:fro:
 
Get a 20qt stock pot, use 2.5-3 gal then top off to 5-6 in fermenter.
Called partial boil, used very commonly, and with great success.
Full boil is better if possible, but sometimes not able to do on stovetop, and the pot can be more expensive, and you will need a chiller instead of using cold top off water.
 
a 20 quart/5 gallon enamal stock/canning pot is 19.95 at walmart. perfect for partial boil 5 gallon batches.

sure, it will chip in a decade or so, yes it's slightly less efficient for cooling in an ice bath, but lots of beer has been made in them.
 
As stated above, topping off in the fermenter is no problem, but a full boil is slightly better. If/when you decide to go full boil, you will be starting out with 6 or 6.5 gallons of liquid, and need to allow plenty of head space to avoid boilovers, so I'd go with no less than an 8 gallon pot. You can check ebay, and homebrewfinds.com for deals on big pots. And don't shy away from aluminum, it's fine.
 
I've been using the same 5 gallon 20QT stock pot that I started with. I'm up to PB/PM BIAB atm. A wind up with 3.5 gallons boil volume after the mash & sparge.Top off in the fermenter to 5 or 6 gallons,depending on the recipe.
 
drb471 said:
Last weekend I finally took the next step from the Mr Beer kits, and got a bigger kit during a road trip to Tucson. I don't recall the name of the store, but I was blown away the moment I walked in there, and the sales guy was awesome.

Anyhow, the kit consists of a 5 gallon fermenting bucket, and 5 gallon bottling bucket, with all other accessories. However, I don't have a 5 gallon stock pot. I've been combing all of the local thrift stores hoping to find one, as I've seen what the can cost in department stores, and brewing stores. Is there a way around this in the meantime? Is it possible to steep the grains in a smaller pot, and make up for it when adding to the fermenting bucket? Yes, a total "newbie" question, I know...

:fro:
Click to expand...

Look at all of your local LARGE grocery stores that sell kitchen items as well. I was able to pick up a 20qt SS pot for $19.99 on sale. I also bought a 30qt SS pot for $49.99(wasn't on sale) as well, and it has a strainer inside it.
 
By "enamel", do you mean the porcelain black pots with white speckles? Hopefully so, because that's what I ended up getting. Guaranteed to "not alter the taste, texture, or color of food".
 
drb471 said:
By "enamel", do you mean the porcelain black pots with white speckles? Hopefully so, because that's what I ended up getting. Guaranteed to "not alter the taste, texture, or color of food".
Click to expand...

yes.
That pot will work.
 
I use a granite ware enamled stock pot that looks exactly like the one you described. Has worked great so far.
 
Early on,we found a set of 4 nested SS stock pots with lids & strainer trays polished for some $25 at the grocery store. I use the 20qt (5G) for a BK/MT & the 3G for sparge water.
 

Similar threads

T
How increase wort to 5 gallon?
Replies
6
Views
771
BrewnWKopperKat
BrewnWKopperKat
K
Wort size in a 5 gallon Corny Keg...
Replies
12
Views
2K
renstyle
renstyle
C
Splitting a 5 gallon kit
Replies
9
Views
1K
aaronmq
A
R
I am thinking of trying something
Replies
17
Views
1K
BeerHolic
B
bubbas45
Really thick krausen (?) on top after weeks of primary
Replies
6
Views
1K
BeerNsteadofH2O
BeerNsteadofH2O
InkBird 300

Latest posts

Back
Top