100qt SS Stock Pot

There is a seller on eBay with 100qt stainless steel stock pots for $160 shipped. I was wondering if anyone has experience with these pots or other info that would explain why they are so cheap? Here's the link.
Also, is there any reason why a 20gal pot shouldn't be used for a 5 or 10gal batch boil? Thanks!

That metal is extremely thin and the pot doesn't look very well built. Still might be a "deal", but there are better choices out there for less.

A 20 gallon pot will work fine for either a 5 or 10G batch.

+1 on what McKBrew said about the pot most likely being thin and not great quality.

I do feel that a 20 gallon pot is a bit large and cumbersome for a mere 5 gallon batch. Sure it would work, just seems a bit silly to me??

20 gallons is a big effin pot!

1.0mm is a little thin for that big of a pot. Heat distribution might be a problem too as it doesn't appear to have a sandwiched bottom. FWIW... For a few bucks more and free shipping here's an example of a pot with a 5mm sandwiched bottom and 1.2mm walls:

http://www.instawares.com/stainless-steel-stock-pot-sps-100.upi-sps100.0.7.htm

iceman80403 said:

There is a seller on eBay with 100qt stainless steel stock pots for $160 shipped. I was wondering if anyone has experience with these pots or other info that would explain why they are so cheap? Here's the link.
Also, is there any reason why a 20gal pot shouldn't be used for a 5 or 10gal batch boil? Thanks!

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I looked at that pot just recently but decided to go with:
NSF Stainless Steel Stock Pot with Lid, 100 qt, Stock Pots

$207 and free shipping. Very happy 1.2mm, good handles, solid bottom. It's way too big for a 5 gal batch, but I needed to boil 13.5 g and my old pot was right at the top with an ic in. This gives me plenty of room for my double batches. Anyway, I've very happy I went with the heaver pot. Also, the brushed finish is nice.

Nice, thanks for the links. If I only ever planned on doing 5 gal batches I definitely wouldn't even consider this pot, but I'm thinking ahead... Other than structural integrity, I don't care about the thickness of the bottom because I plan on making the brew pot all electric.

dblee50 Why did you chose that pot over this one? It's cheaper and thicker. Do you use induction to boil?

20 gallons is a big effin' pot but 25 gallons is even bigger!!

100 quarts, 4 quarts in a gallon.... 25 gallons... come on guys :fro:

ajwillys said:

20 gallons is a big effin' pot but 25 gallons is even bigger!!

100 quarts, 4 quarts in a gallon.... 25 gallons... come on guys :fro:

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It didn't even register. 25G is a bit much for 5 and even 10G batches.

it wont hurt you but its going to use more fuel to heat up...and why do you need that again? Spend your money on a keg and outfit that with fittings for less than 160. You can buy the keg(used due to ethics) 40$, ball valve 20$, angle grinder used to take top off keg 30$, diptubes, tubing, screen maybe 30$ and your still way less than 160$ plus the steel is way way thick.

Sorry for the 5-6 month old bump, but I too am looking into these and was wondering why it might now work well for an electric setup as "Iceman" had questioned. Although with it being that thin, would heat loss be a concern if using one as an MLT?

hamiltont said:

http://www.instawares.com/stainless-steel-stock-pot-sps-100.upi-sps100.0.7.htm

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Buy this pot.
I sell these at work and bought the 20qt to start out with and it is great. Heats quickly & evenly and built really well for an import.

northernlad said:

Buy this pot.
I sell these at work and bought the 20qt to start out with and it is great. Heats quickly & evenly and built really well for an import.

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I always thought that the stainless steel would be better, than I read (https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f11/faq-aluminum-pots-boil-kettles-49449/) apparently the heat distribution isn't a concern and there really aren't any differences. The anesthetic and hype of SS draws me towards SS, and the price of aluminum draws me to aluminum. I don't know which way to go... then theres the concern of size, and that would just turn into a thread jack...

The big differences between SS and aluminum are heat distribution and reactivity.
SS is an excellent conductor of heat, but does not distribute well. That is why many SS pots have the aluminum clad bottom. It provides the heat distibution and a softer heat to help prevent scorching. I really like the idea of the Polarware Brew pot with the ball valve and therm hole, but the thinness puts me off.

Unless I was pretty sure I was going to 10 gal. batches at some point (I'm pretty sure NOT), I'd give it a miss. As someone remarked, it's a cheap pot, which would bother me with one that large. I bought a cheap 30 qt. SS Proctor-Silex pot for only $40 delivered, and it's served me well as something to get started on, and 7.5 gal. is plenty for full 5-gal boils (I regularly do 6.5 gal since I switched to AG brewing, and it's a piece of cake with about 5 drops of Fermcap-S added to the boil to retard foaming).
If I were moving to a 100 qt. pot, it would be heavier, with a thicker bottom, probably Polarware or on up from there. But, as I said earlier, it would only happen if I were going to 10 gal., and I just can't envision why I'd want to brew that much beer in a batch.....let alone all the logistical issues.

+1 on instawares. Also check out www.webstaurantstore.com I got a 40qt aluminum pot and a banjo cooker shipped for under $150