Stainless Steel Question

Hey Guys,
New here and looking for some advice.
I'm getting back into homebrewing and recently aquired a used 30qt. stainless steel stockpot (which was used by another brewer).
Unfortunately, the pot has seen a lot of action and the bottom is scarred from an abrasive cleaning agent or brush. There are also a few dents in the bottom of the pot.
I mostly concerned about sanitation. Would any of you think that I should invest in a new brewpot?
Thanks!

It will be fine. You are boiling in it and everything will be killed.

get a new sos pad and some barkeepers friend. go to town on the pot with that and see how it turns out. it should be able to remove any discoloration or corrosion with a bit of elbow grease. as far as the dents, they really don't hurt anything at all. they reduce the capacity of the pot, but not by enough to justify the purchase of a new one.

jct9335 said:

get a new sos pad and some barkeepers friend. go to town on the pot with that and see how it turns out. it should be able to remove any discoloration or corrosion with a bit of elbow grease. as far as the dents, they really don't hurt anything at all. they reduce the capacity of the pot, but not by enough to justify the purchase of a new one.

Click to expand...

No don't use an sos pad! Use a scotchbrite pad instead.

or buy a stainless steel scrubby to use on it with some Bar keepers friend, the mild steel in an SOS pad will embed itself into the stainless and cause rust spots later.

Thanks guys!
The pot also came with a very used copper chiller.
There appears to be some caked-on wort remnants on the chiller.
Would the Bar Keepers work for that as well?

Bouza said:

Thanks guys!
The pot also came with a very used copper chiller.
There appears to be some caked-on wort remnants on the chiller.
Would the Bar Keepers work for that as well?

Click to expand...

just scrub that w/ your scotch bright pad and do a quick boil in H2O it will be fine.
NEVER USE AN SOS PAD ON STAINLESS!!!!!!!! it will destroy it for brewing and RUST like mad
cheers
JJ

Considering the age and heavy use of the IC.

You might also consider an overnight soak, starting with hot water and vinegar (white distilled). This willnot only loosen up the caked on crud but, will also loosen up any oxidation (black or green deposits/film) that may have formed on the copper making it easier to clean.

I'm in the company of genius here.
The Bar Keepers worked like a champion.
After an hour or so, brewpot looks beautiful.
Tomorrow, I attack the chiller.
Thanks guys!

Barkeeper's Friend is awesome stuff. After I cleaned up some rough-looking (but cheap) kegs and got the scorch marks off the bottom of my boil pot, my got inspired. My food cooking pots have never looked so good

Pretty close to the best $1.79 I ever spent. I love it when the cheap solution turns out to rock.

where are you all buying bar keepers friend???
Cheers
JJ

I got mine at the local grocery... Kroger... near the Ajax. It also cleaned the heck out of my Jenn-air glass cooking top! Looks better than it did when we bought the house.
MAGIC!

Jaybird said:

where are you all buying bar keepers friend???
Cheers
JJ

Click to expand...

I got it at the dollar store, believe it or not. 2 for $1! I've also seen in at Family Dollar (do you have those out west?) for around $1.39. It's magic- it cleaned up my stove top after a boilover, even!

I picked up the BKF at an Ace Hardware store. I don't know if the big box "hardware" stores like Home Depot or Lowe's carry it; I didn't look.

I picked up mine at Wally World

We have Dollar Tree out in these parts. I've been buying my knockoff brand Oxyclean there, I think I'll look for BKF there too.