Aluminum kettles

Just started brewing yesterday and was given a 20q aluminum pot that I used for the first time yesterday. Is there a problem with using aluminum as far as it affecting the tast of the beer or any chemical reactions?? I used a plastic brewing spoon and do not plan on using any steel wool type scrub pads on it for cleaning. Should I bite the bullet and buy a stainless steel pot?

That time of the week already, is it?

This topic comes up all the time. Short answer is that your aluminum pot will be just fine although a bit small unless you're doing partial boils. The longer answer is to do a search on this topic. You'll find MANY discussions on this and while you'll get dissenting views most agree that aluminum is okay. It's what I use.

Thanx for the reply, new to the forum and didn't know this was such a hot topic. I'll do a search next time around.

Not a problem. Welcome aboard. We're glad to have you.

Well, Im about to buy a 40qt Aluminum pot so I can start All-Grain brews.

I can get a good 40qt Aluminum pot for about $50. A 40qt SS pot is much much more...I just cant spend the money on it now.

Bigben, my thoughts exactly. I did get some good advice from the local brew shop the other day, I guess if you wash your pot with steel wool you can scar it and these areas may harbor bacteria?? That's the only drawback that I've heard so far.

Rivercat96 said:

I guess if you wash your pot with steel wool you can scar it and these areas may harbor bacteria?? That's the only drawback that I've heard so far.

Click to expand...

Bacteria are not an issue in a brewpot, after all you're going to boil your wort in it for an extended period of time.

Scratches in a fermenter...now THAT'S a different matter.

bigben said:

Well, Im about to buy a 40qt Aluminum pot so I can start All-Grain brews.

I can get a good 40qt Aluminum pot for about $50. A 40qt SS pot is much much more...I just cant spend the money on it now.

Click to expand...

44Qt stainless for $81.

really the biggest issue with an aluminmum brewpot is taking care of it. its a softer metal...easier to dent.

gotta be careful about putting a spigot/valve on an aluminum pot too as the walls are thin, they can warp as you open and close the valve if you don't reinforce the fitting with some stainless steel washers.

malkore said:

really the biggest issue with an aluminmum brewpot is taking care of it. its a softer metal...easier to dent.

gotta be careful about putting a spigot/valve on an aluminum pot too as the walls are thin, they can warp as you open and close the valve if you don't reinforce the fitting with some stainless steel washers.

Click to expand...

That mostly depends on the gauge of the aluminum. My kettle is a 40QT restaurant grade aluminum pot and the sidewalls and bottom are 3/16".

I agree, I've been using a 60 qt aluminum brew pot for 3 years with no ill effects. Purchased it from a local restaurant supply shop, don't remember how much but it was less than $80. Drilled it for a SS ball value and it's been great.

SBRDave

wow i might get that 36 qt stainless bayou classic pot for 60.

Only thing is its 0.8 mm thick. Isnt that really thin? Or is stainless that much stronger? Ive seen aluminum pots that were 4 and 6 mm thick.

BUMP

Anyone have info on the thickness of the pot? I'd like to order this tonight!!

My 20 gallon stainless kettle is about .050" in wall thickness. That's about 1.25 mm. I think 0.8 mm is probably just fine.

Ok, cool....thanks.

I placed the order for the 36 qt...I figure 9 gallons is plenty big as I don't plan on doing more than 5 gallon batches...for now anyway

Now hopefully it gets here before the weekend so I can brew my first AG!!!

The only reservation I have about aluminum is that it might be linked to Alzheimers. Although unlikely it's something to think about. I know aluminum cans are coated but not sure why. Maybe someone out there has done some research on this and could enlighten all of us.

Yuri_Rage said:

My 20 gallon stainless kettle is about .050" in wall thickness. That's about 1.25 mm. I think 0.8 mm is probably just fine.

Click to expand...

I bought both my 44 qt and 62qt from there and both are set up with weldless ball valves. They work great.

FSR402 said:

I bought both my 44 qt and 62qt from there and both are set up with weldless ball valves. They work great.

Click to expand...

Awesome man...thanks for the link. That's the best price I could find anywhere and the shipping is pretty cheap too.

rohanski said:

The only reservation I have about aluminum is that it might be linked to Alzheimers. .

Click to expand...

It has long been proven that the study was flawed and it is accepted by the medical and scientific community that there is NO link between aluminum and brain disease

Cans are coated to prevent a metallic taste. Steel cans are coated also

rohanski said:

The only reservation I have about aluminum is that it might be linked to Alzheimers. Although unlikely it's something to think about. I know aluminum cans are coated but not sure why. Maybe someone out there has done some research on this and could enlighten all of us.

Click to expand...

Haven't done any research, but, if you're worried about it , then don't eat out anywhere. Vertually all restaurants use aluminum pots.....

They must be low budget restaurants. My wife runs a restaurant at the high school she works at and they use all stainless. I'm pretty sure that it's a durability issue though. Aluminum is much softer than SS.

The two-star I work in uses aluminum pots... their just easier to handle and store in tight spaces.

Better heat conductivity with aluminum, too. The fact that a school spent more taxpayer money from their budget for stainless steel doesn't mean anything to me!

Can you get an aluminum pot with a layered bottom to transfer the heat evenly like stainless pots?

You dont need a layered bottom with an aluminum pot.

I'll ask SWMBO on this one as she is sure to have an opinion. As far as the tax payer money I couldn't agree more. My property tax bill this year was over 7 grand and my kids go to private school. I just wrote the check on monday with a shaking hand. Funny thing though, they always have a bowl of suckers there at the counter at tax time. I think they are trying to tell me something.

rohanski said:

I'll ask SWMBO on this one as she is sure to have an opinion. As far as the tax payer money I couldn't agree more. My property tax bill this year was over 7 grand and my kids go to private school. I just wrote the check on monday with a shaking hand. Funny thing though, they always have a bowl of suckers there at the counter at tax time. I think they are trying to tell me something.

Click to expand...

I work for a food & supply company and one of our largest customer base is schools ... most of them purchase aluminum. It's lighter for the old lunch-lady biddies to pick up and it's MUCH cheaper.

There has to be a reason why SS is still around if aluminum is better and less expensive. How can that be?

rohanski said:

There has to be a reason why SS is still around if aluminum is better and less expensive. How can that be?

Click to expand...

The same reason BMC still sells, despite the home/craftbrewing boom. The same reason why Windows is still in use when GNU/Linux is superior in almost every way: people aren't always logical.

Seriously, for a while there was concern that aluminum was linked to Alheimers. This has pretty much been disproven, but like most urban legends they tend to have staying power. Also, certain cleaning products can be used on SS and not on aluminum and vise versa. Palmer says it best in this line from "How To Brew"

Palmer said:

Do not clean aluminum shiny bright or use bleach to clean an aluminum brewpot because this removes the protective oxides and can result in a metallic taste. This detectable level of aluminum is not hazardous. There is more aluminum in a common antacid tablet than would be present in a batch of beer made in an aluminum pot.

Click to expand...

Another very real reason: people like shine. Aluminum dulls after exposure to air while SS does not (to such an extent). In restaurants where appearance matters SS would have a reputation for being "better" despite the fact that it doesn't affect cooking properties.

The final answer: Everyone's defintiion of better is different. Choice is good.

Inertia with peoples' beliefs?
Sounds like a thing to send to the Mythbusters!

"The same reason why Windows is still in use when GNU/Linux is superior in almost every way: people aren't always logical. "

Go here if you are going to talk like that.

I guess the question now is why did you choose SS over aluminum? I'm not talking about the guys with keggles.

I got Stainless for the durablility and because it's easier to clean.

Oh and so I can sleep better at night instead of wondering why I didn't just get stainless

rohanski said:

I guess the question now is why did you choose SS over aluminum? I'm not talking about the guys with keggles.

Click to expand...

It's what my LHBS had.

I always have to chip in on these Al vs SS threads so here goes.

Aluminum is a better thermal conductor than SS, by like 10x, hence it should take less heat and less time to heat your water/wort.
SS will last much longer, but I've never worn out an Al pot.

Another reason they coat Al cans is to prevent Oxidation, Al oxidizes when exposed to air over time or air under heat.

$50 for a 40qt Al is high. You can get a turkey fryer plus a ~40qt pot for ~$40 shipped on ebay.

I have been using this for a while now and it works great:

http://www.canadiantire.ca/browse/product_detail.jsp;jsessionid=GHvjuHAYiSwHVm7qqalxjsrYhB4r5uxXXMf1PlWVIz2UHzMQevR6!927673946!172915573!7205!7305?PRODUCT%3C%3Eprd_id=845524443279361&FOLDER%3C%3Efolder_id=1408474396672077&bmUID=1187475237394

OK, SWMBO has spoken and she make sense for once. She says aluminum is not as durable and scratches easy. She also says that you can't cook high acid foods in it. She did say that they also use some aluminum and it does transfer heat better which we all knew.

My SS pots have an aluminum sandwich bottom so I have the best of both worlds until one of you shoots me down on that. SS just costs a few more bucks.

SWMBO has spoken!

I've got both...when I first started brewing I was getting off flavors, and attributed it to my AL pot. I now know it was probably more due to fermentation temps. If I had to do it again, I'd just buy 3 huge aluminum pots for the price of 1 SS pot. A few points:

1. You shouldn't have to scrub aluminum if you're careful not to scorch. Less work is a good thing.
2. Durability should not be an issue. What are you going to do, drop the pot off the roof? A thick gauge aluminum pot that is properly cared for will outlive all of us.
3. Heat transfer is much better, which = less propane.
4. For the money you save on 3 Aluminum pots vs. SS ones, you could buy a chillzilla or therminator.

I vote Aluminum!

rohanski said:

OK, SWMBO has spoken and she make sense for once. She says aluminum is not as durable and scratches easy. She also says that you can't cook high acid foods in it. She did say that they also use some aluminum and it does transfer heat better which we all knew.

My SS pots have an aluminum sandwich bottom so I have the best of both worlds until one of you shoots me down on that. SS just costs a few more bucks.

SWMBO has spoken!

Click to expand...

SS reacts with low PH too, maybe not as much as AL. Besides, you're making beer in it, not storing hydrochloric acid.

Scratches don't really matter, because you're using it for boils which kills everything. My AL pot, as with most AL pots, is atleast 1/4" thick, much thicker than you'll see any SS pot so durability isn't really a problem. Scratching only matters on enamel coated pots.

Since I started this wildfire of a thread it's fitting that I try to put it out. After brewing my second batch of beer with my trusty aluminum kettle I noticed that not only does it transfer heat well it also loses heat very quickly. A friend who was over yesterday was shocked how fast I cooled down the wort in an ice bath in my sink. He uses a heavy gauge SS pot and said takes at least twice as long to cool his wort down. Chalk another one up for aluminum.

Well reading this thread helped me make up my mind. I scored a used 60qt Aluminum resturant grade pot in Ebay for $35! Sweet.