Enamel flakes in my wort!!!

So I just bought a propane burner so I could do my brewing outside and I had a 20 qt. brew pot that had an enamel finish on it. I had read reviews that said not to chip it because it could rust out, so I bought plastic spoons to go with it. Well, for whatever reason while I was in boil I noticed small black flakes swirling in the foam. I scooped as much of it out as possible and then I used a screen filter when transfering the wort to a carboy. When I looked at the inside of the pot, the enamel had come off as I suspected. Did this ruin my batch?? When everything was poured into primary I did not see any enamel flakes, but is there damage done by boiling them in your wort? Not real concerned but thought I would check with the experts? Thanks

It's unlikely to damage the wort. I would just never use that pot again. Don't dump that wort though. Let it ferment out and see how it tastes. Should be fine.

+1 on not dumping the batch, and yes the pot sounds like it is time to dump it. The enamel coating is heavily tested and should not hurt anything. Without the coating you will encounter rust city in the next batch.

Kauai_Kahuna said:

Without the coating you will encounter rust city in the next batch.

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Which would be perfect for an Irish red I agree wort goood!!! Pot bad!!!!

Yep time to pick up an inexpensive 30- or 40-qt full boil pot... 40 qt Aluminum should be $50 or less... 32 qt aluminum can be had for $40.

Check Instawares or any other kitchen supplier.

Even better check ebay for instawares stuff. I got my 40 qt aluminum pot from the for $10 cheaper than they offer on their site. No bidding either - buy it now option.

Thanks for all the input everybody. I had already moved it into bottles by the time I posted the question, so I guess it's about time to see how it tastes. I popped one last week because I had a friend in town, but it was a little early I guess. Tasted pretty green and flat as a board. Guess I'll pop a top every week or so to see how it goes. Thanks again.

Are you 100% sure it was the enamel flaking off? My first brews were exract that I did in an enameled pot and I had black flakes floating around too. It turned out that it was burned sugars from the malt that came loose when I stirred it.

I did think of that at first, figuring the malt got baked onto the bottom and flaked off, but when I looked at it and gave it a gentle scrubbing afterwards there seemed to be no finish. Maybe it happened because I dry heated for a few minutes for I added water to the pot, but I guess I thought it was meant for it. Well, I got a steel pot now and it seems much better, other than the fact that I added too hot of wort to the plastic carboy and completely disfigured it. Good thing I had a back up bucket!

Mine was the same way, it was burned flaked wort and it did make the pot look dull. Well I dont use it anymore but its good to have for a rainy day. Actually the last time I used it was for a candy bucket on Halloween, so I guess it still serves a purpose.

if yuo had it hot before pouring in the water its possible it cracked but you should be able to see the white and metal. the black flakes is burnt sugars. the pot is fine if you do not see a clear line between the enamel and the metal.