How much does a Brew Pot matter?

Obviously you need one but I can't figure out why one is much better than the other. I do understand top of the line pots are constructed better to distribute heat more evenly but for beginners looking to get the best package for the lowest cost it's hard to decide why one is better than the other.

Two examples:

http://www.midwestsupplies.com/stainless-steel-kettle-with-handles-and-lid-7-5-gallon.html


http://www.austinhomebrew.com/product_info.php?cPath=178_33_463&products_id=2319


On Austin's website they come right out and say "This is an economy pot so the sides and bottom are thin so you need to turn off the heat and stir well when adding sugars to the boil." How serious of a problem is this?

I can pay $30 more through Midwest but does that guarantee me a better pot?

I hope once I have everything it's not this hard making decisions on what to brew and how to brew it!!!! At least at that point I'll be doing something and not thinking about doing something.

For a beginner the cheapo pots are just fine. Heck, for experienced brewers the cheapo pots are just fine.

You'll have to turn the heat off when adding sugars with just about every pot. To me, it seems most of the difference is in heat retention and added gadgetry (spout, sight gauge, etc.).

yah, get the cheaper pot. i have that same one. when i add my extract i turn off the heat, move the pot to the other burner on my stove, add my extract, then mix it well. if i need to boil after, i just move it back, and start the flame again.

First suggestion - go as big as you can. I usually do a 5 gallon batch. With evaporation for an hour of rolling boil, that means 6.5 gallons to start, give or take. A boil-over happens very fast - and one gallon of headspace is not enough to contain it (in my opinion). Also, get some Fermcap-S, a simethecone product that comes in a small medicine-dropper style bottle. A couple of drops as it just starts to foam up and - voila - no boil over.

I have a 10 gallon polarware - and wouldn't trade it for the world - unless someone were giving me a Blichmann...

As for thickness - thin will scorch - you're boiling sugar, so you can expect scortching if you're not attentive and careful. The thicker the pot, the better off you'll be.

If you don't know whether you'll stick with the hobby, go cheap. If you think you'll be doing this for a while, go as big and hi-quality as you possibly can. You won't regret it.

StarCityBrewMaster said:

On Austin's website they come right out and say "This is an economy pot so the sides and bottom are thin so you need to turn off the heat and stir well when adding sugars to the boil." How serious of a problem is this?

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Always turn off the heat and stir well when adding sugars, even if you have the top of the line pot. IMHO.

I had a stainless pot that I did partial boils in, later I got a $25 32 qt aluminum pot to do full boils. It was just barely big enough. I boiled over twice in that one. Now I'm using a keggle that will boil about 15 gallons at a time. I am not able to stir it as efficiently as the others but haven't had a problem caramelizing so far. Obviously it doesn't present much of a boil over risk.

I'm very happy with my el cheapo 10 gallon aluminum pot I got for around $30. It's lightweight and heats/cools quickly. If you don't care about gadgets and/or you think you'll upgrade in the future, go with cheap. You can always use a cheap pot later for heating sparge water and decoctions.

Hell, I'm still using a cheap 30 quart aluminum pot that came with my burner.

The difference in those two pots isn't really quality. It's that one of them is 7.5 gallons and the other is only 5 gallons. With the 7.5 gallon pot, you might be able to do some extract full boils which would be really nice and help to increase the quality of your results. If you can afford the extra money for the 7.5 gallon pot, I would pick it up as full boils are well worth the effort. Also, if/when you experiment with all-grain, the 7.5 gallon pot will be nice for heating up large amounts of sparge water.

But don't feel bad going with the 5 gallon at all. You can still make great beer with a partial boil.

I also was trying to decide what to get 8 / 10 g ball valve no ball valve after research i was talked in to getting a keggle. If your planning on doing it outside on a burner but from what everyone told me the bigger the better and try to get something thats is going to grow with you so that you don't have to keep upgrading all the time

Thanks for all the quick advice! I seriously love how I ask a question on here and have 7 responses within 20 minutes.

You misread the size of these pots - one is 7.5 gallons and the other is 8. I thought both of these would be big enough to do full boils. If a 10lb pot is the way to go for full I'd rather do that.

I am trying to get as much as possible right off the bat that will allow me to go AG or do full boils without have to upgrade everything.

You can definately do full boils in the 7.5 or 8 gallon pot. Just make sure you buy a product called "fermcap". It basically gets rid of surface tension in the wort and eliminates the chances of a boil over. Trust me, you can even boil over 5 gallons in a converted keg.

with a bigger pot your stove prob can't handle it. So your going to need a burner you can get a ss turkey fryer bayou classic at target 32q for 179 still cheaper than a good pot and it can double duty as a steamer for lobster/crab legs what ever. If your on a budget check ebay craigslist i just found a keggle in my area for a 100 $ so if you look around you might find something. turkey fryer link http://www.target.com/gp/detail.htm...291GCU&CPNG=patio garden&ref=tgt_adv_XSG10001

I'm really fond of my cheap 15G/60qt Aluminum pot. Five and ten gallon batches are no problem at all and the price was way less than comparable SS pots.

If you are looking at regular pots (no valves, thermometers, etc) you might also

look at the restaurant supply houses. They have good prices on thicker walled

AL pots. These are durable and transfer heat well - for about the same price

as 'economy brew kettles'.

+1 to the 10 gal size for 5 gal batches if you see yourself using full boils

outdoors on an outdoor burner (If not now, trust us, you will be.)

http://www.restaurantsupplyhouse.com/servlet/StoreFront

http://www.foodservicewarehouse.com/

jason

StarCityBrewMaster said:

Two examples:

http://www.midwestsupplies.com/stainless-steel-kettle-with-handles-and-lid-7-5-gallon.html


http://www.austinhomebrew.com/product_info.php?cPath=178_33_463&products_id=2319

Click to expand...

I am about to buy a 40 qt (10 gallon) brew pot myself. I always notice people seem to post links from brew sites here and just want to make sure you do not forget that for stock pots etc. other places sell the same items usually cheaper.

For example, the pot I am buying is

40 qt. Aluminum Stock Pot

40 qt. Stock Pot Lid

You can find real good prices if you shop around.

I want to be able to start as soon as I get it. I didn't think about my stove not being able to handle it. I have a gas stove but I see what your saying about it not being able to boil 7-10 gallons of water.

I guess 5 will have to be the way to start in order to brew immediately.......

StarCityBrewMaster said:

You misread the size of these pots - one is 7.5 gallons and the other is 8. I thought both of these would be big enough to do full boils. If a 10lb pot is the way to go for full I'd rather do that.

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My bad. That was a little early for me. Disregard everything I said. I'd say go with the cheaper, bigger one.

StarCityBrewMaster said:

I want to be able to start as soon as I get it. I didn't think about my stove not being able to handle it. I have a gas stove but I see what your saying about it not being able to boil 7-10 gallons of water.

I guess 5 will have to be the way to start in order to brew immediately.......

Click to expand...

2 things about your statement.

#1 Even if your stove will not boil more than 5 gallons effectively, you can always buy the larger pot and only put 5 gallons in it. Personally this would be better to avoid boil overs and allows you future capabilities.

#2 Aluminum pots boil easier than stainless but some people prefer stainless. Your call.

Not to get off topic... but does using fermcap have any effect on head retention later on??

I guess it's still early for me too cause I didn't use common sense and realize I can put 5 gallons of water in a bigger pot - thanks for pointing that out, I hope a light bulb would have gone off sooner than later!

I am attempting to boil 1 gallon on the stove right now just to make sure I can do that much.....

Can you do your boils on your bbq grill outdoors? Not sure if setting your pot on the metal racks would be bad on an open flame or if the heat would be distributed evenly but it may generate more heat than a stove top flame.

Opinions?

You should be able to boil at least 2.5 gallons of water on your current stove. You can always do partial boils and top off with clean water...
If you have a pot that can accomodate that for now, my suggestion would be to go with that for now. You showed intrest in moving to all grain soon. I am in the middle of the transition now.
I used my 20 qt. pot on my electric stove, and then on my propane burner for my extract batches.
I then found a Beer Distributor that sold me an empty keg, bought a ball valve and sight glass and converted it to a keggle.
Rather then buying 2 pots (1 now and 1 later), if you can use what you have for now, until you really know you want to go all out in this hobby/obsession.

StarCityBrewMaster said:

Can you do your boils on your bbq grill outdoors? Not sure if setting your pot on the metal racks would be bad on an open flame or if the heat would be distributed evenly but it may generate more heat than a stove top flame.

Opinions?

Click to expand...

Bobby M has a youtube video from a while ago where he does an extract batch like this.

Gfei said:

Not to get off topic... but does using fermcap have any effect on head retention later on??

Click to expand...

nope, it actually supposedly helps it.

Fermcap is a silicone based emulsion. It actually drops out of suspension after a while.

A non-traditional look but at this price for this size in stainless, is this a good option for a full boil kettle:

ebay boil kettle

My first partial boil was on my gas stove's biggest burner. Next time was in the garage with a new propane burner. Not saying your stove won't do it, but you will quickly determine that to continue making beer you will want to go outside.

StarCityBrewMaster said:

Can you do your boils on your bbq grill outdoors? Not sure if setting your pot on the metal racks would be bad on an open flame or if the heat would be distributed evenly but it may generate more heat than a stove top flame.

Opinions?

Click to expand...

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f39/boiling-gas-grill-164046/
here a link to a thread i asked the same thing

Can't resist, depends on how well you roll it.

It's the size that important here. Second, consider the thickness of the material and the attachment of the handles if you intend to move the pot while full.

How much does a standard turkey fryer pot hold?

Dont worry about it. I would go aluminum as they are way cheaper and heat up far faster. I have heard that 10 gallon is a luxurious size for a five gallon wort and that is what i am buying. If you know someone that is a member of sams club, you can get a 10 gallon aluminum for 32 bucks on their website.

I have the 32qt economy from AHS. It's thin, but the handles are sturdy enough. The bottom showed some heat markings from the burner-grate after the first use, but otherwise seems fine.
I'm able to span 2 burners with it, which lets me get a full boil on my gas range.
I've boiled 6.5gallons in there, with no boilover, but I wouldn't add hops and walk away, either.
Because its so thin, it loses heat pretty quick, but not as fast as aluminum. Make sure you have plenty of BTU to be able to do a full boil. And you'll need some kind of chiller, water bath just isn't practical for this much volume.