My aluminum pot is 3 colors. Which is right?

I have done 1 batch in my new-to-me, used-once-as-a-turkey-fryer Turkey Fryer. I did nothing to season the pot before the brew, but I figured I should get it right. I threw some PBW in and let it soak (2 days, I was busy). Now there are 3 distinct colors inside the pot, in rings.

One is a silver, the same color as the outside of the pot.

One is a light brownish color.

One is a single green ring, I think at the level where the wort would have been boiling, although I'm not positive.


Basically, I want to get this prepped for my next brew, and am not sure which is the right color, or how to get it all prepped correctly. I think the brownish color is the oxide layer, but I've never used aluminum before. Any tips to get this all ready to go (and pacify SWMBO that the heavy metal won't be harmful?)
Thanks.

Aluminum oxide is a dull silvery gray color. The light brown sounds like either scorched wort or a stain. The green ring sounds like either hop residue or copper oxide from your wort chiller. Clean the brown and green crud. Scrub if you have to. Aluminum repassivates very quickly without much user interaction required.

I'd boil water in it for 45 minutes or so to build up the aluminum oxide.

[Edit: That's what I did with my aluminum stockpot before I used it the first time. Never had to do it again after the first time.]

When I first started I scrubbed my aluminum w/ a vengeance. Made the inside as shiny as the outside. I then boiled plain water in it for about 1/2 hr and called it done. Since then I just wiped the inside down w/ a sponge or a non-stick safe scrubby and its taken on a gray-brown patina inside. Its completely clean, I think the discoloration is the oxidation layer.

I have a thin AL pot that has been used many times and I have yet to build up an oxidized layer. I don't know if a thin pot is less likely to develop this layer or not I'm just saying thats the case with me.


And stop crushing my head