joshuafields
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- Mar 1, 2009
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Hello all -- I'm a first time poster here, though I've been getting a lot of useful information from the forum lately. My buddy and I are fairly new to brewing, but have done 3 extract batches and 5 partial mash batches intermittently over the past couple years. We're getting a lot more involved in it now, and are ready to step up to all-grain. Our current brew pot is only about 4 gallons, so we need to buy a bigger one and are trying to balance factors of material, dimensions, capacity, and cost.
My buddy recently came across a great deal on a used Viking stove, which puts out 15,000 BTUs per burner, along with a great vent hood for sucking most of that evaporation and grain smell straight through the roof. He lives in a loft space, so we don't have to worry about cramped quarters or neighbors.
We are mostly interested in a stainless pot since they're easier to clean, less reactive, and more versatile than aluminum (maybe we'll want to make a huge batch of tomato soup one day!). We want to jump right in to making 10 gallon batches, so we can each get 5 gallons of beer per batch for about the same amount of time commitment. We've done some research and it seems a 15 gallon pot would be ideal for double batches, while not being too huge to put on the viking stovetop. Sorry to ramble here, just trying to give you guys the full story. These are the pots we're trying to decide between:
*VOLLRATH 60 QT STAINLESS
16" Diameter x 18" high, 18 gauge, arc-sprayed aluminum bottom
We found a source for one of these used; it's pretty beat up but we can probably get it for $100, rather than $270+ new. We like the verticality of the pot, but the smaller diameter would make it difficult to use two stove burners if one isn't cutting it. There's also something nice about a new pot without a bunch of dents in it.
*WINCO 60 QT STAINLESS SST-60
17.7" Diameter x 14.2" high, 5mm thick aluminum core bottom, 33 lbs!!
Stainless Steel Master Cook Stock Pot w/Cover - 60 Quart
New, $159 shipped. This would be pretty big in diameter for use on a single burner, but would fit better over two burners if needed. We're worried this would be less efficient than a more vertical pot.
*SITRAM 52.6 QT
15.7" Diameter, can't find height dimension but probably about 17", 2.5mm copper core sandwich bottom
We found a local source that has these on sale for $175. Online prices are between $400-500. The copper sandwich would be great for conducting heat, and the vertical dimensions seem good, but it's over 7 quarts smaller than the others (so only 13.25 gallons) and we're worried this won't be big enough for 10 gallon batches. Also, the price is a little steep, as work has been SLOW lately. If we ever wanted to get rid of it, this pot would probably have the highest resale value, though.
Again, sorry for being long winded. Any help or suggestions would be greatly appreciated!
Josh
My buddy recently came across a great deal on a used Viking stove, which puts out 15,000 BTUs per burner, along with a great vent hood for sucking most of that evaporation and grain smell straight through the roof. He lives in a loft space, so we don't have to worry about cramped quarters or neighbors.
We are mostly interested in a stainless pot since they're easier to clean, less reactive, and more versatile than aluminum (maybe we'll want to make a huge batch of tomato soup one day!). We want to jump right in to making 10 gallon batches, so we can each get 5 gallons of beer per batch for about the same amount of time commitment. We've done some research and it seems a 15 gallon pot would be ideal for double batches, while not being too huge to put on the viking stovetop. Sorry to ramble here, just trying to give you guys the full story. These are the pots we're trying to decide between:
*VOLLRATH 60 QT STAINLESS
16" Diameter x 18" high, 18 gauge, arc-sprayed aluminum bottom
We found a source for one of these used; it's pretty beat up but we can probably get it for $100, rather than $270+ new. We like the verticality of the pot, but the smaller diameter would make it difficult to use two stove burners if one isn't cutting it. There's also something nice about a new pot without a bunch of dents in it.
*WINCO 60 QT STAINLESS SST-60
17.7" Diameter x 14.2" high, 5mm thick aluminum core bottom, 33 lbs!!
Stainless Steel Master Cook Stock Pot w/Cover - 60 Quart
New, $159 shipped. This would be pretty big in diameter for use on a single burner, but would fit better over two burners if needed. We're worried this would be less efficient than a more vertical pot.
*SITRAM 52.6 QT
15.7" Diameter, can't find height dimension but probably about 17", 2.5mm copper core sandwich bottom
We found a local source that has these on sale for $175. Online prices are between $400-500. The copper sandwich would be great for conducting heat, and the vertical dimensions seem good, but it's over 7 quarts smaller than the others (so only 13.25 gallons) and we're worried this won't be big enough for 10 gallon batches. Also, the price is a little steep, as work has been SLOW lately. If we ever wanted to get rid of it, this pot would probably have the highest resale value, though.
Again, sorry for being long winded. Any help or suggestions would be greatly appreciated!
Josh