Is a square pot ok to use?

I found this burner and pot set that I liked but I was unsure about using a square pot to boil the wort in. Does anybody have any thoughts on using a square pot?

http://www.basspro.com/Bass-Pro-Shops-36-Quart-AllInOne-Turkey-Fryer-Kit/product/10215417/-1690136

Should be fine, kind of odd though

I think whirlpooling might be a challenge.

More concern-worthy:

"It cooked good, but was not made very sturdy and welding broke as it was being assembled. Lid should have had slots in them so baskets could be in with the lid on."

eek.

Quick thoughts: the corners look rounded enough that it wouldn't be all that annoying to stir the wort. But I doubt you'd be able to get a good whirlpool going, if you use that method for settling out your break material.

Also, I can't see the spigot mentioned in the description. It could be a plus or a minus depending on where it is placed and how it is constructed.

It may be a concern regarding circulation of the boil (Maybe stir regularly)

Really though, I am only making this post to say that I think this might be the first original topic that I have seen posted since I joined this forum!! Well done!!

It's a rectangle, BTW. Which makes the whirlpooling and spigot problem even more interesting.

But really. Faulty welds is a red flag.

I am discussing the idea of a SS DIY Kettle in the DIY forum.

If I make them square instead of circular, the height will only be 28.5" instead of 36.3". I would of course prefer a shorter kettle.

Besides the issue of effective whirlpooling, is there any reason why I should not use square kettles?

With a short/fat pot your boil off/evaporation rate will be much higher.

square kettles are crazy!

I agree with both of you.

Which do you think is more problematic: the height (28" vs. 36") or the shape (cylinder vs. square)?

Height vs Width is the biggest problem I see, but most kettles are round for a reason. The cylindrical shape helps out convection currents when you boil, your hop utilization will likely be lower in a square/rectangular kettle unless you stir often. Then again, at the homebrew level it may not make a difference at all...

I have basically the same fryer, without the built in drain. I got mine from a Meijer store for a great price on clearance. I thouth about using the rectangle, but figured there would be too much evaporation, and it would be hard to manage the width when dumping the hot wort. So I purchased the biggest round kettle that I could find that would "fit", and saved the rectangle in case I want to fry something.

It took a bit to find a round kettle that would fit porperly because the side frame is designed in such a way that it sticks up about an inch all the way around the rectangle kettle to hold it in place. That extra lip made it necessary to find a kettle that would fit exactally inside the frame. Luckily, the round fryer kit that bass pro sells, without the burner, had an alluminum kettle that fit perfectly.

I looked at the Bass Pro model when I was there getting the round kettle. I would not trust the built in faucet for anything other than leaking. It did not seem to be of a very high quality, and did not have the smoothness of a ball valve (it looks like a garden hose hookup).

The little side tables are a nice place to put your beer down, hold a thermometor, etc.

If I had to do it again, I would have simply purchased the round fryer from somewhere.

I wouldn't use a square pot in a round hole, but otherwise...


groan

reminds me of the Brewmation.com systems kitchen sinks which seem to be workable.