Brewpot with Ball Valve and Thermometer Cleaning Question

I just picked up an 8 Gallon Megapot with a ball valve and thermometer, just like the one shown in this picture. http://www.northernbrewer.com/pics/fullsize/SSmegapot.jpg. Now this is my first experience with a ball valve. How do I go about cleaning sanitizing this thing before use? I assume that since cool wort will be passing through the spigot, that it'll need to be sanitized before I begin my boil. Should I just mix up some iodophor and run it through? Also, what about cleaning it when I'm done? Does it need to be taken apart from the kettle and cleaned is that something that only needs to be done periodically? Can I just run some hot water, or maybe pbw through it? Sorry for the slew of questions, and as always, thanks for the help.

It will actually be sanitized by boil, so no concerns there. For me, I usually spray some star san on the outside after the boil and before I transfer to the fermenter.

HomebrewJeff said:

It will actually be sanitized by boil, so no concerns there. For me, I usually spray some star san on the outside after the boil and before I transfer to the fermenter.

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Excuse my n00bness, but the inside of the valve will be sanitized even when the valve is closed? I figured that in order for it to be sanitized the wort would have to pass through it while it was still at near boiling temps.

More info would be helpful. Do you use a pump or gravity flow? If you use a pump then just recirculate the last 5 minutes and all is sanitized. Without a pump the same can be accomplished with a pitcher to catch the wort and return it to the boil. If you use an IC for chilling put it in the boil the last 5-10 minutes and it is sanitized. if you use a CFC or a plate recirculate through it for 5-10 minutes to sanitize.

The valve is actually going to be hotter than the wort during the boil.

Thanks for the input everyone. @beerthirty, I'm using just gravity flow.

Make sure it is visually clean. No packing stuff, dirt or what ever. any little unseeable buggies will die a miserable death 5 minutes (or sooner) into the boil.

I only wish I could watch the ones on mine.

And NO I haven't sold mine yet.

Hate to bring up an old post, but I had similar question. My method for cooling the wort includes sticking the pot in an ice bath as well as an wort chiller. Is it fair to assume that I should stick the ice bath since the water from the bath would get on the inside of the valve?

Thanks

eljefe said:

Hate to bring up an old post, but I had similar question. My method for cooling the wort includes sticking the pot in an ice bath as well as an wort chiller. Is it fair to assume that I should stick the ice bath since the water from the bath would get on the inside of the valve?

Thanks

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I don't chill in an ice bath, but because I can be a bit anal about sanitation sometimes, I hit the valve with a shot of StarSan from a spray bottle before racking to the fermenter.