Brew pot question

[fishanhunt]

I am going to brew my first batch next week. I thought i had a stainless brew pot but I can't find it. Does it have to be stainless? I know that I've read not to use aluminum but what about one of those enamel coated pots like you make stew or chili in.

 

[NordeastBrewer77]

i used a 3 gal ceramic pot for my first couple batches, didn't notice any issues. i use larger stainless and aluminum now, but i still use the ceramic pot for sparge water in smaller batches and i've still never had any off flavors or anything like that from it.
IMO, when it comes to buying a kettle, buy the biggest kettle that you can get to a boil. my main kettle is a 7.5 gal aluminum, and i know i'll be upgrading to a larger kettle within the year.

 

[jpr0930]

I use an enamel coated pot. Only made two batches but has worked great. I had similar concerns as you, but from what I have read as long as it is not chipped you should be good.

 

[fishanhunt]

i used a 3 gal ceramic pot for my first couple batches, didn't notice any issues. i use larger stainless and aluminum now, but i still use the ceramic pot for sparge water in smaller batches and i've still never had any off flavors or anything like that from it.
IMO, when it comes to buying a kettle, buy the biggest kettle that you can get to a boil. my main kettle is a 7.5 gal aluminum, and i know i'll be upgrading to a larger kettle within the year.

So aluminum is ok to brew in?

 

[BamaRooster]

Enameled pot has worked well for me as well

 

[pksmitty]

Boy I hope aluminum is ok. Otherwise, all the beer I've made over the last 3 years has been ruined! Aluminum is fine. If it's brand new, boil water in it for half an hour before you use it to brew. That will create a layer of oxidation which will protect your beer. Oh, and dump the water you use to season the pot!

 

[GASoline71]

I started with an old enamel "canning" pot I got from my late grandmother.

Now I use a big ol' aluminum pot.

Aluminum is fine as long as you "season" it like pksmitty said above me.

Gary

 

[unionrdr]

I ordered my brewin kit after som research & shpping around. While I awaited delivery,we searched around & found that Giant Eagle had a set of 4 SS nested stck pots with lids & steamer trays,polished,for $25 on sale. The largest 2,5G & 4G work great for our partial boils.

 

[fishanhunt]

Sweet. I have a big aluminum pot.

 

[NordeastBrewer77]

aluminum's great. just make sure to build a passive oxide layer first by either boiling water in it for 30 mins or baking it in the oven at 350 for ten mins or so. and never scrub that layer off, just gently wash it by hand with hot water.

 

[GinSlinger]

How is OxyClean/One-Step with aluminum?

 

[NordeastBrewer77]

How is OxyClean/One-Step with aluminum?

it's a no no, it'll remove the oxide layer. just use hot water and maybe a dishrag. you're boiling it it so that will sterilize it.

 

[GinSlinger]

I assumed as much RE the oxide layer. Thanks for confirming.

 

[NordeastBrewer77]

I assumed as much RE the oxide layer. Thanks for confirming.

i really like my aluminum kettle. gets to a boil quicker and chills quicker. i can boil 6.5 gal on my glass top electric, no problem. it also seems to chill faster than even my thin walled SS kettle. :rockin:

 

[GinSlinger]

i really like my aluminum kettle. gets to a boil quicker and chills quicker. i can boil 6.5 gal on my glass top electric, no problem. it also seems to chill faster than even my thin walled SS kettle. :rockin:

Good to know. I'm planning on reentering the hobby just past the point I left off, so I'm going to make the step to BIAB all grain. I've space concerns, so I am going with 2.5-3 gal brews. I ordered a 24QT aluminum kettle I'm waiting on that should allow me to do full boils for everything I want to do. I'm glad to see experienced brewers happy with aluminum.

 

[NordeastBrewer77]

Good to know. I'm planning on reentering the hobby just past the point I left off, so I'm going to make the step to BIAB all grain. I've space concerns, so I am going with 2.5-3 gal brews. I ordered a 24QT aluminum kettle I'm waiting on that should allow me to do full boils for everything I want to do. I'm glad to see experienced brewers happy with aluminum.

i do BIAB in my kitchen, both PM and all grain, depending on grain bill. i've found i can handle ten-twelve #'s of grain (gotta make sure the bag can handle that, when in doubt, double up), so any size batch goes for avg beers, bigger beers i either do PM or smaller batches. i use the 7.5 gal kettle boiling (full boil for almost any 5 gal or smaller batch) and larger mashes, a 5.5 gal SS for sparging or smaller mashes, and a small ceramic pot (~3gal) for sparging smaller mashes. it's very simple, and is great for winter brewing up here. (hoping to have the garage heated by next winter. :rockin: ) i find it a great way to brew, every kitchen item is handy, and between the counter/stovetop, a chair and the floor, i have all the tiers i need to rack from vessel to vessel if need be. on a good day, prepping to clean up time is ~4 hours (assuming 60 min sacch rest and 60 min boil).

 

[jsv1204]

Does it have to be stainless? .

Short answer - not in my opinion.

Long answer - I can appreciate the metallurgical reasons why aluminum is not the most desirable but can also say I have brewed many tasty gallons in my aluminum turkey fryer.

Gratz on your first batch! Good luck...

 

[Mase]

it's a no no, it'll remove the oxide layer. just use hot water and maybe a dishrag. you're boiling it it so that will sterilize it.

Not to hijack the thread but would an unscented dish or hand soap work ok to clean the aluminum pot? Sometimes hot water and a rag won't cut it...

 

[NordeastBrewer77]

Not to hijack the thread but would an unscented dish or hand soap work ok to clean the aluminum pot? Sometimes hot water and a rag won't cut it...

i personally wouldn't use soap, for fear of removing the passive oxide layer. i just clean mine as soon as i can after boiling so nothing's really stuck on. hot tap water and the occasional dish rag do the trick on mine. i usually just use hot water and my hands and it's clean and the oxide layer remains in tact. if something was really stuck on, i'd probably try boiling it off with clean water before using soap. i try to keep soap off all my equipment that isn't glass.

 

[KevinW]

Not to hijack the thread but would an unscented dish or hand soap work ok to clean the aluminum pot? Sometimes hot water and a rag won't cut it...

I feel if you rinse very, very well you should be OK with washing the kettle with soap however I would not recommend using any harsh scrubbers like copper or heavy 3M (nylon) pads. I would never use any type of chemical cleaners on aluminum (made the mistake of using Oxyclean, boy did that turn out bad).

I use a sponge with a soft nylon pad on one side and hot water! With gentle action I get all the "crud" off without any problems!

Just my thoughts!

 

[unionrdr]

Or use one of those pads covered with micro fiber. Those work pretty well,& aren't really abrasive.

 

[Mase]

Those are both great answers. I'll just be sure to try to clean it right away so there are no stuck on particles. Not using soap is just one less expense anyway.

 

[h22lude]

I have an aluminium 10 gallon pot I bought from Amazon. I never put a passive oxide layer on it. Is this a problem? Is this something I can do now or is it too late?

 

[heferly]

Once you boil something in the pot, it will get the passive layer....if you've already made beer with it, you're fine. If not, boil as much volume of water as you can before using it.

 

[h22lude]

Once you boil something in the pot, it will get the passive layer....if you've already made beer with it, you're fine. If not, boil as much volume of water as you can before using it.

I've done about 5 or 6 batches with this pot. So I'm good then.

 

[DoctorMemory]

My wife bought me a 20qt Martha Stewart polished SS stockpot. It was discontinued or on closeout or something, but it's a solid pot with a glass lid and was only $49. Just wanted to throw that out, as I never would have thought of buying a BK at Macy's...