Not quite full boil ok?

[carrotmalt]

I use a 30 quart aluminium turkey fryer for a brew pot. I just don't have the space to start with 6.5 gallons and boil down to 5.5. Would it be ok to boil say 5 gallons down to 4, then top up with the rest of the wort and boil for another 10 to 15 minutes? Has anybody else tried this, and would there be a noticeable difference between this and a real full boil?

 

[Trubadour]

You can just add water as you go to keep your boil volume up, but I'd probably stop adding water with 10-15 minutes left in the boil.

 

[MN_Jay]

I regularly boil 6.5 gallons in my 30 qt pot and I don't even use any anti foaming agent. Generally after the initial hot break, I've never had anything close to a boilover. But if you want to play it safe, some people will boil the excess in a separate smaller pot and add it to the big pot as the big pot boils down.

 

[JPicasso]

This is exactly what I do. 5 gallon AG, boiled down to 4. Instead of adding and boiling, I just make my last gallon chilled distilled water from groc. store. Works for me. Tastes like beer.

I don't know what effect it has, since this is the only way I've done it, and I only have two batches under by belt. One is delicious, the other is fermenting. I doubt you'll "ruin" any beer doing this.

 

[carrotmalt]

I just don't see how this can be done. There's about 3" left in the pot with 6.5 gallons in there. Are you cooking on gas or electric? I'm using gas, and the slightest adjustment in gas can easily raise the foam level 6 to 8 inches. I want to do a rolling boil, but I have to baby sit the thing for the full hour, and anything close to rolling is spilling.

 

[carrotmalt]

Since I'm doing all grain, I want to make sure and use all the sugars I can. So I'd prefer to add the rest of the wort vice more water. I just wasn't sure if that wort needed more than 15 minutes, or if I'd lose the full boil benefits everyone brags about.

 

[Rick500]

It's not an all or nothing thing... the more toward full boil you go, the better. But boiling 4.5 gallons and topping up to 5 will get you a better result than boiling 2.5 gallons and topping up to 5.

 

[woollybugger2]

that's what I'm doing now, 24 qt pot... I get almost 5 gallons to boil and end up with 4.25 gallons which I cool down to 80* with immersion chiller and then top off with .75 gallons of refrigerated bottled water.


Beer is only getting better and better....

next purchase will be a bigger pot ....

 

[wormsgetsold]

Why don't you do 5 gal batches instead of 5.5. the 30 qt. will get it done, I used to do it before I got a new pot, just watch it(FWIW I use a propane burner). Your hop utilization will decrease if you do less that a full boil, remember to adjust if you decide to not go the full boil route, which is fine-I used to do that too.

 

[davesrose]

Well once you find out how quickly you evaporate during your boil, you'll be able to figure what sort of final boil volume you have (and if it's acceptable to top off with water). With my brews, I get a rolling boil (anything more, I don't see how it does anything different then evaporate more quickly). So I normally run off close to 6 gallons of wort and wind up with 5.3 gallons of wort.

But getting to your post about foam: once I get a rolling boil, I don't have foam. It's right before that rolling boil that I find that wort can keep on raising during that "hotbreak". Right when the foam really starts kreeping up, I throttle the gas way down, stir some of the foam isn't settling down yet, then wait til the foam goes down and I see that rolling boil. Then I've found, if I add more gas, it only creates a more vigorous boil. Before that hotbreak...then yes, adding more gas just seems to get that foam churning.

 

[BierMuncher]

Two things to help reduce boilovers.

1) use a ladle to skim the "scum" that appears as the wort approaches a boil.
B) Place a fan pointed down at the top of the kettle.

I routinely use both of these practices and never have boilover problems. I for one am against adding anti-foam chemicals to my beer.

You can see here that I only have 3 or so inches of cushion space, but because I skimmed the scum...no worries.

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5hYqVfPn6mA]YouTube - Keggle on the Boil[/ame]

 

[wormsgetsold]

You can see here that I only have 3 or so inches of cushion space, but because I skimmed the scum...no worries.

YouTube - Keggle on the Boil

wow! is that how vigorously I should boil my wort? I always have a rolling boil, but that seems a bit more intense than my boils. I get 13-15% evporation rate with my boil and it is maybe half as intense as that boil.

 

[carrotmalt]

As for the scum skimming: I've been adding my 60 minute addition pretty much as soon as I reach a boil. At that point, when the foam builds up, I have all sorts of hops in the foam and stuck to the sides of the pot. Once I turn it down, I slash some wort against the sides to get the hops back down. If I skim the top, I'd lose quite a bit of hops in the scum? Am I suppose to start my first hop addition after the big hot break?

As for pointing a fan at the top of the pot: I thought I read somewhere that how windy it is has an impact on boiloff rate. If I add the fan, is this going to shoot my boiloff through the roof?

Thanks for the tips by the way, and your video really helps!

 

[sean102385]

this past saturday i brewed and i have a 30qt pot as well. I did a full boil in it with no boilover. I use the spray bottle method. and after the initial foaming up for the first 5 minutes or so, i never had to use the bottle again.

 

[hopsoda]

Two things to help reduce boilovers.

1) use a ladle to skim the "scum" that appears as the wort approaches a boil.
B) Place a fan pointed down at the top of the kettle.


I have been doing this as well - I ladle off the foam , and when it settles back down I slowly add it back in?

I need to get a larger kettle

 

[passedpawn]

I use Mylicon drops (drugstore) to eliminate boilover. Haven't had one since I started using it, and I used to get a boilover EVERY TIME, even if I was standing right next to the pot. Much cheaper solution is to buy the version made for brewers, Fermcap-S. All brew suppliers carry it.

Also, make sure you don't cover your pot when you boil.

 

[wilserbrewer]

I've been adding my 60 minute addition pretty much as soon as I reach a boil. At that point, when the foam builds up, I have all sorts of hops in the foam and stuck to the sides of the pot.

What I believe a lot of us do as we reach a boil, is to either skim the foam or stir it back into the wort as you are reaching a boil. Let boil for another ten minutes or so until the boil is regular and controlled, then add your first addition. Adding your first addition during or immediately after the hot break can be problematic. Establish a nice controlled boil, than add hops.

 

[Brewin_CRAZY]

SKIM THE SCUM, it does wonders when you are doing a boil close to the top of your kettle. I brew in a 30 qt and a 40 qt kettle quite often, only had one boil over but that was my fault, I want paying attention.