Which is better in a brew kettle or pot?

[bmckee56]

I have brass fittings and pipe, or copper fittings and pipe available. Which would be better inside the brew potfor my drain pick-up?

I know stainless is utimately the best choice, but I do not have access to stainless.

Salute!

 

[wilserbrewer]

Either are fine and will work well IMO. Brass does contain a small amount of lead for machining. Some feel better "pickling" the brass prior to use to reduce/remove the small amount of lead. YMMV

 

[Duckfoot]

I use copper for the time being...

 

[BlueCollarBrewer]

I actually switched from stainless to copper after reading somewhere that copper in the boil provides nutrients for the yeast. I don't know if this is fact, but whatever I read was convincing enough for me to try it. I think some people even toss a chunk of copper into the kettle during boil.

 

[nicknoty]

i use all brass on the bottom and brass and copper on the returns up top for recirc and chiller boil and i'm still here to post. the worst thing you could do is not boil aluminum enough before brewing with it.

 

[bmckee56]

My pot is well seasoned. I just want to add the drain tube to increase the output and keep me from having to tilt the pot to get all the water or wort from the pot.

Salute!

 

[chs9]

According to "Brew Ware", brass has low quantities of lead included for maching purposes, so you may want to avoid that.

 

[bmckee56]

I have decided to use the copper for my needs.

I also am going to use a 3" copper coupling instead of the PVC fitting so many others use to make my hop bag for my brew pot. I assume it will also be safe for use in the brewing phase.

Salute!

 

[chs9]

**** man, I grew up in Ben Avon. Too bad I didn't start brewing until I moved to NM.

Good luck with the project.

 

[HoppyMaltPoet]

First time poster here. I've been looking at many of these posts on whether or not to use brass in my Mash Tun (which I have already built). I came across this information while researching:

http://standards.nsf.org/apps/group_public/download.php/1668/RFP 4191.pdf

I bought my parts at HomeDepot. Here is the description on the brass fittings:

* Easy Quarter-Turn Operation
* Meets NSF approved Low Lead Standards
* Regulates Water Flow in the Line From a Trickle to Wide Open
* Larger Flow Rates Than Stop Valves
* Fitting Name : Valve
* MFG Model # : 107-404HC
* MFG Part # : 107-404HC

It does state that they are using the NFS approved low lead standards.

Hope this helps. Made me feel a little better. The only thing that worried me was the following paragraph taken from that document:

"Non-leaded brasses can contain a variety of metals that may be released into finished drinking water including bismuth, selenium, copper, tin, zinc, nickel, antimony, and lead. These new brass alloys often contain higher levels of these metals to obtain the desired properties achieved by lead in the traditional brass alloys. While there are currently no US drinking water regulations for bismuth and tin, the elements of selenium, lead, copper, nickel, and zinc are all known to cause negative health consequences and therefore have Maximum Contaminant Level Goals (MCLGs) and Maximum Contaminant Levels (MCLs) as regulated by the USEPA. The potential of non-leaded brasses to leach metals into potable water has not been examined adequately. More research needs to be done in order to gain a better understanding of the leaching propensity of these alloys."

 

[RegionalChaos]

I have decided to use the copper for my needs.

I also am going to use a 3" copper coupling instead of the PVC fitting so many others use to make my hop bag for my brew pot. I assume it will also be safe for use in the brewing phase.

Salute!

Expect the copper coupling to get really hot. It might melt the hop bag..