Turkey fryer questions

So I got a new turkey fryer for our wedding and I should be pretty close to going all grain, and saving some cash. I have a few questions:

The brewpot is aluminum, I am suposed to do a full boil with just water before attempting to make beer correct?

Is it ok to fry a turkey in my new brew kettle?

Any idea of how many BTU the burner puts out? I couldnt find any info on the box. I got this one.

How safe is it to use one of these on a covered balcony, or am I better off hauling everything out to the parking lot everytime I brew?

I plan on buying a grain mill soon. I am looking for one that is drill powered and adjustable. Is there anything else that I should look out for?

I will also get a 10 gal cooler for use as a HLT, in the future the cooler will become a MLT. I already have a zapap MLT, and that will have to do for now. Is there anything else that I need before I go all grain? (I guess a scale and a CFC will be soon to come)

Thanks for any input

- magno

magno said:

So I got a new turkey fryer for our wedding and I should be pretty close to going all grain, and saving some cash. I have a few questions:

The brewpot is aluminum, I am suposed to do a full boil with just water before attempting to make beer correct?

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Can be a good for timing it, but not really needed. Boiling water is boiling water.

Is it ok to fry a turkey in my new brew kettle?

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I do. You have to wash the pot VERY well to get all the oils out before you brew with it.

How safe is it to use one of these on a covered balcony, or am I better off hauling everything out to the parking lot everytime I brew?

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Any well ventilated, stable location away from flammable stuff should do. You will want enough room to move around and for your stuff. I keep a fire extinguisher handy too.

Boiling water would clean it really well but otherwise uneccessary. I would certainly do that after using it for frying a turkey and before making beer in it to be sure to get all the oil out - even a small amount will kill the head on your beer.

Boiling it helps create the aluminum oxide coating, the black looking stuff on the inside of the pot. This prevents aluminum from leeching into your wort. I don't want to get into the whole AL vs SS debate. Personally, I use aluminum and am perfectly happy. But, because it doesn't hurt, I would definitely boil up some water first.

I agree with squirrels. I have a turkey fryer also and made tsure to boil a pot first. It makes a white coating so you know you are good to go. I also had some junk fall off into the pot that I know will not be in my beer!

Think about it this way: all you have to do is do a poor cleaning job - just once - and you've already exceeded the price of buying another kettle. Save the AL pot for turkeys and get a nice SS pot for beer. It's not worth losing $30+.

My wife was a little upset that I bought my starter kit so close to father's day, I do not blame her. So I told her I could use a pot to cook in. She will/is going out to Menard's to get me a 30 qt turkey frying kit. It does come with aluminum. I see there are mixed feelings on AL and SS. Should I have her take the kit back and buy a stainless? Also, what is this about boiling a pot of water first? Since I do not plan to cook any turkeys in it, just golden sweet beer.

I don't plan on frying anything in mine, but I am planning a shrimp boil.

Aluminum is just fine. Build up a passive oxide coating once before your first brew, and you are good to go. Most people who discourage aluminum are ones who haven't actually used an aluminum pot before, let alone had a problem with one. Lots of misinformation out there.

I use a SS keggle now, but I have used aluminum turkey fryer pots with good success. They actually have many advantages over SS, including:
- much better heat conductance (i.e., quicker boils, less scorching than SS)
- they are lighter and therefore a bit easier to handle
- they are far cheaper than SS

Just learn to take care of them properly. One big advantage of SS is that it is very easy to clean. But honestly, aluminum isn't much harder.

I borrowed a 48 qt Thick aluminum pot from my Aunt till I got my Keggles made. I had it for 6 months. Worked great.