30 qt. Brew pot - What final vol should I shoot for?

[mychalg9]

I was looking over the pictorial for the "All grain brewing using Extract equipment" Sticky thread......Im curious if I should be shooting for a 5-gal. or 3-gal. final volume using a 30 qt pot. I'd be brewing something simple like an APA.

 

[user 21663]

You can do nearly a 5 gallon finished volume in a 30 qt kettle, but it has to be filled pretty much to the top. Get some Fermcap-S foam control, and watch over it with a spray bottle of water. If your boil off isn't too high, you should have enough for 5 gallons.

I estimate I had 7 gallons in the 7.5 gallon kettle. For a 90 minute boil, you'll most likely come in lower.

 

[wilserbrewer]

You can also "cheat" by slightly topping up or adding le last of the final runnings as you boil off during the boil. Not ideal, but a way to mitigate the small kettle curse.

 

[mychalg9]

Thanks for the tips so far!

 

[Jcmccoy]

I do 60 min boil's in my 30 qt pot and shoot for 6.5 starting vol, watch for boil over with spray bottle I end with 5.5 gal after colling.

 

[trub quaffer]

I do 60 min boil's in my 30 qt pot and shoot for 6.5 starting vol, watch for boil over with spray bottle I end with 5.5 gal after colling.

Exactly what I do except my new best friend Fermcap-S has allowed me to put away the spray bottle and relax when the boil begins.

 

[djspray]

I brew 5 gallon batches in a 30 qt pot on my stove all the time. Just keep an eye on it coming up to boil, I don't use fermcap.

 

[Jcmccoy]

Exactly what I do except my new best friend Fermcap-S has allowed me to put away the spray bottle and relax when the boil begins.

I don't know there is smothing fun about getting past the hot break :rockin:

 

[BrewBrain]

I used a 30 qt pot for a long time - 7 gallon boils. In fact, I've only used my new larger pot three times. It works fine if you pay attention and turn down the heat when needed. Can't say I never had a boil over, but did keep them to a minimum if I kept my eyes down.

 

[kuphish]

I easily end up with 5 gallons using my 7 gallon pot. Even 5.5 isn't out of the question because my boil-off rate is pretty low. I use fermcap-s, but it's not necessary if you watch it like a hawk.

If you have a high boil-off rate, you can do 2/3 in your 7 gallon pot and another 1/3 or so in your 5 gallon pot, then combine after a half hour or 45 minutes when you've boiled off enough. Just remember to split the hops accordingly.

 

[rico567]

Exactly what I do except my new best friend Fermcap-S has allowed me to put away the spray bottle and relax when the boil begins.

Ditto- I now do nothing but AG in a 30 qt. SS pot, 6.5 gal. boils, 5-6 drops of Fermcap-S in just as the boil starts. No problems.