Clean your SS boil kettle?

[Dan_K]

Okay, this may be a dumb question so the beginner's forum is the ideal place to post it. Do you scrub your Stainless Steel boil kettle sparkling clean?

A couple of my friends have 11 gallon stainless boil kettles, and they don't completely clean them, just rinse a couple times with water and dry them. They have developed "malt scum" on the bottom and the sides of the kettle. When I finally get my own SS kettle, I'll probably use B-brite or PBW and a moderately aggressive scotch-brite pad to clean mine each time.

I worked in a restaurant where we had some big stainless pieces, some of them got cleaned 2-3 times a day, 7 days a week and lasted years. What do you think- are you worried about scratching up your stainless, or do you clean it spotless each time?

Thanks.

 

[Redlantern]

Clean it!!!

 

[WrQth]

...with Barkeepers Friend every couple months depending on how often you brew and don't use a scotch bright pads ever on stainless even if the pad is stainless. Between deep cleanings just rinse and knock off any heavy material.

 

[invictusbrew]

I find a sponge and a scrub brush do the trick with a bit of PBW, but I wash mine everytime - including between batches on days that I make two.

 

[wilserbrewer]

BKF as needed with a sponge or cloth. No scotch brite as it will leave fine scratches. Every 5-10 batches you will get some residue that the bkf will remove easily. Also, I have found the powdered bkf superior to the liquid.

 

[Sourz4life]

Clean it. Making the wort is really the part that needs to be as sterile as possible. Although you boil and rid the bacteria there are still chances of something growing in there after and causing off flavors to your finished wort.

 

[unionrdr]

I keep a 1 gallon jug of PBW mixed up-1.5ozs in it. A little of that in the kettle, & a Dobie brand scrubber & it shines like new!

Shot of the Dobie scrubber. It cleans real well & won't scratch.

 

[Pariah3j]

I 'scrub' mine out with a Scotch Brite dish wand w/ the sponge on the end. Its not so much a scrub as it is wiping it down with the soapy sponge and getting rid of any gross food/wort particles that are left over.

 

[seatazzz]

I fill mine with hot soapy water in the bathtub (won't fit in the sink) and wash it out with just a sponge. If I get lazy and leave it for the next day, that's when the scrubbie comes out. But mine isn't SS, it's heavy gauge aluminum.

 

[dsaavedra]

I blast the big crud out of mine with the garden hose on jet setting, then I scrub the inside with clean water and a blue (non-scratch) Scotch Brite pad. Usually there is some scum stuck on the bottom in the shape of my burner, maybe some around the sides where the top of the wort was. This gets easily removed with Star San and the Scotch Brite pad. Anything acidic will take the scum off - BKF would work, I've even used vinegar before.

 

[Jim311]

Meh, I'm lazy. Not real scared of anything in the boil kettle contaminating stuff, because whatever survives is going to have to survive 210+ degree temperatures for over an hour. That's pretty effective at murdering bacteria. Now do I leave chunks of hops and junk stuck to the sides? No. But I don't worry about stains or little stuff. I certainly am not going to be scouring it with any abrasive pads or anything crazy like that. If it doesn't come off with soap and water or some PBW then it will probably stay there.

 

[ryanryates]

Agree with the others who use Barkeepers friend. This product works great on all my stainless. If I have some caked on mess, I will soak with PBW first. 95% of the time BKF gets the job done. Also, using BKF will passivate your SS which is a plus.

 

[jddevinn]

Blast clean and wipe dry most of the time. Always disassemble and clean valving, pumps, ect. Actually clean with BKF or PBW solution every 5 or so brews or about every other month..

 

[schematix]

PBW every brew day. A strong star san solution helps to get off the rest.

 

[kristiismean]

I do a very very light wash with bar keepers friend. every time. but never have to scrub hard at all to get it back to shiny. rinse well...

 

[PADave]

PBW and a sponge gets mine clean enough.

 

[PADave]

Clean it. Making the wort is really the part that needs to be as sterile as possible. Although you boil and rid the bacteria there are still chances of something growing in there after and causing off flavors to your finished wort.

I agree with the clean it statement, as I wouldn't use dirty dishes to cook dinner. But nothing is going to survive an hour of boiling. After flame out is when you have to worry about anything contacting the wort being sterile.

 

[NatureOfTheYeast]

I start with a hot OxiClean Free soak while I clean the rest of my equipment, then after I'm done I do a light scrubbing with a sponge and rinse well. There's always a little something left and heat coloration so afterwards I'll hit it with powdered Barkeeper's Friend and a blue scrubby. Rinse well again, wipe with a paper towel, then rinse one more time with RO water so I don't get water spots.

I used to use the green scrubby but people warned me away from doing that. I've always heard from John Palmer that you can use a green scotch brite pad on SS kettles. Of course, the pads gave my mirror finish kettle fine scratch lines and made it looked a bit "brushed", but I don't think it's hindered the performance of the kettle at all. What is the reasoning behind not using a green pad inside of the kettle, besides the fact that most of the time it's overkill?

 

[JONNYROTTEN]

2 years and all Ive ever done is wipe it down with a sponge and rinse good. Maybe Ill hit it with some BKF.

 

[wilserbrewer]

2 years and all Ive ever done is wipe it down with a sponge and rinse good. Maybe Ill hit it with some BKF.

Put on some sunglasses when you do....you'll be surprised.

Oh I remember what my kettle looked like when new lol

 

[CA_Mouse]

I rinse it out first, then PBW and hot tap water with a sea sponge and a good rinse afterwards. I use BKF on the exterior to keep it with a nice shine!

 

[logan3825]

Barkeeper's Friend is great stuff. It is by far the easiest and best way to clean a SS pot. Make the pot damp then throw the powdered stuff on there. Wait a bit then wipe it off. It will take practically anything right off with little actual work.

 

[Singletrack]

I'm unclear on the cleaning process. Could someone come over and clean mine to show me?

 

[wilserbrewer]

I'm unclear on the cleaning process. Could someone come over and clean mine to show me?

Just leave it on your front porch, I'll return it when I'm done.

 

[mabrungard]

There is no need to scour a kettle. It is part of the hot side process and there is NO way that anything in that kettle will spoil the resulting wort and beer. If the kettle looks clean, it is clean enough.

However I've found that after about 20 or 30 batches, the kettle surface will develop a "varnish" layer from the sugars. So you do need to give your kettle a deep cleaning every year or two to remove that layer. I'm not sure that it affects flavor, but it could. In between those deep cleanings, a light scrub to remove all trub is all you will need.

 

[Transamguy77]

However I've found that after about 20 or 30 batches, the kettle surface will develop a "varnish" layer from the sugars. So you do need to give your kettle a deep cleaning every year or two to remove that layer. I'm not sure that it affects flavor, but it could. In between those deep cleanings, a light scrub to remove all trub is all you will need.

Well after reading this thread I might clean out my kettle, it's been almost 3 years and I've never scrubbed it, just rinse and put away but I will say it has a nice "varnish" of brown and I did "try" to scrub it with a green scrubby but after 5 mins I decided that was too much work.

Why are you not supposed to use a scrubby on SS? I thought you just couldn't use a metal one like Brillo because the metal could impregnate into the stainless and cause it to rust.

 

[jddevinn]

There is no need to scour a kettle. It is part of the hot side process and there is NO way that anything in that kettle will spoil the resulting wort and beer. If the kettle looks clean, it is clean enough.

However I've found that after about 20 or 30 batches, the kettle surface will develop a "varnish" layer from the sugars. So you do need to give your kettle a deep cleaning every year or two to remove that layer. I'm not sure that it affects flavor, but it could. In between those deep cleanings, a light scrub to remove all trub is all you will need.

Be careful of solids stuck OUTSIDE the kettle though.... like in the body of the draining and whirlpool valves!

 

[MaryB]

I fill with water, heat it add PBW and let it soak overnight. Next day a pass with a paper towel takes off everything but the lines on the bottom from the burners discoloring the steel where it is a hot spot. Valves I rinse well with the HOT pbw solution at least 1o times. I take them apart every 5-6 brews to get the crud buildup out. The valve gets well over 145 degrees during the boil and that kills anything that may be living in it!

 

[unionrdr]

@ 142-145F, pasteurization/sanitation can take about 30 minutes. @ 160F, seconds. Seems to me our old neighbor from when I was a boy pasteurized his milk @ 142F or so. I watched him do it before.

 

[Sourz4life]

I agree with the clean it statement, as I wouldn't use dirty dishes to cook dinner. But nothing is going to survive an hour of boiling. After flame out is when you have to worry about anything contacting the wort being sterile.

I didn't mean there would be a problem with other bacteria getting in during boil. Just meant if you left a kettle uncleaned stored for a little bit you never know what can grow on it. The boil will obviously kill off anything but the problem I meant was the possible off flavors in your finished boil if there was something in your kettle prior. Pretty rare that those things happen but I like to be overly sterile.

 

[unionrdr]

Yeah, I'm a bit OCD about it too. I like to keep it shiny clean...

 

[brewbama]

pbw and a sponge gets mine clean enough.

+1

View attachment ImageUploadedByHome Brew1467471085.846272.jpg

 

[Dcpcooks]

+1 for PBW and no scrubbing. I take my chill water back to my mash tun, add PBW and then drain it into my kettle after the tun is cleaned. I'm not worried about sanitizing the hot side equipment at all. I do like to keep it clean however.

 

[Redlantern]

I just don't want to put my equipment away dirty. Does not need to look new or anything, but wash it anyway.

 

[kh54s10]

In 5 years I have used a cleaner once! I rinse and scrub it out with just water right after use. It gets almost all the crud out. I don't worry about the slight residue left. It adds flavor to the next batch.. 212F will take care of anything bad.