Colorado Brewing Systems customers

[FizzerNoob]

I'm between the SS Brewtech and the Colorado Brewing Systems kettles. There is the obvious welded vs weldless fittings. I cannot find many reviews or photos of the Colorado kettles. Anyone here willing to share? Anyone with a false bottom?

SS Brewtech has some cool features (pickup tubes, volume measurements, silicone handles, really nice false bottoms...). They seem to have a more refined system created.

I have to get the kettles soon, so I can lay out my SS cart...

Thanks!!

 

[SpikeBrewing]

We think there's better options out there than those two...

 

[brick_haus]

I like my Spike kettle.

 

[FizzerNoob]

SS Brewtech it is! Thanks fellas.

 

[govner1]

I'll stick w/ my Update International kettles. I started w/ 8 gal HLT & Bk and have graduated to a 10 gal HLT & 15 gal BK. all weldless fittings & I couldn't be happier w/ the quality, durability, & performance.

 

[sandyeggoxj]

SS Brewtech it is! Thanks fellas.

Spike and one of his customers respond and you go with ssbrewtech? I've got nothing against them. But what is the point of asking if you just decide outside of the feedback????

 

[brick_haus]

With all respect to the OP. He was only asking for opinions of two different brands. Spike wasn't one.

 

[sandyeggoxj]

I suppose you are right. But what about your post sent him to ss brew tech? Seems arbitrary to me.

 

[jbb3]

In respect to the OPs question, I bought a Colorado Brewing custom BK. I filled out the form to show the locations where I wanted the welded fittings and faxed it to them. Then I called because I wasn't sure if the dimension I provided for the valve fitting was correct. They actually contacted Bobby at BrewHardware to get the dimension of the barbed elbow I planned to use for my dip tube.

The first kettle I received was not made to what I ordered. I contacted them and they welded up another kettle per my specs and shipped it right away. I received the kettle and I'm happy with it. You can't beat the price for a custom BK.

The kettle itself is a nice thickness. I can't stand those thin KBs like Bayou Classic. It appears to be the same or similar as the Concord kettle which are 1mm thick. I have one of those as well and very pleased with it.

 

[FizzerNoob]

Thanks for the feedback on the Colorado Brewing kettle!

 

[Bellybuster]

I have a Colorado System. I love it. I would not however recommend the legs be added. I thought they' do perfect but are just a pain in the ass.
The welds are exceptional, no weld less .... Yay

 

[Doctor_M]

I may be wrong but I believe the Colorado brewing systems stuff is welded in the USA....ss brewtech I'm pretty sure is made in China. That coupled with the fact that welded is better would make my decision easy...

 

[FizzerNoob]

Those are some valid points. Thanks for the input. I've had reservations as some of the welds I've seen in photos look as if they have voids in areas... Which defeats the idea of a sanitary weld. I may still consider the Colorado kettles however. The custom port locations are really valuable to me in the building of my brewery. Thanks again for the information.

 

[brew703]

The kettles from Colorado Brew Systems are from China. The welds are done in house. I asked Tim and that's the reply I received. I ordered a 10 gallon kettle with ball valve 2.5 weeks ago and it shipped yesterday.
Hoping everything is good.
The pots are a little thinner, 1.0 vs 1.2 I think but for the price I can live with that.

 

[Sconnie12]

If those are your two option then I'd go SS Brew (but that's just a standard pot with two holes punched in). Those welds are not very good. There isn't full penetration which caused voids. It's hard to tell but it doesn't look like it was back purged which will cause the area to by MUCH more prone to rusting.

 

[Bellybuster]

I can tell you first hand the welds from Colorado Brewing are just fine.
For those that care, they will also ship to Canada, the other will not and you have to go thru a CDN distributor. Quite a bit more expensive

 

[sandyeggoxj]

http://www.morebeer.com/products/brewbuilt-brewing-kettle.html

I haven't seen much talk about these kettles. They are pretty nice. I don't know much about them but I do know a guy who has them and likes them.

 

[enfox]

I have a Colorado System. I love it. I would not however recommend the legs be added. I thought they' do perfect but are just a pain in the ass.
The welds are exceptional, no weld less .... Yay

Can you elaborate on why you consider the legs a PITA?

 

[brew703]

If my kettle comes in with welds looking like the ones in the photo, it will be sent back. Those definitely do not look sanitary and differ from the welds that Spike Brewing shows in their photo's.

 

[davidgaines]

I'm going with a custom Colorado on my next go around. Sanitary fittings for the win!

 

[Bellybuster]

Can you elaborate on why you consider the legs a PITA?

I thought the image with the controller under the pot would be a good idea. Right up until I spilled on it. Not to mention the controller was way to low then.
Having the legs meant building a very low stand as well. Less room for storage and mounting of pump and chiller.

 

[Sconnie12]

I'm going with a custom Colorado on my next go around. Sanitary fittings for the win!

Did you see the above pics? Nothing sanitary about those fittings/welds....

 

[jekeane]

I'll chime in for Spike as a third option for you as well. I have a 3 vessel herms setup I purchased from them several months ago and I enjoy it.

 

[jbb3]

Did you see the above pics? Nothing sanitary about those fittings/welds....

There are 2 small voids in the welds. I wasn't happy about it at first but if you put it in perspective...

I'm not a commercial brewer that runs batches constantly nor do I need to be concerned with crawling inside a large vessel for cleaning. I'm a HB'er who brews 5 gal batches every 2 to 3 weeks. And it's pretty easy to reach inside of a 10 gal kettle with a brush and some cleaner before each batch.

If I had paid top dollar for the thing, I would have been pissed. But $160 shipped for a custom 10 gal two port BK is worth some compromise in my book. You have to decide for yourself if/what you're willing compromise and how much you're willing to pay...

 

[dmcman73]

I was between the Spike kettles and the Colorado. After seeing the welds on the Colorado's I went with the spike kettles and I'm really happy I did. There are no voids, pockets or any imperfections at all in the welds.

The cost between the custom Spike I got and the Colorado ones was that that far off, yes the spikes were a bit more expensive but I only want to buy the kettles once and not have to worry about it.

If people are happy with the welds on the Colorado kettles then that's great, being who I am, it would have driven me nuts.

 

[RonRock]

I'll stick w/ my Update International kettles. I started w/ 8 gal HLT & Bk and have graduated to a 10 gal HLT & 15 gal BK. all weldless fittings & I couldn't be happier w/ the quality, durability, & performance.

Where did you buy the Update International from?

 

[fosaisu]

Where did you buy the Update International from?

You might be able to find them cheaper, but they're relatively affordable on eBay:

$64 shipped for 40 quart (10 gallon)

$82.50 shipped for 60 quart (15 gallon)

[EDIT: Actually, if you're in the market for a thrifty aluminum pot this thread may have better pricing]

If you prefer stainless steel to aluminum, the Concord stainless pots are comparably priced, $65 for 40 quart and $90 for 60 quart, shipped.

FWIW, I brewed happily for several years with my 40 quart Update International aluminum pot, but when I stepped up to 20 gallons I went with a Concord stainless since the prices were similar and the kettle volume etching method described here evidently works much better with stainless.

 

[tagz]

Just curious how an "unsanitary" weld would hurt you on the hot side. Won't 212* ensure that its sanitary?

 

[govner1]

Where did you buy the Update International from?

You can find them on eBay, Amazon, etc. My LHBS has them at competitive prices.

 

[Bellybuster]

Just curious how an "unsanitary" weld would hurt you on the hot side. Won't 212* ensure that its sanitary?

absolutely correct... you can find hundreds if not thousands of threads with folks going on about welds. Actually, pictures of welds.
Look at weld-less fittings. They "are" a void. no issues other than occasional leaks.
As I said, I have a Colorado Brewing system and the welds are fine