Emergency - Mold on Kettle

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EamusCatuli

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So my shiny new 20 gallon kettle has a problem - mold.

I used it for the first time 2 weeks ago. I cleaned it afterwards, put the lid on and closed the closet door until today when I finally have time to brew. Lo and behold there was mold on the thermometer and ball valve. Crap.

I must use it, and was thinking that a half hour of straight boiling water would do the trick - along with some starsan so sanitize it afterwards.

Will this suffice?
 
Yeah, you need to totally disassemble your kettles and clean everyting after brewing. You get wort and or grain stuck in the fittings/ball valves and that's where the mold is growing. If you are using one piece ball valves, you need to run hot water or cleaner through them while opening and shutting the ball valve repeatedly. They get wort trapped behind the ball. I had the same thing happen to me after my first brew with my kettles. Next time I went to brew I had mold in my ball valves.

Just clean with hot water from the tap and give a spray or dunk in some star san. No need to boil for 1/2 hour.
 
Yeah, I wasnt too concerned since this is the piece of equipment that is constantly being boiled. But it sucks either way.
 
never leave the lid on your kettle. It traps moisture and you'll get mold every single time.

I always leave my lids off or cracked, and leave my ball valves 1/2 open to so there are no spots that are totally closed off from airflow.
 
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