Full Boil on Stovetop?

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Talloak

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I am currently set up to do partial boils on my stove top. I have been doing partial mashes successfully - last brew was about 11lbs of grain and 3lbs of extract and was within 3 points of my OG. I have been using Deathbrewers method with my 5gal SS kettle and a co-workers 5gal SS kettle.

Anyway, I want to move to full boils to increase the quality of the beer I produce - hop utilization, etc. So I am going to buy a 8 gallon SS pot and make an immersion chiller myself. I would rather not have to use a turkey fryer as my garage is lame - no sink and full of landlords crap. Would rather keep the operation in the kitchen for now.

The Question: Has anyone had success boiling 6.5 gallons of wort on their natural gas stove top? I think mine is capable, but I can't be sure until I try obviously. Just trying to get a feel for peoples experiences with full boils on natural gas stove tops.
 
I was concerned about the exact same thing. Luckily, I have a fellow homebrewer close by that had a large pot that I could borrow and test. I got 7.5 (at least) gallons of water boiling using one of my gas stovetop burners. It took one hour to get there, but I got there. Good luck!
 
I just moved to an apartment with a gas stove. I manage to get my full boil going. It would probably help to insulate the pot.
 
I can do it, but I need to keep the lid on partially to keep a nice rolling boil going. I use a 'hop bag' I made (see below)

355888377.jpg


...with that on and the lid on top it leaves enough space for the steam to exit, but captures enough heat to get the full rolling boil (see below with lid on)

357479403.jpg


I still need to take the lid off every 10 minutes or so to shake off the condensated water so it doesn't drip back into the kettle.
 
I have no problem getting a 6.5 gallon strong boil with my propane stovetop. Natural gas should be slightly better than propane. I have the pot span a front and a rear burner. My main burner is 11,000 btu and the rear is somewhat less. When I used only one burner it was a weak boil, and aluminum foil insulation helped, but now I use both burners and don't insulate.
 
Was able to get 7.5 gallons in a aluminum pot to a boil in 45 minutes. Needed to have the big 10g pot on two burners though.
 
In my 32qt aluminum pot, I can't get anything more than 4.5 gallons to boil, and it's a pretty weak boil at that. This is with natural gas, even with it straddling two burners!

I'm going to insulate the pot before my next boil and run a test, hopefully that will help.
 
I can get a full boil of six gallons of tap-temperature water in about a hour on my stovetop. I have a Wolf pseudo-commercial-style range, though... I think the burners may be a bit larger than a typical stove.
 
When using my stovetop method, I can manage to get 6.5 gallons to a boil IF i do the following:

1. Once the mash is finished in the first pot, turn the heat to high and cover while you do your sparge.
2. Sparge at the exact moment your mash reaches the right temp and leave your heat on. Don't let it get too hot with the grains (monitor) but try to keep the heat under it.
3. Remove grains after 10 minutes or so, drain, and toss.
4. Remove original mash from heat and pour wort into boiling pot (don't burn yourself!)
5. Cover, heat on high, and keep a close eye on that pot to watch for boilover.

EDIT: Once it gets to a boil, I don't need to keep it covered. However, if you add extract it will stop the boil and it will be hard to get it back up again. I use this method for doing all-grain only. I usually do a partial boil (5 gallons max) for partial mashing, or I split between pots.
 
I learned a few tricks about going from feeble 4 gal boils to rolling, vigorous 6.5 gal boils on the stovetop. The link is in my signature.
 
I have two 5 gal. SS pots that I have wrapped in aluminiumized insulation (Thanks FlyGuy!) and a ceramic top stove. I can get 5 gal. of cold water to a boil in 45 mins.

I get full wort boils by running all of my wort into my bottling bucket, giving in a gentle stir, doing a few gravity readings, then laddling it equally into the pots. Inefficient, yes, but end quality makes it worthwhile. Then I separate the hops in two and combine the whole works into my primary once cooled.

I've got my all-grain days down to 4.5 to 5 hours. Being prepped and cleaning up as you go along helps. Works for me to the point where I now consider myself a confirmed all-grain brewer.

Cheers.
 
Well, you made me curious. I did a few tweaks to my gas range a while back, but never gave it a serious test. Just took my 30qt aluminum Bayou and put 6+ gallons in it. Went from just below 50 degrees to boiling in less than 55 minutes on one burner. So I guess I’ll need another test with a larger boil volume.

My 60qt pot won’t fit under the microwave hood, but I’m thinking about getting one of these 10 gallon aluminum pots for days when the weather is bad. For 22 bucks, can’t go wrong!

By the way, it’s a GE Profile gas range.
 
The 10g alum pot from Royal Palm just barel fits under the microwave hood with the lid on. Maybe an 1/8" of space in between.

I would definitely recommend taking a measurement to make sure it fits.
 
The 10g alum pot from Royal Palm just barel fits under the microwave hood with the lid on. Maybe an 1/8" of space in between.

I would definitely recommend taking a measurement to make sure it fits.
The website says it's 14 1/2" tall and I have a little over 17" between the grill and the microwave. I just placed the order, so I hope they are correct. Would you measure yours and let me know? If it's too tall maybe I can still stop the order.
 
I boil on my stove with my insulated AHS 8gal ss pot. It's a cheap apartment stove with small burners. but I have to:

I use the hottest water out of the tap to start with. Both for mash and sparge. It cuts 45-60 minutes off the brew day.

I cover the whole thing until it hits 210*.

I keep the cover 1/2 on the whole time.

I use two burners, and turn them up as far as I can go without burning the insulation.

hth.

B
 
Yes, I have the same concern. Just purchased a 10 gallon Blinchman and will be doing boils with about 6 gallons to start. I have a ceramic top stove and I am concerned that I might not be able to get that water boiling:confused:
 
The website says it's 14 1/2" tall and I have a little over 17" between the grill and the microwave. I just placed the order, so I hope they are correct. Would you measure yours and let me know? If it's too tall maybe I can still stop the order.

Mine measured just over 15 1/4" with the lid on. With the lid on the handle probably makes up that extra 3/4". I have about 15 1/2" space so it's a tight fit but it fits.
 
I can get 6.5 gallons boiling on my electic stove. No cover, insulation, and one burner.
 
Mine measured just over 15 1/4" with the lid on. With the lid on the handle probably makes up that extra 3/4". I have about 15 1/2" space so it's a tight fit but it fits.
Thanks. That eases my mind. And about the lid adding an extra ¾”, more useful information. For the test boil I mentioned above, I did use the lid to speed time to boil, but removed it once the boil began. At that point I was able to back the gas down a little and maintain a good rolling boil with the lid off.


I can get 6.5 gallons boiling on my electric stove. No cover, insulation, and one burner.
The OP is about gas, but you got my attention. What make, model (cost) electric stove is this? It might be of interest to someone redoing a kitchen.
 
The first (and only) time I tried this, most of the heat from the burner was reflected off of the bottom of the larger diameter pot and scorched the crap out of my stove top. If possible, you may want to try to elevate the pot a bit off the stove top or something... I know some type of canning equipment has been mentioned previously to accomplish this. Good luck!
 
i was able to boil 6.5 gallons also on my electric stove top. . . although the burners are now discolored from the heat, and one of the supporting prongs has bent inwards.

small price to pay, i say!:rockin:
 

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