Scorched Brew Kettle

[DrummerBoySeth]

I was wondering if anyone knows a good way to clean a scorched brew kettle. When I was boiling my most recent batch (a Belgian Tripel), a small amount of extract scorched, and is thoroughly glued to the bottom of my brew kettle. I have tried soaking the kettle overnight with extra-strong dishwater and a bleach-based chemical cleaner. Neither one has given very good results. The bottom of the pan still has an area of burned extract/wort stuck to it. Does anyone know a good way to get rid of this mess?

By the way, the beer seems to have turned out fine... NO burnt flavor, but maybe some slight darkening due to Maillard reactions, so I am fairly certain that the brew survived relatively unhurt!

Any ideas how to save that pan, or do I just need to bite the bullet and buy a new one?

 

[TwoGunz]

I'd soak it in OxyClean and then use a little bar keepers friend on it gently

 

[notjustgc]

Get yourself some PBW, follow the directions (especially regarding temperature), and be amazed. You probably won't even need to scrub.

 

[Alucard1983]

Water and a lot of Baking soda. boils and it will come off the baking soda will act as a scouring agent and the water moving will move the baking soda. I use to be a chef and that is what we did with a lot of burned pans. Another thing if is it loosing it up is to go to a craft store and add sprinkle of clean sand to the water and baking soda

 

[djelemenohpee]

I agree with notjustgc. get yourself some PBW. I just bought a couple used, and uncleaned carboys and a 9 gallon very used pot with spigot. PBW did the trick, but just make sure your follow the directions for quantity and temperature.

 

[tonyc318]

I'd soak it in OxyClean and then use a little bar keepers friend on it gently

+1 this worked for me

 

[DeafSmith]

OxiClean or PBW first to remove the organic debris, then Bar Keepers Friend to remove mineral deposits/beerstone. If your kettle is stainless steel, DO NOT use bleach-based cleansers or anything with chlorine in it! And don't scrub it with steel wool either.

 

[DrummerBoySeth]

Water and a lot of Baking soda. boils and it will come off the baking soda will act as a scouring agent and the water moving will move the baking soda. I use to be a chef and that is what we did with a lot of burned pans. Another thing if is it loosing it up is to go to a craft store and add sprinkle of clean sand to the water and baking soda

Thanks for the advice. I tried the water/baking soda method. Added enough water to cover the bottom of the kettle with 1 inch of water. I then added about 1/2 box baking soda to the water. When I brought it to a boil, large chunks of char started floating to the top of the water almost immediately. After only 3 minutes of boiling there was no charred residue left at all. It was amazing. I tried everything short of sandpaper with no luck, but the baking soda took that stuff off like it was nothing!

 

[texwake]

I used CLR one time and let it soak for while. It worked pretty well.

 

[caiafa]

I found that a caustic solution cleans burnt deposits rather well (10-20% NaOH). I have a spray bottle filled with it and it's very useful while cleaning the stove. Careful with the hands and and especially eyes tho.