tried oxidizing aluminum pot. .didnt work!

[shanek17]

Hey guys. I need your help as this is the first time i have tried oxidizing a aluminum pot. Ill explain, i bought a 5 gallon aluminum pot with a aluminum steamer insert and i used reverse osmosis water and filled the pot nearly to the top. i let it boil at high temperature like as hot as my stove can go and let it do that for almost 2 hours and kept checking on it and did not see any changes... There really looks like nothing has happened on the inside of the pot so im confused as to what happened? I heard it only takes 30 or 60 minutes to do this. Àlso the steamer insert scratched the inside of my pot when i tried pulling it out so im not sure if thats bad or not. Are scratches of big concern?

 

[kh54s10]

Unless there is some kind of coating on the metal I would bet that it did create and oxidation layer. It is just not as dark as you would expect.

For the scratches I would boil some more water. I would think about 10 - 15 minutes would suffice. Then boil some more for a test then cool it and take a taste. If it has no metallic taste you should be good to go.

I would not go to any great extent on the water - just use tap water - if your water is not terrible.

 

[frailn]

It will get darker the more you brew in it. Trust me, mine is super dark, but was super shiny at first. The layer is there, but gets darker over time.

 

[shanek17]

Well it was only 20 $ for 5 gallons so im asuming the pot is aluminum. But it does have stainless steel handles which is nice. I got it at XS cargo if anyones interested. Those are great points from both of you i will re heat it and taste test it. But wouldnt the water be tainted from oxidizing the aluminum siding? im still trying to grasp exactly what the oxidized barrier is. I just thought that with the first oxidizing treatment it might leach out some aluminum or something... And thanks for pointing out thst the darkness builds up over time. Its much appreciated.

 

[wolfman_48442]

Aluminum will oxidize immediately on contact with oxygen.
Pure aluminum oxide is pretty much colorless, the darkness everybody sees building up is impurities trapped in or under the oxide layer.
There's no worry about water being tainted, aluminum oxide is insoluble in water. It can indeed react with acidic wort, but wort is a weak acid - the reaction is minimal.

Bottom line, take your nice new pot, and make some beer with it!
Clean it gently (no abrasives) , and it will serve you well.

Wikipedia entry for more science-y stuff: Aluminum Oxide

 

[Zuljin]

Is a sticky if you aint read it yet
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f11/faq-aluminum-pots-boil-kettles-49449/

 

[feenaughty]

Most restaurants use aluminium stock pots and pans.will work just fine for beer

 

[shanek17]

Aluminum will oxidize immediately on contact with oxygen.
Pure aluminum oxide is pretty much colorless, the darkness everybody sees building up is impurities trapped in or under the oxide layer.
There's no worry about water being tainted, aluminum oxide is insoluble in water. It can indeed react with acidic wort, but wort is a weak acid - the reaction is minimal.

Bottom line, take your nice new pot, and make some beer with it!
Clean it gently (no abrasives) , and it will serve you well.

Wikipedia entry for more science-y stuff: Aluminum Oxide

Thanks wolf man, you the man! Im just gathering my equipment up and soon my first batch will be brewing!