Turkey Fryer?

[Will_the-new-brewer]

7.5g Turkey fryer large enough for 5g AG recipes?

Secondly...is the aluminum pot that come with them okay to brew beer in?

 

[Packerjh]

I've been using one just fine for five gallon batches...still do if I brew an extract batch...use a mash and boil for my AG batches.

Have fun and drink on!

 

[RPh_Guy]

Should be fine.
FWIW I use this. Works great.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0009JXYQ4/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20

 

[RM-MN]

It can work but it can be pretty tight on room, depending on how much you boil off. You may be starting the boil with the wort close to the top and it is very easy to boil over then.

 

[Manufacturedevolution]

The aluminum pot is fine. Just make sure to fill it up with water and boil it first.

 

[Tribe Fan]

I use a 8 gallon one for brew in a bag and size my recipes for 4.5 gallons. 5 is possible but I think cuts it too tight. I generally get 4 gal into the fermenter and wind up with 3.5 to bottle.

If I wanted to consistently get 5.5 gallons into the fermenter, I would use a 10 gal pot.

 

[RPh_Guy]

Oops, I didn't realize you were asking about the kettle size, not just the burner.

7.5 gal works, but larger is better for sure.
I have an 8.5 gal kettle and I've made 6 gal batches in it easily with 1.25 gal boil off over 60 min. To prevent boil over I use FermCap-S and gentle hop additions.
It gets tight if you increase the boil time.

 

[GPP33]

For a 5 gal batch I make 6 to account for trub loss and get 2 gal boil off so I start with 8. If I were using a smaller pot I’d start with a smaller volume and then add the extra water at the end of the boil to get the volume/OG correct. Ferm cap will most certainly be necessary, though probably still not enough, have some cool water in a spray bottle and be ready to stand there tending to boil overs.

 

[ABI Brewery]

That is what I started all grain with, the burned is under powered but will work fine, but like RM-MN said it is tight on room so like GPP33 stated, ferm cap will be your friend....................cheers

 

[Morrey]

7.5g Turkey fryer large enough for 5g AG recipes?

Secondly...is the aluminum pot that come with them okay to brew beer in?

I think aluminum is fine...note aluminum will develop a protective coating when used so leave that and don't try to scrub the pot shiny like new. Most turkey fryer burners will have plenty of BTU's. Lots of brewers start with this setup including me.

A 5G batch requires (typically) around 7G of wort in the kettle to account for boil off plus you want some extra to allow for yeast cake and trub to settle off in the fermenter. Most folks try for at least 5.5G into fermenter.

Are you by chance doing or planning to do BIAB? In this case, you may want to reconsider the kettle size (if you haven't bought already) so you'll have room to add in the grains. You can always do mashes less than full volume and add top off water although many folks suggest full volume mashes give the best results.

A rule of thumb is that your kettle size is ideally twice the volume as your batch size.

 

[S-Met]

Kettle dimensions are jut as critical as volume capacity. A short-wide kettle has a higher boil-off rate than a tall-narrow. I think there is a formula that someone could share that estimates what you could expect. For a 5 gal batch, many suggest an 11 gal kettle, especially for biab full volume boil. Also plan for 5.5-6gal in the fermenter for 5 gal in the keg.

And many turkey fryers have a built-in 15min timer as a safety features. I'm not sure how easy it is to bypass. But many opt for a burner without that feature.

 

[Chris Honey]

I’m new to brewing as well and found an aliuninim pot online. Will that be okay? It’s 42quarts. Will this be okay or go with stainless steel?

https://www.academy.com/shop/pdp/ou...uminum-pot-with-strainer#repChildCatid=230401

 

[RM-MN]

I’m new to brewing as well and found an aliuninim pot online. Will that be okay? It’s 42quarts. Will this be okay or go with stainless steel?

https://www.academy.com/shop/pdp/ou...uminum-pot-with-strainer#repChildCatid=230401

Aluminum pots will be fine. Before you do your first brew in it, fill it with water and bring it to a boil. This will create a dull looking finish to the inside. Don't scrub this off as it prevents the aluminum from being dissolved into your beer which can give you a metallic flavor.