Why i hate aluminum boiling pots

[Gordzilla]

Used my alluminum kettler today did a partial boil with 3.5gal of water. Found two things out today 3.5gal of water takes FOREVER to come to a boil, and 2nd unlike my stainless kettle the handles of the alluminum pot are extreamly hot just ask my hands they hurt right now...bitching and moaning done back to brewing my beer cant stop now

 

[lumpher]

my old aluminum pot i used for sparge water a long time ago got holes burned in the bottom where the propane flame came out

 

[twd000]

aluminum has over 10x the thermal conductivity of stainless, so it should boil faster in an aluminum kettle

 

[Runyanka]

aluminum has over 10x the thermal conductivity of stainless, so it should boil faster in an aluminum kettle

+1 mine always come to a boil faster in aluminium

 

[lumpher]

it boils faster, and burns a hole through it faster. strictly keggles here

 

[Gordzilla]

maybe it seemed slower because im used to only doing a 2gal partial bowl...i used the alluminum kettle today because i was doing a barleywine and i heard if you do a partial bowl with more water it gives you better tastes out of everything. Also since the barleywine took so much LME 13lbs that also probably effected the boil time also

 

[jbrookeiv]

it boils faster, and burns a hole through it faster. strictly keggles here

What kind of burner were you using that burned a hole through your kettle? I use a ~185,000 BTU SP-10 burner and a 60qt Blinkmann aluminum pot with no issues.

 

[weirdboy]

How do you burn a hole in aluminum?

I have aluminum pots that I have been using for YEARS. I mean I cannot imagine the amount of heat necessary to do something like that.

EDIT:

I see some other people who have complained about burning holes in their pots. They left an empty pot on there with the heat on full blast. So...don't do that.

 

[Runyanka]

What kind of burner were you using that burned a hole through your kettle? I use a ~185,000 BTU SP-10 burner and a 60qt Blinkmann aluminum pot with no issues.

+1 unless you have your air/gas mixture WAY off.

 

[jbrookeiv]

EDIT:

I see some other people who have complained about burning holes in their pots. They left an empty pot on there with the heat on full blast. So...don't do that.

Sounds like user error, nothing to do with aluminum.

 

[Inodoro_Pereyra]

it boils faster, and burns a hole through it faster. strictly keggles here

Actually, not at all. Being that aluminum is, as it's been said before, an excellent thermal conductor, an aluminum pot will stay pretty close to the temperature of the liquid being boiled in it, regardless of how much heat you apply. So, being that the boiling temperature of water is 212*F, and the melting temperature of aluminum is 1220*F, it's a physical impossibility to burn a hole trough a pot, as long as you keep water in it.

And to blame the pot just because you didn't check the water level is... well...

 

[jbrookeiv]

And to blame the pot just because you didn't check the water level is... well...

User error?

 

[SwampassJ]

What kind of burner were you using that burned a hole through your kettle? I use a ~185,000 BTU SP-10 burner and a 60qt Blinkmann aluminum pot with no issues.

Same pot and same burner, if you're melting aluminum you have some bad quality or empty pots.

 

[bja]

my old aluminum pot i used for sparge water a long time ago got holes burned in the bottom where the propane flame came out

Like others have said, that's impossible if there was water in it. Now are you going to tell us what really happened?

 

[Inodoro_Pereyra]

Quote:
Originally Posted by Inodoro_Pereyra
And to blame the pot just because you didn't check the water level is... well...

User error?

Hmmm...not checking the water level, maybe.

But not taking responsibility for one's mistakes... I have other names for it.

 

[Dawgs47]

I would guess it was cleaning chemicals left in the pot, which would eat through Al.

 

[Conan]

I burned through a cheap, $40 turkey fryer pot on the turkey fryer stand/ propane burner. That said, it happened because it was cold out and we didn't watch it closely enough. Boiled essentially dry, and burned right through the bottom of the kettle. Nasty mess- 30qts. of syrupy tar all bubbled up. Kyle

 

[bja]

I burned through a cheap, $40 turkey fryer pot on the turkey fryer stand/ propane burner. That said, it happened because it was cold out and we didn't watch it closely enough. Boiled essentially dry, and burned right through the bottom of the kettle. Nasty mess- 30qts. of syrupy tar all bubbled up. Kyle

What happened? Did you go to bed while boiling then come back to check on it in the morning?

 

[scottland]

If you think you can burn a through an aluminum pot with a propane burner:

Next time you're camping, take a styrofoam or plastic cup, fill it with water, and place it right in the middle of your camp fire. You'll notice the plastic doesn't melt. the fire is probably 800*+, but the plastic or styrofoam doesn't melt. That's because until the water evaporates, it keeps the temperature of the cup below it's melting point.

An aluminum pot with liquid in it won't melt. Not with any heat source we use.

 

[azscoob]

Used my alluminum kettler today did a partial boil with 3.5gal of water. Found two things out today 3.5gal of water takes FOREVER to come to a boil, and 2nd unlike my stainless kettle the handles of the alluminum pot are extreamly hot just ask my hands they hurt right now...bitching and moaning done back to brewing my beer cant stop now

My thought is why you would grab a hot pot without oven mitts or gloves? I learned that when I was like 3 years old. just sayin...

 

[bovineblitz]

How do you burn a hole in aluminum?

I have aluminum pots that I have been using for YEARS. I mean I cannot imagine the amount of heat necessary to do something like that.

EDIT:

I see some other people who have complained about burning holes in their pots. They left an empty pot on there with the heat on full blast. So...don't do that.

Well that's just stupid. You can ruin any pot (except maybe cast iron) by doing that... the heat needs somewhere to go that's not the pot, burners get way hotter than 212 degrees

 

[GilaMinumBeer]

So wait, we have TWO "Dumb Move of the Day" threads?

 

[SwampassJ]

My thought is why you would grab a hot pot without oven mitts or gloves? I learned that when I was like 3 years old. just sayin...

That's what these babies are for.

 

[Gordzilla]

my point exactly i was a dumb a**, ive always grabed my stainless kettle without gloves the handles dont get hot guess i just thought my alluminum wouldnt get hot either

 

[dorklord]

Whether the handles will get hot or not is more a function of the pot design, amount of liquid, and whatnot than of pot material.

For example, my stainless POS pot, the handles don't usually get hot, but if the level of the liquid in the pot is a little bit higher than the level of the handles (so I've got like 4-4.5 gallons in the pot), they'll get hot.

Same with my 'standard' kitchen pot.

 

[Golddiggie]

my point exactly i was a dumb a**, ive always grabed my stainless kettle without gloves the handles dont get hot guess i just thought my alluminum wouldnt get hot either

How little are you putting in the SS pot?? Anytime I use mine, I need to use pot holders to grab the handles, at least until what's inside it has COOLED DOWN... So, if we're talking hot wort, pot holders until the IC has cooled it down. If we're talking about mash/sparge water, I still use pot holders.

I hope to be able to use my 32 quart aluminum kettle within a few more weeks to make a 5 gallon batch. We popped the cherry on my 60 quart aluminum kettle this past weekend... Was nice to use it for a 10 gallon batch. Having the ball valve installed made it much easier to get the wort out. Just need to make a measure stick for it, for the 8-14 gallon range. That way, we'll know where we're at for volume. Will do that before I use it again. I pretty much have that already for my 8 gallon kettle...

 

[Keith_Mahoney]

That's what these babies are for.

Yeah I have a pair of those, but you wouldn't believe the amount of times I have reached into my Komodo grill to pull off some metal utensil that has been sitting on it absorbing heat for who knows how long with my bare hands.

I don't get. I am really dense when it comes to grabbing hot things and I earn my living as a firefighter. Maybe it's wearing the turnout gear all the time that makes my sub-conscience think I can just grab something hot if it's only for a second and I'll be fine.

 

[SwampassJ]

Yeah I have a pair of those, but you wouldn't believe the amount of times I have reached into my Komodo grill to pull off some metal utensil that has been sitting on it absorbing heat for who knows how long with my bare hands.

I don't get. I am really dense when it comes to grabbing hot things and I earn my living as a firefighter. Maybe it's wearing the turnout gear all the time that makes my sub-conscience think I can just grab something hot if it's only for a second and I'll be fine.

I've done the same thing several times with the meat probe. I'll go "Hey that's not pushed in far enough" after it's already been on for a few hours and I'll hit it with my bare thumb. The only down side to those gloves is if you grab something really hot for too long they will cook your hand after you put whatever it is down.

 

[bovineblitz]

If you have "chef hands" you can quickly grab hot stuff and be okay... it kinda takes experience. I used to handle a lot of dry ice and -80*C stuff so I got pretty good at it... the real issue is when you just completely forget that something is hot and grab it like normal. I burned myself slightly on an aluminum pot the first time I used one as well, usually I can handle the SS's heat but aluminum is sooo much hotter.

 

[Gordzilla]

i usally do a partial boil in my stainless kettle, roughly 2.5gal then add 2.5gal of cold water after the wort has chilled