Brew Kettles

[roggae]

so i have decided that its time to get a new brewkettle. i saw brew-4-less in the back of my BYO mag and checked them out online (www.brew-4-less.com). they look good, but the $20 S+H in my own state is kinda rough. i was wondering if anyone had any suggestions/concerns/comments for me about brew kettles. looking for 7+ GALs. Anyone selling anything? i use a normal turkey fryer butane burner and as of now i use 2 5 gal stainless steel kettles.....

thanks

[HogieWan]

you can setup a converted keg for less than that. kegs.com will sell you a cleaned keg with the top already cut off for ~$60. Add a ball valve and you're set (you don't need a thermo on a boil kettle)

[corkybstewart]

Call a beer distributor and see if they have any old kegs. I cut the lid out of mine with a Dremel and about 15 cutting discs in less than an hour.
Something about that price on that kettle makes me wonder. The thermometer is about $30, the ball valve $10-15, that leaves the price of the kettle at $55. That's awfully low for a high quality stainless pot, but maybe they make their money with sales volume.
There is no need for a thermometer unless you live on a mountain top and need to adjust boiling times for difference in boiling temp. But that's another thread.

[Otis_The_Drunk]

you could also look in scrap metal yards, I had Boerne Brew check in the scrap yards near him and he picked up a really nice one for $30.
I had a welding shop use a plasma cutter to cut the top out in about 3 minutes.

[corkybstewart]

And a keg is pretty heavy duty, you'll never wear it out.
It's good for Boerne to scrounging junkyards, but it's still rattlesnake season down here until tomorrow so I wouldn't be doing it.

[Otis_The_Drunk]

I hear you, I just got the top cut out of mine about a 1/2 hour ago. Now I just have to clean it out.... The drawback to all of this is that the inside of the keg smells horrid, but I'm taking care of that as we speak.

[roggae]

Originally posted by HogieWan
you can setup a converted keg for less than that. kegs.com will sell you a cleaned keg with the top already cut off for ~$60. Add a ball valve and you're set (you don't need a thermo on a boil kettle)

i really don't see anything near 60 bones on www.kegs.com

[roggae]

so i see that the kegs seem to be the way to go, but i think that might just be too big. i don't see doing anything over an actual 5 gal batch for a while. thanks for the input, i'll ask around about the keg situation.....

[dparsons]

The kettle doesn't look to be good quality stainless. I'd bet its thin, has a seam, and the base is only marginally thicker than the sides. The sellers ebay site says he is out until late January anyway.

[HogieWan]

For a 5 gal batch, I start the boil with 7.5 gallons. This leaves half of the keg to deal with foam and nearly eliminate boilovers.


roggae - this setup (http://www.kegs.com/buildyourown.html) used to be $59 about a year ago - I don't know what happened

[Otis_The_Drunk]

dparsons, do you have a scrap metal yard anywhere around you?
You can pick one up for next to nothing there.
Beofre you deside which one your going to take home, just check it over good. Make sure that there aren't any holes drilled on the sides or bottom.

[Quin]

This guy is in Glenshaw, PA. $78 for a keg with the top cut off

http://cgi.ebay.com/homebrewing-keg-kettle_W0QQitemZ290056342043QQihZ019QQcategoryZ381 72QQtcZphotoQQcmdZViewItem

[roggae]

thanks everyone! great help!

[mucksp]

Originally posted by dparsons
The kettle doesn't look to be good quality stainless. I'd bet its thin, has a seam, and the base is only marginally thicker than the sides. The sellers ebay site says he is out until late January anyway.

I actually got one of the brewpots from brew-4-less on ebay and am going to use it for the first time tomorrow. dparsons is right that it's thin and the base is marginally thicker than the sides. I was disappointed when it arrived and I saw the thickness compared to my 5 gallon pot. But, living in an apartment and desiring to do a full boil on a stovetop (yup, takes quite a while, but that means more time to enjoy a few beers while waiting), I found it to be a good choice without breaking the bank.

[MrNate]

My kettles are thin & cheap stainless, but they only cost about $35 each.

They were easy to drill, I don't have scorching issues, and I'm sure they'll last until I decide to move up to 10 gal batches. Oh, and no seam.

I originally planned on doing stovetop boils, but had to move it out to the garage because the kitchen stove was too weak. If I hadn't already ported the stainless kettles, I would have returned them and used the aluminum turkey fryer pots.

I don't think there's anything wrong with cheap kettles is my point.

[syoung34]

I just bought this one from Williams Brewing. Looks like they have the same one at Morebeer.com as well, but they seem to be out of stock most of the time. (Thats why I went to Williams).

kettle (http://www.williamsbrewing.com/32_QT_PROFESSIONAL_POT_P1195C50.cfm)

I have made three batches with this pot, and it is great. 18/8 stainless steel, thick sides and bottom with the sandwiched aluminum plate. Handles are riveted and welded. The lid is strong and fits perfectly. The low height, wide diameter size even fits under my microwave above the kitchen stove. It is even NSF rated for professional use.

[rhapsody369]

What is the advantage of brewing a 5gal batch using all 5gal in the boil? I currently make my wort with 1-2gal and add the rest of the H2O into the bucket before pitching the yeast. I used 3.5gal once in a boil and it took forever to cool, ice bath and all.

[dparsons]

Advantages:
1) Better hop utilization - chemistry works a little differently with the lower sugar concentration
2) Since the wort isn't over-thick you have less chance of scorching and you get less color change (maillard reaction).
3) Less chance of infection since all the water gets boiled.

The bottom line is beer that is a little better. How much? I don't know I've never done reduced volume boils.



Thinner pots and small volume boils are economic choices. They work, they do the job and still produce beer that is quite good. The better pots (mine looks just like yours syoung) do a little better job. Is it worth the extra $. Everybody decides for themselves.

[mortong]

Originally posted by dparsons

The bottom line is beer that is a little better. How much? I don't know I've never done reduced volume boils.


It's definately noticable. It will never replace learning the basics of brewing, but since I switched, my batches are a lot closer to on target with regards to bitterness, color and gravity. I can't believe I ever did partial boils.

[OKBrew]

Originally posted by syoung34
I just bought this one from Williams Brewing. Looks like they have the same one at Morebeer.com as well, but they seem to be out of stock most of the time. (Thats why I went to Williams).


That's the kettle I have. Great deal for the money. That thick bottom pretty much cures scorching. I put a no-weld Brewmometer in mine.

[corkybstewart]

Originally posted by OKBrew
That's the kettle I have. Great deal for the money. That thick bottom pretty much cures scorching. I put a no-weld Brewmometer in mine.

Just out of curiosity, why did you put a thermometer in a boiling kettle? I have them in my mash tun and HLT but I never saw a need for in in the kettle.

[OKBrew]

I'm an extract dude...gotta steep my grains.

[corkybstewart]

That makes sense.

[dparsons]

His mash tun is his boil kettle.

[Mad Scientist]

Originally posted by corkybstewart
And a keg is pretty heavy duty, you'll never wear it out.
It's good for Boerne to scrounging junkyards, but it's still rattlesnake season down here until tomorrow so I wouldn't be doing it.

One reason why I wear steel toe boots.

I noted that there were at least ten kegs there, including a smaller Paulaner keg (I'll bet someone is pissed about that), and a couple of old school bud kegs with the bung in the side.

Just remember if you go the keg route, make sure you buy it legally, and wear eye and ear protection if you do the cutting yourself.

I noted that every keg in that yard had a 3/8" holed drilled in it, so no brewery would ever want it back, if anyone is concerned about that route.