Brew pot???

Buying, building and using brewing equipment and apparatus. Product reviews and questions.

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jmooney
Posts: 3
Joined: Mon Aug 12, 2002 10:28 pm

Brew pot???

Post by jmooney »

I have a 20 qt SS pot that I use for extract batches in which I can boil three to four gallons of wort. I want to start all-grain batches and wanted to know if I can use an industrial grade aluminum 40 qt stock pot? Do I have to use stainless steel?
stumpwater
Double IPA
Double IPA
Posts: 109
Joined: Sun Feb 10, 2002 11:04 pm

I use aluminum....(good/bad/ugly)

Post by stumpwater »

GOOD= cheap, my 64 litre brew pot was $85 bucks Canadian (approx. 10 cents U.S.) and it has a thick enough wall that it boils my batches (46 litres output) with no scorching and it does it quickly over my 85,000 btu propane cooker.
BAD= aluminum is in a lot of our products. Before finally buying the aluminum cookwear I checked out a bunch of google searched websites on aluminum and alzheimer's. (by the way the official/unofficial result is that the test case data is too inconclusive to prove a correlation) It turns out that we digest 30-50 times more aluminum indirectly through our food in a day than you would get from cooking in aluminum cookwear. You can decide for yourself.
UGLY- yes my brew pot is getting ugly. The low ph of the brew process does have effects on the brewpot. I clean it immediately after brewing as it would be prone to pitting. I wish I had SS but can't afford the leap yet. Eventually I want a full 3 tier SS system with drains welded right to the pots. Here's a hint-I obsess on my hobbies.
For now-I brew good enough beer to make me smile.
Na Zdahroveh!
jmooney
Posts: 3
Joined: Mon Aug 12, 2002 10:28 pm

Brew pot...

Post by jmooney »

Do you ever experience any off flavors due to the aluminum pot?
dartedplus
Strong Ale
Strong Ale
Posts: 339
Joined: Sat Mar 17, 2001 11:33 pm
Location: Hummelstown, PA, US

Response to "off flavors"

Post by dartedplus »

I am sure that if stumpwater has only ever brewed in aluminum as I have then he would probably have a similar response, I wouldnt know an off flavor caused by the aluminum if it bit me in the #ss, since I've never used anything else. To me its all good....well, except for that one batch...but that wasnt the pots fault!!! Enjoy what you have and maybe it does taste better in SS, but I dont know.
Ed
jmooney
Posts: 3
Joined: Mon Aug 12, 2002 10:28 pm

Brew pot...

Post by jmooney »

Thanks guys. That makes me feel much better, especially when alum. is a whole lot cheaper than SS. I am glad to see there is people out there that doesn't mind giving a little advice or help from time to time. Once again thanks!!!
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