So i purchased my Deluxe brew kit over the Christmas holidays and received it friday. I would have been cooking this weekend if I hadn’t been missing the most vital part, a kettle. So my step-dad calls me last night and tells me he knows where I can get a stainless steel pot really cheap. Long story short, he has an old keg that he told me that I could have. So I went last night and picked up the keg and sent it with a buddy/neighbor to work today to have the top cut out with a plasma cutter. I said all of that to say this…
What is the best way to go about cleaning this thing out and sanitizing it so that I could be ready to cook ASAP? Also, anyone on here have any pointers about cooking 5gl batches in a 15gl keggle?
what was in it? Old stale beer or was it empty? When you get it back take a look inside and see what it looks like. Hard to say what you need to do without knowing the condition. You could get away with just some PBW if it isn’t too bad. I used to use a 15 gallon keggle for my 5 ballon batches. No big suggestions other than the need for a valve and a false bottom/screen. What are you planning to use to transfer the wort from the keggle to the fermenter? Have you thought yet how to chill the keggle? Immersion chiller or plate chiller?
I’m pretty sure it was empty, or at least it felt empty when I went to pick it up last night. I haven’t thought about how I’m going to transfer yet and I’m glad you brought that up, I need to get my buddy to cut me a valve whole on the bottom for transfer from kettle → fermenter.
As far as the chiller, going to Lowe’s this afternoon to buy some copper and make an IC. Trying to do as much of the DIY stuff as I can, so that if something breaks I know I can easily fix it
one more question I just thought of… any suggestions on where to get and how to mount a thermometer to the side of the keg so I can keep a steady eye on the brew temps?
When I did my keg it was about half full with 10 year old beer, it smelled like vinegar. All I did was rinse it well with water a few times, then scrubbed with dish soap and warm water and rinsed really good a few times. I shouldn’t need sanitized after cleaning, it’s going to have boiling wort in it.
As for tips, plan on boiling off ~1 gallon per hour, so start with 6 gallons. It doesn’t really matter when you’re doing extract, you can always top off to 5 gallons if you boil more off, it’s nice to know your boil off rate though.
Thanks Glug. Looking forward to getting this started. I’m actually in the process at the moment of trying to collect 2 more kegs for my AG system when I get a few of the extract recipes under my belt. Always planning ahead though
[quote=“brewcephus”]trying to collect 2 more kegs for my AG system[/quote]Unless you’re wanting to build a tricked out HERMS or RIMS system I’d look in to batch sparging with a cooler http://hbd.org/cascade/dennybrew/
, cheap-n-easy. If you have a 36qt or larger cooler all you need is another pot to heat sparge water and it’s not really necessary, just makes it more convenient.
I have a aluminum pot and its very easy to clean; even if I leave it for a few days. For first time cleaning I would get PBW it works wonders on everything. Just rinse real well with hot water. Fill it with hot water and let it sit a hour or so to work in the crevasses. I have never noticed it but I hear PBW if you make it hot and rinse with cold water can leave scaling deposits on the service. I never sanitize my boil kettle. Boiling liquid will kill anything in there well under 60 minutes.
I have been told by several brewers that using aluminum is a very bad idea… anyone want to elaborate on that one?[/quote]
I use aluminum. What I’ve gathered from research/limited experience is it is fine as long as you follow a few basic rules:
Build up an oxidation layer- soak in water or just boil some water in it before using. The aluminum will get hazy. This is a good thing.
Don’t scrub it until it’s bright and shiny. You want to maintain the hazy oxidation layer.
(and this is shaky, but better safe than sorry)- beware of oxidizing cleansers like oxyclean/PBW. I just wash with mild dishsoap, without scrubbing, and rinse.
If money were no object, I’d definitely go stainless. But I have no concerns about aluminum.
Why? It oxidizes more easily which means certain cleaning chemicals cant be used. But like I said hot water and a sponge clean it in a minute. It is weaker but transfers heat better.
I’m still learning all I can. Hopefully I’ll be brewing soon, but for now I will just be lurking here and trying to soak up some knowledge so as to hopefully make some good brews for the people. and myself of course
You should listen to “The Brewing Network” shows. They helped me a lot. Education and inspiration wise. Can download them from their website or iTunes.
I have been told by several brewers that using aluminum is a very bad idea… anyone want to elaborate on that one?[/quote]
I use aluminum. What I’ve gathered from research/limited experience is it is fine as long as you follow a few basic rules:
Build up an oxidation layer- soak in water or just boil some water in it before using. The aluminum will get hazy. This is a good thing.
Don’t scrub it until it’s bright and shiny. You want to maintain the hazy oxidation layer.
(and this is shaky, but better safe than sorry)- beware of oxidizing cleansers like oxyclean/PBW. I just wash with mild dishsoap, without scrubbing, and rinse.
If money were no object, I’d definitely go stainless. But I have no concerns about aluminum.[/quote]
Welcome to the addiction that is home brewing :cheers:
+1 to all this. I use aluminum as well. No issues. People have mentioned concerns using aluminum, but there is no research to prove any of the myths. Lots of restaurants use aluminum pots. If it were an issue, they wouldn’t be allowed. Brew on!
