Primary fermentation in boiler?

Hi all, I've just completed my first full mash brew (an APA) using the BIAB method and a Peco boiler. I'm not expecting my first brew to be very good, as I think I made a few mistakes with temperature and sanitation, but I've learned some valuable lessons through those mistakes!

Anyway - I would like to use my Peco boiler as my primary fermentation vessel, seeing as it's got a tap and a hole in the lid perfect for an airlock. Is there any reason why I shouldn't do this? I'm not likely to want to put another brew on in the meantime - I don't get through my beer stash very quickly - so that's not a problem, and I figured it would reduce the likelihood of infection, as my fermentation barrel got mouldy recently. (I cleaned it, obviously, but I know other people who've lost brews due to infected barrels even after cleaning them up.)

Sure you can. The original Australian BIAB method was to go from grain to bottle in the same vessel.

That's a great idea! I also have one with a hole in the lid (that a airlock would fit) would save the hassle of potential infection when moving to the FV. May try that next time!

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IainM said:

Sure you can. The original Australian BIAB method was to go from grain to bottle in the same vessel.

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Thanks! My brew seems pretty happy in there... :-)

Thatsmyleg said:

Hi all, I've just completed my first full mash brew (an APA) using the BIAB method and a Peco boiler. I'm not expecting my first brew to be very good, as I think I made a few mistakes with temperature and sanitation, but I've learned some valuable lessons through those mistakes!

Anyway - I would like to use my Peco boiler as my primary fermentation vessel, seeing as it's got a tap and a hole in the lid perfect for an airlock. Is there any reason why I shouldn't do this? I'm not likely to want to put another brew on in the meantime - I don't get through my beer stash very quickly - so that's not a problem, and I figured it would reduce the likelihood of infection, as my fermentation barrel got mouldy recently. (I cleaned it, obviously, but I know other people who've lost brews due to infected barrels even after cleaning them up.)

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good bit of using the old noggin there lad :thumb:

What effect will those hops have on the final product?

Personally I would put it in a fv. But I like to give my boiler a good clean after use because I get mess everywhere.

I think my main concern with using a peco boiler in particular would be getting the crud off the element after you had finished fermenting. I do BIAB with a Burco boiler and it is sometimes a massive pain to get the deposits of the element and the Burco has a concealed element. I understand getting the Peco element clean can be a real nightmare and leaving crud on it can lead to cut outs. After two weeks in primary, I reckon the crud would be well and truly welded on.

I would also question how sanitary the boiler is after 60 minutes of boiling and half an hour of cooling. The wort with have splattered all around the rim of the boiler providing a great medium for bugs to grow on. Compared to a well cleaned and sanitised fermentation vessel I would have thought you were increasing your chance of infection.

Still I suspect you will get away with it and may continue to do so but it wouldn't be my prefered option.

Simonh82 said:

I think my main concern with using a peco boiler in particular would be getting the crud off the element after you had finished fermenting. I do BIAB with a Burco boiler and it is sometimes a massive pain to get the deposits of the element and the Burco has a concealed element. I understand getting the Peco element clean can be a real nightmare and leaving crud on it can lead to cut outs. After two weeks in primary, I reckon the crud would be well and truly welded on.

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I dont use a boiler but I understand a good way to get the cack of the element is to use citric acid in some water and let the boiler boil for a while. Sodium Percarbonte will probably work too

MyQul said:

I dont use a boiler but I understand a good way to get the cack of the element is to use citric acid in some water and let the boiler boil for a while. Sodium Percarbonte will probably work too

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I need to use a combination of sodium percarbonate to get the general sludge off and then white vinegar to dissolve the limescale. Even then it take a fair bit of elbow grease.

I'm really glad that I went for a boiler with a concealed element. The surface you are scrubbing is at least hard and flat. I wouldn't fancy getting into the nooks and crannies of an exposed element.

I agree with Simon

I am not sure I would want all that trub sat on the element for all that time especially since they can be volatile to getting build up on them.... you might well get away with it but I would prefer to transfer off from the hops and break into a separate vessel.

Plus it ties up your boiler in case you want it.

Thanks guys - tying up my boiler isn't really an issue, but if it could lead to problems with the element then perhaps I won't do it this way next time. I guess I'll see how much of a pain it is to clean the thing!

EDIT: Just found this thread on cleaning the element. Looks like I'll be needing some citric acid...

http://www.thehomebrewforum.co.uk/showthread.php?t=57878

Mould on your FV - you need to make sure you clean that thing to death before using to ferment.

Martybhoy1980 said:

Mould on your FV - you need to make sure you clean that thing to death before using to ferment.

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Definitely! :grin:

Thought people might like to know that I've just bottled my brew (a hoppy APA) after fermenting in the peco boiler, and the crud came off the element very easily - it just rinsed off! Am going to boil it with citric acid anyway, but I'm very pleased with that.

sounds like a job well done!

I would think that it would be best for any brew to leave it alone as much as possible so this might save time and effort and reduce the risk of complications