My first kettle

[bikesandbeer]

Hi. I'm looking to get into all grain brewing and I'm struggling with all the choices of brew kettle.
Being a Yorkshireman, I want to spend as little as possible but also want to buy sommat decent.

I've been looking at these two recently. Other than the false bottom, can someone explain the price difference?
Is it purely down to the kettle thickness?
And is this really an issue I should be concerned with?

Or do I just need a plain s/s stockpot, without the tap etc?

https://www.the-home-brew-shop.co.u...er-with-Tap-Hop-Strainer-and-Thermometer.html

https://www.the-home-brew-shop.co.uk/acatalog/30-ltr-Gas-Boiler-False-Bottom-The-home-Brew-Shop.html

Alternatively, if you could suggest any others I should be looking at, it would be really appreciated.

 

[Bigcol49]

'Ow do!
The cheaper one is self-assembly and may be cosmetically less than perfect (dings, scratches etc).
The more expensive will be better value in the long run.
I would advise you to look at bigger pots - you'll be boiling about 25 litres of wort and more - it'll be touch and go whether the wort stays in the boiler!
You can get a 56 litre pot, the same thickness as the £120 one, self-assembly, for the same price.

 

[Scaggs]

Also a Yorkshireman, and being new to all grain, I've been thinking about the same thing. I spotted this at the Hop Shop:

https://www.home-brew-hopshop.co.uk...uty-stainless-steel.html#/130-volume-50_litre

Would this be suitable for BIAB and how many litres of beer could I do with this?

Hope I'm not hyjacking your thread bikesandbeer

 

[foxbat]

Wall thickness isn't really an issue worth paying for in a boiler. Size is though. You can get a 20 litre BIAB brew out of the 30 litre pot if you keep your losses under control. I used to get at least that out of my old Peco. It was close to the top at the start of the boil after thermal expansion added a litre to the volume.

If you go for bigger, and its probably worth it, then make sure that you choose an immersion chiller with a long 'neck' so it reaches all the way down into the wort.

 

[Scaggs]

Is there a particular reason to chill the wort foxbat? Would there be any problem leaving it overnight in an airtight bucket? I don't fancy having water hoses strewn across the kitchen floor.

 

[Bigcol49]

Hi @Scaggs
25 litre UN water containers are good for no-chill brewing.
I believe that @MyQul simply covers the boil kettle and leaves overnight.

 

[MyQul]

Hi @Scaggs
25 litre UN water containers are good for no-chill brewing.
I believe that @MyQul simply covers the boil kettle and leaves overnight.

Not quite. What I do is jug the bnear boiling wort (after first passing it through a seive to remove the hops) into small 5L FVs then cover them with cling film held on with an elastic band. The following day I then decant the now cool wort off the break material into another clean and sanitised FV, leaving the break protiens behind (so their much less trub, it also areates the wort as I do it from a bit of a height). Then pitch the yeast

 

[Henders]

How much volume do you roughly lose when leaving behind the cold break @MyQul? So far I've poured from my 10L UN containers into FV with abandon! But especially in my 5L demijohns I noticed a lot of material at the bottom.

 

[foxbat]

Is there a particular reason to chill the wort foxbat? Would there be any problem leaving it overnight in an airtight bucket? I don't fancy having water hoses strewn across the kitchen floor.

That's called 'no-chill' and quite a few people do it, particularly in areas of water scarcity such as Australia. It saves water and equipment at the expense of elevated risk (but by no means a certainty) of infection. The other reasons for a quick chill are well explained by John Palmer in How to Brew.

 

[MyQul]

How much volume do you roughly lose when leaving behind the cold break @MyQul? So far I've poured from my 10L UN containers into FV with abandon! But especially in my 5L demijohns I noticed a lot of material at the bottom.

I normally lose 2L for a 10L brew (20%) . Which is a lot, so here's what I do: For my usual 10L brew I actually use a 12L grain bill but only make it up to 10L. So Im making a slightly concentated wort. When the wort is cool the next day, I then decant the wort off the break material (losing the 2L). However because the wort is concentrated I then liquor back those 2L and recover the lost volume in the FV. Giving me a final volume of 10L. Once fermented, there's usually only a 1cm or so layer of yeast and I will lose about 500ml of beer to this from the 10L

I also skim the hot break to reduce the break material in the no-chill FV's