Best Brew Boiler?

[Fents]

Yo what up guys.

New to this forum but not new to the homebrew - Been brewing now for 2 years but only used pre made worts (coopers, morgans, esb etc). Now stepping things up a bit wanna do mash etc.

So what does everyone use for cooking? I want to do double batches (40-46 Litres) as i have 2 kegs and a 50Lt fermenter - and my mates and myself just drink too fast to keep up with single batch brews. :beerpigs:

Anyways so can i get everyones opion on the best cooking option?

My other mate used an old keg with gas flame - not so keen as i want to cook outside and i remember the wind being a problem...

I've priced a 50 or 70 Lt Stainless stock pot but damn there expensive - $300 - $400

So im thinking electrical element but whats the cheapest way out???

I can go gas but just want the pro's / cons.

Cheers.

 

[Fents]

Just found these on the ESB.com.au website -

Im seriously considering either of these -

or

pricey but worth it i think. :chug:

 

[T.D.]

I think if you shop around you can get better deals on these sorts of things. Grain and Grape have 70L stainless pots for $299, but you can do even better than that if you keep your eyes peeled.

You can also get those coolers much cheaper, even from camping stores etc.

These sorts of things have been discussed a fair bit on these forums so if you do a search you should come up with plenty of really helpful info.

 

[Fents]

Thanks for the reply T.D :beerbang:

Ive sorted it

:beerbang:

 

[warrenlw63]

G'day Fents.

If you're not an aluminium snob. Large aluminium boilers can be had for far cheaper than S/S.

I recently bought an 80 Litre ally stockpot for $160 from Hotel Agencies in Nicholson Street, Fitzroy.

Warren -

 

[GMK]

Fents - if u are going gas - get a turkey fryer.

Or check e-bay for old electric copper washers - i have a 70ltr one.
they make good kettles.

 

[T.D.]

GMK, what keyword would you recommend using when trying to find these things on ebay? I have tried a few times before but the keywords I use are always too generic and there aren't any listed anyway. There must be thousands of these things around though - not so long ago every laundry in the country had one!

 

[pint of lager]

If you want to do double batches, a converted 50l keg is way too small and a plain 3 ring burner will probably not be hot enough.

For 46 litres into the fermenter, you will need a boiler of 70-80 litres.

Better to follow some of the other threads about kettles.

Do a search on kettle.

 

[warrenlw63]

Au contraire POL!

Though I don't recommend it. It can indeed be done. I boiled 42 litres in a 50 litre keg. It's pretty nerve-wracking stuff though. Just make sure you skim the skum when the wort comes to the boil and don't boil the guts out of the wort. I'd just top up with water from the HLT when too much volume evaporated.

That aside it's the main reason why I moved up to an 80 litre pot. Boiling double batches is a little more worry free. :beerbang:

Warren -

 

[Jez]

TD

Check your local Sat/Sun market for these boilers as well.

I was lucky enough to find one of these boilers on ebay for $50 a while back but had to trek half an hour past Maitland from Sydney on a Sunday to pick it up. On ebay it was described as a "crab boiler".

Of course, the day before my long drive to pick it up I happenend to be at Bankstown market at bankstown trotting track and found another one for $30 which I snapped up. The same guy also had massive 2nd-hand aluminium pots for $40.

On ebay I've seen them also described as a "copper boiler" (even though they're stainless), a "malleys boiler" or a "laundry boiler". Haven't seen one on there for a while though.

Good luck in your quest.

Jez

 

[GMK]

GMK, what keyword would you recommend using when trying to find these things on ebay? I have tried a few times before but the keywords I use are always too generic and there aren't any listed anyway. There must be thousands of these things around though - not so long ago every laundry in the country had one!

[post="84200"][/post]​

do the search as Jez says - type in boiler - u will find them...

i often list them in teh ebay topic on this site when i find them...

Hope this helps you out.

 

[Batz]

i am sure you know this already ,but if you are as silly as me...don't forget the Australia only thingy

A boiler in the US or Iceland not a big help :unsure:

Batz

 

[Jez]

lucky you TD - just typed in "boiler" over on ebay and there are 3 for sale in Sydney.

Happy bidding!

Jez

 

[T.D.]

Yeah, thanks guys, I had a quick look. Sounds a bit silly but using one of these things in brewing would be quite sentimental - my mother tells me that my grandfather used to use one to brew beer in the late 1940s when commercial stuff was rationed. I think his one was wood-fired though. I'm sure he would have thought an electric one was "too easy"!

 

[Tony]

I use an old 18 gallon keg

Mounted a 18 foot long 1/2 inch cooling coil inside it and it works a treat.

It boils up a 50 liter batch with ease

here are some pics

It has a 50 liter batch in it being cooled when its full

cheers

Oh and i welded the SS ring on the bottom of it.

I am going to cut a slot in the side so i dont have to stand it on bricks to clear the burner.

cheers

 

[Darren]

Tony,
Love the blurring of the other two kegs! Not sure a full boil with copper chiller is ideal though. Copper as a trace element is probably ok. Too much is likely to cause some problems down the track.

 

[Beer]

had a look at those boilers myself.. is a 42ltr one too small?

I hear alot of you say that a 70ltr is what you need.

 

[Darren]

Go the 70, 45 is not enough. You can always make a smaller volume beer in the 70. Cant make more beer in the 45.
Boil-over is the main problem with the 45.

 

[Justin]

Hey Fents, I'd avoid those ESB ones.

1. Too bloody dear. You can get any other sort of cooler for a much better price-it doesn't have to be round.

2. Have a look how high that thermometer is in that stainless pot :blink:, that thermometer would be useless in all but a huge batch of beer.

If I was starting out I'd go an aluminium pot. 60 or 70L. Cheap, legal and easy to drill.

Just my thoughts.

Cheers, JD

 

[Tony]

Darren.

Never really thought of it like that :blink:

I do have plans to make one out of some thin walled Stainless tube but i dont think the copper coil is going to kill me just yet.

Children and pregnent women arnt alowed to drink it so it cant be any worse than the crap i have soaked up form working in heavy industrys all my life <_<

No different to a cook using a copper pot to cook or an aluminim boiler for that matter.

cheers