My stainless brew kettle has developed a metallic aroma recently. I've cleaned it with bar keepers friend but it's still lingering. Could it be that my copper wort chiller caused this?
No reason to clean a stainless brew kettle with anything other than PBW occasionally...sometimes the cure is worse than the disease, especially if not rinsed thoroughly. Copper chillers shouldn't cause that either.
Jack, I have had 2 kidney stones in my life so I tend to stay away from oxalic acid...plenty of other alternatives that while maybe not making my kettle shiny, clean stainless just as well. cheers
Barry, I am sorry to hear about your kidney stones. I have been using Barkeepers Friend for over 20 years and no kidney stones for me (knock on wood). I do have a very clean and shiny kettle though. Cheers!
Jack, don't know what kind of SS your kettle is, but thought you might like to read the pdf for cleaning my 304SS BrewBucket: https://www.dropbox.com/s/464ftw8652eef8h/cleaning instructions 8.5x11.pdf?n=171496463 I never knew SS had to be passivated (like aluminum), but according to "them" it does. Of particular interest was the "never use" section. Cheers
I did note this from the linked article: “Oxalic Acid cleaners such as Bar Keeper’s Friend, Kleen King, or Revere Ware Stainless cleaners on the Etched Markings – These may cause the etching to fade.” My old kettle which I have used for over 15 years is etched and those etches are as evident as when I first used that kettle. My new kettle is not etched so no concerns there. Cheers! P.S. Neither of my stainless steel kettles were manufactured by Ss Brewtech.
It's strange to me that they recommend 1 oz of StarSan per gallon of water—maybe a typo? My bottle of StarSan recommends 1 oz per 5 gallons of water. Or maybe passivation requires a more concentrated acid.
Did you use steel wool on the SS? Metallic aroma is interesting, as it is usually a taste. And it tastes like blood. Mmm. Blood. Iron on SS is a bad idea, it lingers and can actually cause the SS to rust. Other than that I am stumped.
