Hi everyone. I want to move up from a 10 gallon boil pot to something near 20gal any tips or recommended equipment to buy, or are they all about the same? Anything to look out for in up-sizing? I also want to buy or make a wort cooler to match it. I appreciate any tips I can get. Thanks!
I bought a cheap 15 gallon aluminum pot from Amazon, and I love it. It's just a pot so it doesn't have any bells or whistles, but it rules. Just make sure you boil some water in the pot for 30 minutes before using it to brew for the first time.
yea I seen one at sams club I assumed it did not matter really. The aluminum part as long as it was heavy duty type. I wanted a SS one but they just too expensive. thanks!
I recently purchased a plain 20 gallon stainless steel pot for less than $200. I have yet to make a larger wort chiller to fit it, but will probably DIY with copper tubing from a home center. I feel really good about the additional space in there, and was very happy brewing my 1st 10 gallon batch in it a couple of weeks ago. Even though it is larger than I really need for the most part, I do not regret it at all.
I seen a kit on amazon for 500. I was seriously thinking about this 1: http://www.amazon.com/Gallon-Grain-...1347473024&sr=8-4&keywords=20+gallon+brew+kit or just the pot: http://www.amazon.com/Stainless-Steel-Brewing-Stock-Thermometer/dp/B004B47WQQ/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1347472927&sr=8-1&keywords=20 gallon brew kettle
If you want to buy a more complete setup in 1 shot, the kit looks pretty good. You really wouldn't save much by buying an economy pot if you end up upgrading it. I just wanted the space to do the occasional 10 gallon all-grain batch, and I do like heating up all of my mash and sparge water and preparing it all at once.
Did that say 160 qts.? My god, who needs that at the homebrew level? Since the guy asked for 10 gallon pot: http://www.foodservicewarehouse.com/update-international/apt-40/p4857.aspx or 20 gallons: http://www.foodservicewarehouse.com/update-international/apt-80/p4863.aspx
A guy in our club has one of those, to do big batches for filling the full sized bourbon barrel he has. It is crazy big.
This is probably a stupid question. If you are doing a full 10 gallon boil how does it not boil over in the 40 qt pot?
If your doing a 10 gallon batch you need 11-12 gallons to start the boil and should have a bigger pot. Bigger is better to a point, and if you ever plan on going bigger with your batches plan for it now. I have a converted keg (15.5 gallons), and can comfortably do 10 gallon batches. If you are starting with 10 gallons at the beginning of the boil...yes, you will have major boil over.
My first pot was 24 quarts and it was marginal, at best, for a full boil on a 5 gallon batch. I never ended up with a full 5 gallons, and I had some pretty messy brew days. After having to live with that pot for a while as the largest pot I had, I was not shy about going large the second time around.
Back to the OP: you say you want to upgrade from a 10 gallon pot to "something near" 20 gallons. If you want to net 15 gallon batches or brew 10 gallons of big beers (all-grain, with a lot of sparge water), then the 20 would be great. If, unlike me, you are looking for a full setup, I know the price point shifts a good bit between the 15 and 20 gallon capacity. If you mostly want 10 gallon batches or could live with slightly less brewing high-gravity beers, then a 15 gallon setup could be just right.
I just took a look on Amazon and see that the 20 is $50 more than the 15 for the full kit. If $500 is within your budget, I don't think you would regret spending 10% more now for 25% greater capacity, but I am biased from having to live with boil-overs for too long.
The Amazon deal is for stainless steel. OP didn't say explicitly, but it seemed like that might be the material he prefers. And it's not just 1 pot but 2 pots plus accessories. It was a link he provided, above, which he said he was thinking about.
beware of aluminum, folks. the acidity of wort easily runs through foodsafe coatings and deteriorates the aluminum... aluminum has plenty of health risks ...says the homebrewer who uses a 10 gal aluminum pot (me)...
I chose stainless because I can afford it, and it is a well-respected material choice. A friend of mine who also home brews uses an aluminum pot with very good results. His home brew was what made me want to make some myself.
