Kettle Build Up.

[GFHomebrew]

Gday all.
Over the last few brews I've noticed a brown build up inside my kettle especially on the bottom is this an issue with any off flavours that may be imparted from this? I don't really pay to much attention to my kettle I give it a quick squirt out before brew day and that's it.

I sat some sodium percarbonate in there over night and gave it a good scrub this morning with a strong bristled brush but it's pretty stubborn stuff. I hear phosphoric acid may be a better option.

What do youse do with your brew pots do you clean em till bright and sparkling after every brew or are they a bit like mine with a bit of staining from previous brews?

 

[jeffpn]

Looks like my kettle RDWHAHB.

 

[GFHomebrew]

@jeffpn Like a well worn shirt it may look ordinary but it feels comfortable..

 

[jeffpn]

Here's mine.

 

[Ozarks Mountain Brewery]

use PBW and a 2 sided soft/gritty cleaning sponge, let it soak for an hour and use one side or the other what ever works just dont scratch the metal

 

[jeffpn]

That's for him, not me, right? I'm RDWHAHBing!!

 

[Nosybear]

Beer scale. The same crap that builds up in coffee machines and so forth. Clean it out with an acid solution - vinegar works fine. Enough of it will produce a minerally off-flavor - cool down water from your water heater and take a sip to find out what the flavor's like. But it's insoluble - hence it precipitating out of the beer - so not much of an issue, aside from the aesthetics.

 

[GFHomebrew]

Here's mine.

Now that's a well used kettle there jeffpn how many boils you clocked up with that bad boy?
I'm around 15 brew mark with my kettle and that's the build up thus far with no serious cleaning. I give the ball valve assembly a good work over every third or so brew but thus far the kettle has pretty much been untouched.

 

[jeffpn]

40 per year, TB. 40 per year!!

 

[jeffpn]

I do wash it every use with the dreaded Dawn dish soap.

 

[Nosybear]

I use Barkeeper's Friend on mine - looks all shiny and new except where I etched the volume lines.

 

[Head First]

I use Barkeeper's Friend on mine - looks all shiny and new except where I etched the volume lines.

That Barkeepers Friend is good stuff. It makes the kegs and copper lines shine too without a lot of scrubing.

 

[Ozarks Mountain Brewery]

yes I used it for years and it works great I just changed last year to PBW it seems to work faster for me, it breaks loose wort inside piping and tubes better, not the cheapest stuff but a little goes a long way

 

[Head First]

yes I used it for years and it works great I just changed last year to PBW it seems to work faster for me, it breaks loose wort inside piping and tubes better, not the cheapest stuff but a little goes a long way

PBW does work well on piping, fittings and hoses. Not out of reason pricewise for what it does.

 

[Head First]

View attachment 1401 Gday all.
Over the last few brews I've noticed a brown build up inside my kettle especially on the bottom is this an issue with any off flavours that may be imparted from this? I don't really pay to much attention to my kettle I give it a quick squirt out before brew day and that's it.

I sat some sodium percarbonate in there over night and gave it a good scrub this morning with a strong bristled brush but it's pretty stubborn stuff. I hear phosphoric acid may be a better option.

What do youse do with your brew pots do you clean em till bright and sparkling after every brew or are they a bit like mine with a bit of staining from previous brews?

Just a note on your kettle @Trialben if that 90degree fitting was turned down without the copper on it, it would look just like mine. My drain is placed where the end of the 90 is about 6-8mm from the bottom. Same color too and don't worry much about it. I have a dear friend who has brewed for 50 plus years and his rig is very brown. He wants to leave the accumulation. No soap or cleaner for him, just a little scratchy pad to remove the stuck on grain. And he brews excellent beer.

 

[GFHomebrew]

Just a note on your kettle @Trialben if that 90degree fitting was turned down without the copper on it, it would look just like mine. My drain is placed where the end of the 90 is about 6-8mm from the bottom. Same color too and don't worry much about it. I have a dear friend who has brewed for 50 plus years and his rig is very brown. He wants to leave the accumulation. No soap or cleaner for him, just a little scratchy pad to remove the stuck on grain. And he brews excellent beer.

I get about a liter of dead space from where the pick up is possitioned on the edge there but I do tilt the kettle to get more most brews I'm a dump and let be type Brewer. See I recon a centre pick up from the bottom on a kettle would be better suited for a recirculation electric brew system no problem with heating up external elbows. But for gas fired keggle I recon centre pickup to the side but i biab so opted out of this. Cheers mate.

 

[Head First]

Up here I loose about a quart

 

[Ozarks Mountain Brewery]

inside the pot I put the elbow down and turned slightly, that corner almost hits leaving only 1/2 in the bottom without tipping but my kettle is 20" wide so thats more than you think

 

[jeffpn]

inside the pot I put the elbow down and turned slightly, that corner almost hits leaving only 1/2 in the bottom without tipping but my kettle is 20" wide so thats more than you think

2.72 quarts, but who's counting??

 

[Ozarks Mountain Brewery]

yup and if I tip its 1 cup or less, I do that when I clean, and I just cleaned everything today throughly including my elements, hoses, pipes, fermentation containers, my hands are dry lol