Brew Pot ???

[JD25]

I was given a 40 qrt stainless steel pot that I plan on using for a Brewer's Best Weizenbier kit that yileds 5 galllons. Is this pot too big as there is more surfacr area that may effect the boiling procedure?

 

[grapeman]

It should be a good size for boiling in. It will foam up a lot at times so the extra size is a good thing.

 

[masta]

That size pot will work fine and don't worry at all about the extra space as it isn't an issue. Extra room in a brew pot is a good thing as it will help with boil over!

 

[lockdude]

The big pot is a blessing.It will keep you from making a big mess!{boilover}I have a 60 quart and do 5-6 gallon batches in it.I put a drain valve,false bottom,and a big thermometer in mine.

 

[smurfe]

That pot is perfect for 5 gallon batches. You will be able to do a full boil like Masta shows in his Extract tutorial instead of a partial boil and adding water. I myself just bought a new stainless 38 qt pot a couple days ago to do extract batches in.
Just as everyone says though, watch out for the boil over. I did a 10 gallon Munich Dunkelall grain brew Sunday night. Had my first boil over, I had about 13 gallons in a 15.5 gallon Keggle. It happened so fast. I was standing right next to the pot and tank. Before I could grab the spoon to stir and turn the heat down, over she went. I admit I had a pretty rolling boil going though trying to speed the concentration up.

 

[lockdude]

Also look out when adding hops.I usually turn it down first.

 

[JD25]

Thansk for the advice. I brewed the beer on Saturday and have it fermenting. Once fermenatation stops, I'll transfer to a carboy fro secondary fermentation before adding the priming sugar. How long can I leave the beer in the seconday fermenter? Also will this beer store until the summer (given the fact that I don't drink it all)?


JD

 

[lockdude]

I usually leave it in the primary for 4-5 days after it quits,to condition it a bit,then rack it into my bottling bucket,and let it settle for a day before adding the priming sugar so I dont get hardly any yeast on the bottom of the bottles.If you kept everything real clean,and store your beer in the dark in a cool place,It should keep for Quite a while.I have kept some over a year,and it was still good.

 

[masta]

I normally leave beer in the secondary for at least 2 weeks and up to 2 months in the case of my Maple Porter which takes this long to complete fermentation of all the maple syrup. Look for signs of the fermentation being complete (SG reading and with more experience visual signs) and clearing before racking and priming for bottling.


I also have had beer over a year without a problem (Pumpkin Ale) and you need a cool, stable temperature, dark place to store it.I store mine in my wine cellar in stable plastic bins I purchased just for that purpose.

 

[JD25]

I've had the wort in the primary fermenter for 4 days now. I noticed that the temperature was only 60 degrees. The foaming has stopped,very slow bubbling, and the SG is 1.018. Should I let it ferment longer or can I move to the secondary fermenter? Will the low temperatue effect the beer?

 

[lockdude]

Leave it in the primary until it quits so it will settle out.The low temps wont hurt it at all,but just makes it ferment slowly.