Brewing in Porcelain pot

[jonheb1]

Hey all,

I'm about to go for my first batch and I'm looking at selecting a kettle without breaking the bank. I have a 4 gallon stainless steel pot, but I've heard that this is too small to brew a 5 gallon batch with partial brew. I found this porcelain pot that is 5 gallons:
http://www.walmart.com/ip/17165786?...86607510&wl4=&wl5=pla&wl6=19880599990&veh=sem

Can I brew in this pot without ruining my batch? Also, is a 4 gallon stainless steel pot big enough? Thanks for any help you can offer!

 

[jangelj]

I have one similar to this (but smaller). It takes a while to come to a boil because the bottom is concave (at least on mine). I have made many batches and have not had an issue. I usually boil 3 gallons for 5 gallon batch. Bringing 5 gallons to a boil on an electric stove may be an issue.

 

[JimRausch]

For about a year and a half, I used a 3G BK on my stove to do partial mash/ partial boils. Kept topping off the BK with water, and added 2 gallons cold water to the fermenter. I even did two full volume AG batches by boiling the 1st runnings in one pot and the sparge runnings in a second pot, splitting the hops between both, and combining in the fermenter. Must admit, it was a bit of a PITA, but it worked, and the beers turned out great. About a month ago I got the Bass Pro Shop 30qt turkey fryer/propane burner special, and have done 2 AG full volume boils. I LIKE IT!
So, until you can step up to a bigger BK and propane burner, yes you can use a 4G pot on the stove.

 

[Cyclman]

You can get a 5 Gallon aluminum pot on Amazon for not much more: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B001CHKL68/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20.

I would recommend the thicker, heavier duty pot. If you can fit it in your setup, an 8G or even 10G is better.

 

[C-Rider]

I'm using one for the past two years just because I had it. But I've seen 20 qt. pots at Target for a pretty good price. Didn't have price "online".

With the one you are looking w/you have to be careful not to chip it on the inside.