Stainless Paint Kettles as Billy Cans??

[maddave]

I saw in the "what billy" post that Ahjno uses a stainless steel paint kettle as a billy, and the look like they could be a useful and cheap alternative to Zebras etc for those on a budget.. See link below

http://www.decoratingwarehouse.co.uk...dium=directory

Does anyone else use these and what are your thoughts ??

[Mesquite]

I don't think those are stainless steel Dave, they're a pressed mild steel

[bikething]

I don't think those are stainless steel Dave, they're a pressed mild steel

Not according to the blurb under the picture :

Metal Paint Kettles are made from stainless steel with a metal handle. They are designed for a multitude of tasks including; paint handling & mixing, brush cleaning container and for holding products.

[Mesquite]

Not according to the blurb under the picture :

My apologies.... I've been up since 5:30 and I'm still not awake

[tytek]

The only thing I can fault is the lack of a fitted lid.

Apart from that they look fairly strong and well made. Price is good too.

[Alexlebrit]

I've been happily using something like these for quite a while to cook mussels and clams when I go to the beach, seems to survive cooking on an open fire. Just don't let your other half get near it when there's decorating to be done, Moules à l'Emulsion isn't my best dish.

[DavidJT]

I was looking at these in a hardware shop last weekend. They may well be stainless underneath, but the only ones I've seen are coated with some dark grey gunky sort of enamel stuff, which personally I wouldn't trust as being food safe. Perhaps it could be removed though, as size an shape wise they are OK.

[tytek]

I was looking at these in a hardware shop last weekend. They may well be stainless underneath, but the only ones I've seen are coated with some dark grey gunky sort of enamel stuff, which personally I wouldn't trust as being food safe. Perhaps it could be removed though, as size an shape wise they are OK.

A good burn should get rid of any unwanted coatings.

[onfire]

i bought one looking just like these from my local store (£3.75 iirc) but after the first test boil it almost immediately went rusty inside ... definitely not stainless steel ...

[Ogri the trog]

Any steel item that is not obviously made for food use is likely to be coated in a machine oil of some sort. Whether as a preservative between the production process and point of sale or as an aid to the material moving around machine parts as a stage of the production process. A good scrub before you do anything else should remove a good proportion of the stuff that will taint your brew, burning alone strikes me as a process similar to the seasoning of a dutch oven where the material is sealed by cooking an oil/fat base into the pores of the material.

The paint kettles in Dave link look like the type of thing that I'd use, but they seem a little pricey!

ATB

Ogri the trog

[tommy the cat]

Was looking at some paint kettles in B&Q tother day but they were not stainless , those look like they would work.
D

[helixpteron]

I've found a great range of 18/8 stainless steel storage/cook containers at specialist Indian goods shops.

The sizes, types and prices are great, as is the quality of the gear, which is built to withstand commercial kitchen usage. My favorite shop has stainless steel containers with lids in sizes from 30mm diameter, 20mm high, to cook pots that I could sit in!