When you’re serious enough about your brewing that you want a good setup to make quality beers, you need to use the correct equipment. Making beer commercially is heavily regulated, but even if your beer is for private consumption only, you want to make sure that your product is well made in every way. Using items made especially for professional food production assures that you are making a “clean” product without contamination from moulds, fungi, or bacteria.
Ball valves are a must have for home brewers, but they are also a “must clean.” The advantages of using a threaded valve with fittings of 316 stainless steel and silicone tape in a homebrew setup is the best way to go. Some argue that the sanitizing effect of boiling wort is sufficient to put an end to microbial contamination, but clean equipment shouldn’t be left up to heat sterilization. However, you should also not ever use bleach as it can corrode both 316 and 304 stainless steel.
Unless you’re going pro and making not just beer measured in gallons but by the liquid ton, you will you need to know about specialty steels such as 316L, 316N, 316Ti, 317L, etc, – but they’re a lot of fun to learn about. Home brew ball valves in 316 stainless are easy to install and to remove, making for a quick cleanup. 316 is a very high grade stainless steel that is ideal for brewing versus 304 as 304 can be prone to pitting, crevice corrosion in warm chloride rich environments. Good cleaning solutions to use can be as easy as hot water and dish detergent, or Star-San and B-Brite from your local brewer’s store.
