gas burner help

[chris1987]

im looking into gas burners as my old one went missing in last move and i need to get a new one to get me up and running
what i want to do is look into one that is alot more economical on the gas my last one threw out 105000 btu's on a high pressure reg rated to boil 1l per min of 20c water i would reach collection time in 35 - 45 mins im looking at a cost effective alternative as the bank account isnt as big as it was when i got that and i dont want that one again that thing chewed on the lpg like a 9kg gas bottle lasted me 2 stripping runs and 1 product run and at $25 per 9kg it adds up to a bit fast
if anyone knows much about building a burner would you mind throwing your 2 bobs worth in i would actually like to build one that i can throw oxygen into to increase the btu's but cut on costs of gas

[chris1987]

or building a natural gas line prices are way cheaper than lpg
lpg $2.77
natural gas $0.20

[NineInchNails]

For a basic burner, I would check out the Bayou cast iron burners. Lately I've been preferring the one in the middle (this one). It puts out really good bit of heat and is very very controllable with the regulator. You can tune it down extremely low as long as it is adequately shielded from the wind. I have the really big one and the medium size one. Both can be tuned down quite low, but the big one, like anything big, can suck the gas if it's cranked up real high.

I'm not real knowledgeable about burners with oxygen, but I'd be willing to bet that it could scorch the wash. Oxy propane gets REAL hot and typically the heads are not all that large in diameter to disperse the heat. In other words ... they usually focus their heat in a relatively small diameter area. Google 'rosebud torch head'.


You might consider switching over to electric. I'm in the process of switching over right now. The controllers are pretty easy to slap together. Check out this DIY Controller Kit for instance. It's real basic. You could add a PC fan to ensure that the solid state relay stays cool. Later you could upgrade to a larger box with any added bells & whistles you prefer.

[ga flatwoods]

http://www.agrisupply.com/m/high-pressu ... r/p/41678/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow h
ttp://www.agrisupply.com/m/carolina-cooker-do ... e/p/48590/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow

I really love my double burner. They make a single and also a triple. Good on gas, cheap, low profile, and does 13 gals in about 50 minutes, set it to about 1/4" flame and let it go! Best deal I could show you. They also have a large ss pot set including a 40 qt and 3 others. I didnt sesrch for it but they also have a smaller set thst didnt interest me.
GA Flatwoods

edit: you will also need a regulator added above.

[FreeMountainHermit]

I'm using this burner ATM. The needle valve makes it very controllable. 13 gallon wash in my 15.5 keg up to speed in short order. Kind of heavy to jug around but I don't do it that often.



http://www.bayouclassicdepot.com/kab6-k ... r-plus.htm" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow

Let's not even talk about stir fry and a wok. WOW

[Windy City]

I have also used the big Bayou Classic for years. I got tired of the expense and hassle of refilling propane tanks so a couple of months back I purchased the Blichman natural gas conversion https://www.midwestsupplies.com/blichma ... MgodzAYASA" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow (it fits perfect on the Bayou). I have been real happy with it and it was definitely a cost savings over propane.
On a side note I did pick up the last pieces tonight for my controller so I can go to electric for stilling but I am going to stick with gas for my brewery

Good Luck
Windy City

[F6Hawk]

Let's not even talk about stir fry and a wok. WOW

I have that same one. It works great. And does an awesome stir-fry that my indoor stove simply cannot get hot enough to do.

No natural gas here yet, but I would convert if I had it available.

[F6Hawk]

I have also used the big Bayou Classic for years. I got tired of the expense and hassle of refilling propane tanks so a couple of months back I purchased the Blichman natural gas conversion https://www.midwestsupplies.com/blichma ... MgodzAYASA" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow (it fits perfect on the Bayou). I have been real happy with it and it was definitely a cost savings over propane.
On a side note I did pick up the last pieces tonight for my controller so I can go to electric for stilling but I am going to stick with gas for my brewery

Good Luck
Windy City

Why get that one, and not this one?
http://www.midwestsupplies.com/natural- ... -only.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow

[Windy City]

You could buy just the orfice and get a separate control valve and flare to connect to your stainless gas flexi.
I bought the one complete with the valve and flare when I stumbled across it at a home brew shop. Either way it works well. It does have a lower btu output but probably only increases my time on a run about 15 min (12 gal wash in 15.5 gal keg) and the increased time is just on start up

Hope this helps
Windy City

[F6Hawk]

Ok. I woulda thunk that the hose fittings were all the same, and one could just swap orifices, keeping hose and regulator the same.

[Windy City]

You don't use the regulator if your house gas supply is low pressure 1/2 psi. The original regulator is set up for high pressure.
One point I forgot to mention was when I first made the swap to natural gas with this orfice it was not putting out enough btu's for my liking so I drilled the orfice larger 2 drill bit sizes. Your mileage may vary

Hope this helps
Windy City