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hi Guys. I am going to buy a bottle to run my 50L boiler 2" reflux tomorrow. I was looking at the 11kg bottle but don't have a clue how many runs this is likely to last.? what size should I go for and still be able to carry/ store the dam thing. mash size is likely to be 25L

When its full wight the tank. Then make a run and weight it at the end. When your empty wieght it.. then from there on should give you an idea.

Every setup is different. Also depends on your burner size efficiency and how much power your setup likes.. Also keep in mind they do not fill propane tanks to 100%

B

11 kg should contain 11kg propane. Weigh it full, take off 11 kg and weigh it after run. That should give you a) the amount you used (Please do tell us) and also how much you have left, so you can work out how many more runs you have in there.

If your final weight (empty) does not weigh 11 kg less than your start, you have room to complain !

I've no idea how big a bottle you can lift, go down there and try a few

To give you a rough Idea ..I use a 9 KG gas bottle on a thirty gal or 113L boiler with a 5 ring banjo burner.
I use a little bit over half a bottle on a normal run. You will get quite few runs out of your set up.

Yeah you will get a few runs from that bottle ...but.... it will run out .....sooner or later . You need a standby bottle , I got one , infact I have two .
One offically runs the house , gas oven etc , the second runs the barbecue and I have one in the shed .

You need "official redundancy" ..ain't nothing better than covering your arse in all situations ....Oh honey , the ovens not working ...no worries Darling ...I just so happen to have a spare in the shed , I'll have it swapped over in no time

CYOA ! I have 5 20# bottles to cover stillin and grillin . I will guarandamntee you that if you depend on one bottle that it will let you down by running out at a most critical moment .

I have at least a dozen 5 gal (20#) propane tanks around, for every imaginable purpose. Stillin, grillin, smokin, campin, and mergincy heatin. But, I just got my controller finished, so I may just need to get rid of a few.

First one you get rid of is going to be the next one you need . I betchya .

Truckinbutch wrote:First one you get rid of is going to be the next one you need . I betchya .

True words there. I gave up 'stillin for awhile and gave away my 4 20lb propane tanks in the last couple of years. Sure enough I jumped back into stillin last fall and I ended up having to buy 2 tanks and I'll need more.

I just did an 8 gallon stripping run on my boka. 3 hours to get to temp and 6 hours getting the good stuff. I used 5# of propane on my turkey fryer. I'll leave it up to you to do all the conversions.

Like others said, buy a couple big bottles and keep filling the empties so you are always ready.

Got 3 hundreds and 5 twenty and 1 thirty. I use for every thing kitchen stove finishing maple sap off, fireplace garage heat. It's good to have extra

I have 6 20# bottles for the smoker , grill , and still . When I get to one full bottle and a couple of partially used grill tanks I empty them at the still and mash boiler . Then I refill them . Always have one full one for that 'Aw Shit !' moment grillin or stillin .

Truckinbutch wrote:First one you get rid of is going to be the next one you need . I betchya .

I bet ur right TB. Matter of fact, can't remember when I haven't needed a full tank to carry on with some project or other. I have been refilling my own little tanks (the ones you use for your torch, your coleman lanterns and such) for over 30 years with an adapter that screws into the larger propane tanks. I know......prolly unsafe, but nobody ever said I shouldn't, so until they give me some sound evidence otherwise, I will continue.

I have a 20 gal pot 3 gal thumper i use a bayou burner. Powered by a 20lb propane tank. It takes about 2 1/2 hours to get up to temp at about1/2 power. Total time burner is on around 10 hours.
I get 3 runs from a jug then enough to get 4th run warmed up a ltl. Everytime i takem in to fill its always around 4.7 gal at $3.21per gal

The most expensive part of owning a posse of propane bottles is maintaining the certification.

So, I just rent....Blue Rhino. Sure they’re more expensive, but the local grocery has a battery of them, so there’s always one there. Yet, I do still keep 4 around the house because as TB said....it’s guaranteed that you’ll empty a tank just as the chicken starts to get warm on the grill. (I use propane for grilling and my brew kettle...but I have an electric still). I wish I had a nickel for every time its happened to me....I could buy ya’ll a cup of coffee...
ss

You will get approximately 2+ runs on a 20# cylinder with 15 gallon boiler and 2 inch pipe.

Efficiency of the burner will matter as well as insulation of the boiler by reducing heat waste.

Never heard of 'maintaining the certification' here

The date and tare weight is clearly stamped on each tank, it's not that complicated. Plus the only time I get underfilled tanks from a store (15 or 17lbs instead of 20) I am trading in an outta date tank to get a newer, certified version. I've traded in 1950s RV bottles for new ones, got ripped a bit on the gas, but got me a new tank to refill at a reputable dealer that will give me a full 20#.

Like everything, propane is a game. Play it well my friends

Off an 11kg bottle I get about 3 slow runs on a 15 gallon jacketed still, using a 5kw gas burner that looks like this: There are many variables: obviously primarily the size of your burner and how high you are running it, but also your regulator settings, wind, boiler design and insulation, etc.
They have 23kg and 11.5kg aluminum bottles here, I went with two 11.5kg ones because that way I always have a full one as a spare. It would suck to have the gas run out in the middle of a run.

Also when I'm running low I'll sit the tank in a large bucket and run some of the hot water output from my condenser into the bucket to keep the bottle from frosting up so I can squeeze every last bit of gas out.

There's no certification here, you can buy any beat up old tank and bring it back to the lot and they'll exchange it for a full 11.5kg one for around $15, so that's only about $5 in fuel for a run. It's the primary reason I haven't switched to electric yet.

Hell, I pull a 11,600 gallon propane tank for a living. How many runs could I get with 9,000 gallons? Still can't figure out how to fill my 100 lb bottle with it. Not that I would.

I have nothing useful to contribute, I thought we were having a pissing match here