Buying my first propane burner

ziggy13 · 11-23-2010, 12:00 AM

Hey guys,

I am looking into buying a propane burner so I can start doing all grain brewing. My electric stove just doesn't give me enough control over the temperature.

Right now I'm leading towards the Bayou Classic cooker from Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Bayou-Classic-SP10-High-Pressure-Outdoor/dp/B000291GBQ/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1290473658&sr=8-2

It's 185,000 btu at 20 psi...all the burners I've seen on home brewing sites are like 10 psi and 60,000 btu and around twice the price.

The hurricane burner from Midwest is 60,000 btu at 1 psi. That seems like it would take forever to boil 10 gallons.

I want something that will boil a full 10 gallons. Right now I'm only making 5 gallon batches but I want a burner that will handle a full 10 gallons for the future. I also don't want it to be crazy inefficient....I am totally new to propane burners so any help would be appreciated!

**JonK331** · 11-23-2010, 12:05 AM

I have a 60,000 btu camp chef and it puts out more than enough juice. In fact I wish I could turn it down even lower than it goes. If I turn it all the way up, the flames shoot up the side of my kettle.

**the_bird** · 11-23-2010, 12:06 AM

I like this one a lot:

It's got a lot of oomph, no problems whatsoever bringing the wort to boil. It burns clean and it's pretty easy to dial in the right flame. It's big enough and strong enough for a keggle. It burns quiet. Seems to be reasonably efficient with the propane use. I haven't use the one you linked to, but I have used the Banjo Cooker and actually sold it because I like the SQ14 a lot better.

Can usually buy them locally at Home Depot, too. Got mine for $40, I think, although I think they're closer to $50 now.

YMMV.

joeunc · 11-23-2010, 01:45 PM

+1 on the Sq14 used mine for the first time on Sunday, awesome burner. The larger square base is great.

tlael · 11-23-2010, 01:48 PM

This one fits a keggle perfectly.
http://www.agrisupply.com/banjo-burner-gas-cooker/p/64482/cn/5400001/

DrawTap88 · 11-23-2010, 01:55 PM

I too have the SQ14 which puts out more than enough power to bring 7.5 gallons to a boil (5 gal batches on my system). When I was shopping for a burner, I also looked at the SP10, but decided to go with the SQ14 because of the base. They both have the same burner, just different regulators (I believe) and different bases. The square one seemed more stable to me.

The only thing that I've needed to do to modify my SQ14 is build a wind shield, which a lot of brewers do with other burners.

Catt22 · 11-23-2010, 03:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by the_bird

I like this one a lot:

It's got a lot of oomph, no problems whatsoever bringing the wort to boil. It burns clean and it's pretty easy to dial in the right flame. It's big enough and strong enough for a keggle. It burns quiet. Seems to be reasonably efficient with the propane use. I haven't use the one you linked to, but I have used the Banjo Cooker and actually sold it because I like the SQ14 a lot better.

Can usually buy them locally at Home Depot, too. Got mine for $40, I think, although I think they're closer to $50 now.

YMMV.

+1 IMO, this burner is ideal for the home brewer. I've been using one for a number of years with excellent results. It has plenty of power and excellent flame level control from very low to very high. The stand is wide and well built. Best of all, the price is right. SQ-14 FTW!

**the_bird** · 11-23-2010, 03:44 PM

I actually bought the SQ14 first because of the flame control, I was playing around with some decoction mashes and had far too little control with the Banjo burner. This one, I was able to dial in the needed heat for a gentle decoction boil with no trouble whatsoever.

**ImperialLover** · 11-23-2010, 04:04 PM

I used a single sp10 for 5gal boils for a long time and liked it. Remember that a lot of people stick to the same burners when they upgrade. The sp10 is a high pressure burner; therefore you can use it in conjunction with other high pressure burners on one regulator. If you try to use a low pressure burner in conjunction with this one, you'll have to have another regulator.

If you're willing to do a little metal work you can get 3 sp10 burners for $48.00 on amazon (shipped). I say 3 because that's enough to do a single sp10 under a 5gal 3 pot system (since you discussed upgrading). I'd get one sp10 for your five gallon batches; but I'd upgrade and use two sp10s on a single BK to boil 10gal faster. Bobby M just did a 3 sp10 set-up for a 55gal BK. Do a search on youtube for brewing with bobby m and check out his videos. I'd throw in a 30 psi regulator ($25) with 4 burners ($64) and you'll have enough juice to do 5 or 10gal batches on a 3 pot brew rig. You'll have to add some misc. gas accessories to your parts/cost list to make this work. If you order over $25 on amazon you get free shipping too.

justinakajuice · 11-23-2010, 04:26 PM

I'm also ready to switch over to gas and I like what you are saying about the SQ14. So this can handle 10 gallon batches with a keggle, or will it bend under the ~120lbs of wort?