bayau classic propane burner pressure ??

I hope this question has not been asked before. I have a bayau classic burner, it is what I would call a big burner, I use a small propane tank (40 lbs full) and I am tired of running out of propane. My house has a large propane tank and I was wanting to run a connection to the outside deck and connect this burner to it, When I asked the guy that installed the propane in my house about it, he said I would have a small/lazy flame on this burner since it uses higher pressure from the small tanks. Is there any way to correct this low pressure problem?

How low of pressure are you running? Depending on the model, the Bayou Classic burners can be anywhere from 10-30 PSI after the regulator.

BTW, a 40 lb tank isn't small, it should last quite a while.

jimmcs06 said:

I hope this question has not been asked before. I have a bayau classic burner, it is what I would call a big burner, I use a small propane tank (40 lbs full) and I am tired of running out of propane. My house has a large propane tank and I was wanting to run a connection to the outside deck and connect this burner to it, When I asked the guy that installed the propane in my house about it, he said I would have a small/lazy flame on this burner since it uses higher pressure from the small tanks. Is there any way to correct this low pressure problem?

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I think what the installer was trying to say is that the regulator on the large tank is the low pressure type. Your burner may or may not be set up for low pressure propane. What he did not tell you is that it's possible to tee off of the large tank with a separate regulator and one matched to your pressure needs. You can also install a wet tap and refill your smaller tank from the large one, although I don't know all the details and legality issues that may be involved. The bottom line is that propane is propane and it will have the same vapor pressure regardless of the tank size. The internal tank pressure is relative to the ambient temperature and the service line gas pressure is controlled by a regulator. The large tank is equipped with a regulator as is your small tank (the regulator is not actually part of the tank, but attaches to it. It's that round thing near the connector). Regulators are available in a variety of set pressures and there are also adjustable models. Sounds to me like he just did not want to deal with it and was more or less blowing you off. I would call the supplier and attempt to find someone who may be more helpful. If that doesn't work, call a competitor if there is one and explain the situation. They may want your business more than the current supplier.

I do not know what pressure I currently have on this burner, there are no numbers indicating the psi it has.
The tank I was speaking of is your normal tank you see on gas grills. I think it is 40lbs full, 19lbs empty. I get 5 brews out of it.
thanks for the info.

jimmcs06 said:

I do not know what pressure I currently have on this burner, there are no numbers indicating the psi it has.
The tank I was speaking of is your normal tank you see on gas grills. I think it is 40lbs full, 19lbs empty. I get 5 brews out of it.
thanks for the info.

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5 brews out of a 20 lbs tank is pretty dang good! I get about 2 brews out of a 20 lbs tank, although that's all-grain brewing

I am, brewing all grain also, usually 7 gallons to start, have to turn down the burner so I don't boil away too much, I end up with 5.5 gals., I do work with a good rolling boil

Your house is run at around 11 inches water column (iwc) or about 0.40 psi. That is less than half one pound per square inch. The burner is no doubt 10-30 psi. It is a different style burner which is not nearly as efficient but makes a lot of heat in a small area, fast.

The large propane tank outside runs about 250psi vapor pressure at 70F, lower at lower temps. There are two regulators - one on the tank (dropping to 2-5psi) then one near the house (down to 11 iwc, or .4 psi). So you would need to install a tee directly off the tank or possibly off the first regulator, depending on the requirements of the burner.

You can setup or have a BBQ connection made to the houshold system and drill out the burner jet to operate on the household pressure of 11" Wc. You will need to replace the high pressure regulator with a low pressure regulator for your portable tank if you want to continue to use it after burner conversion to low pressure. I would suggest that the plumbing for the tap be made by the propane system installer if you are not versed in gas piping as propane leaks are a big safety problem. If you can supply the model number of the burner a suggested drill size for the jet can be determined. Lower supply pressure will mean a reduction in maximum output but if the burner is large enough to start with that should not be a problem.

I can not find any info on the burner, it is 10 inches across, after doing a search on the internet, it looks like the ' Kick A Banjo Burner'. The regulator is the lp high pressure. I understand replacing the regulator, but do not see where this drilling would be? thanks

There is some good advise here I want to do something simular to what you are talking about. I think the advise from Catt22 and ChilHaze about putting a T on so that you can split off gas before the regulator is right on the money.

However there is only 1 regulator for my LP tank but I have seen many post from people that apparently have 2.

Kladue advise about getting a pro involved is also good. But you know your abilities and limitation better than any of us would so that's your call.

I think the advise to "drill out the burner jet" is dubious. Although I have read posts from people that said they did this and claimed success in converting from LP to Natural Gas, it's not something that I think is a good idea for several reasons. While I do feel comfortable running my on pipe.

Just remember that some of the fittings on you LP tank tighten and loosen backwards from normal nuts and bolts.

I think the splitting off of the big tank is good, but not cost effective for me, my big tank is clear on the other side of the house, I have easy access from inside the house where I want the new connection. So the question is, will a low pressure valve work on this burner? I know I don't need the full capacity of the burner, but how much will there be on this low pressure?

Some of the residential propane system instalations use 2 regulators, Tank pressure -> 10Psi -> 10 Psi to 11" Wc for house connection, others use only one regulator. As to the jet on the burner, there is a small diameter opening on the tip that can be drilled out to flow low pressure propane or natural gas, this has been done by others in this group without problems . You can buy a low pressure replacement fitting or drill the opening out with a 3/32" bit. Here is a link to a sizing chart for burner orifices http://www.joppaglass.com/burner/lowp_chrt.html, you are looking for about 60K btu's @11"Wc. pressure for the 10" burner.

You know it would also be possible to move the regulator and the T so that you don't have to run duplicate piping