1st all-grain; ran out of propane mid-boil

So yesterday I did my first all grain batch. I did it the simple brew-in-a-bag method. As well as being my first all grain, it was also my first time to use a propane kit to boil rather than using my electric stove, and I bought two disposable propane cylinders to burn with instead of one of the white, larger, non-disposable propane tanks.

Anyways, I got through my mash fine, turned up the heat, and just before boil my first propane tank went out. Right before it went out I noticed frost gathering on the outside of the tank, covering perhaps only the bottom quarter of the cylinder. I read that I should put the tank in warm water because all of the heat was being sucked out of the tank. I did this, the flame kicked up to full blast again, but it lasted only for about a minute and quickly went completely out. I attached my second cylinder up to the burner, it burned high for 40 minutes, and just as I was putting my flavoring hops in (which were supposed to have 20 minutes of boil) the flame went out again. Not knowing what else I could do, since I didn't have any more propane to work with, and since I thought my stove top wouldn't be strong enough to boil 5gallons of wort, I cooled it off, transferred to my fermenter, and pitched my yeast.

My first question is, should I have run out of propane so quickly? The cylinders I was using were both 16.4oz. The guy I bought them from, said that he used these kinds of cylinders for a camping trip to power a heater and said that he got about 12 hours out of them. On that, I estimated I would at least get 2-3 hours out of each.

Second question is a little more broad: How is this going to affect my beer? In case it matters, these are the ingredients for the beer:
-6lb Two-row
-2lb Roasted Barley
-1lb Carafoam
-1oz Magnum hops (supposed to boil for 60min, only got 40min)
-.5oz Magnum hops (supposed to boil for 20min, only got 0-2min)
(I was going to do another .5oz magnum for 5min, but didn't get them in)
-WL Irish Yeast

So far the beer has started fermenting. There is a small krausen head on top, and a moderate amount of activity. Unfortunately I forgot to take an OG reading. I suppose it will turn into beer, but what is it going to taste like since it didn't boil for long enough?

-Shaun

You really should have sprung for the 20# propane tank. You ran out propane so quickly because you had two tiny canisters of it, not nearly enough to do a full brew. As to how it will affect your beer, the hop character will be different, obviously. It will be less bitter than anticipated, it will have some flavor and plenty of aroma. The beer will also be less balanced toward hops than it would have been otherwise. It may even be evenly balanced at this point. Not related to your boil time, but 2 lbs of roasted barley is a lot. Don't be surprised if it comes out pretty astringent.

Had it happened to me, I just wouldn't have been in a rush to cool the beer. Of course, I usually only boil for 45 minutes; it's not too different from 60 minutes as far as bitterness goes. I also add my flavoring hops after flameout and let them steep for 20 minutes or so. You can still dry-hop the last 1/2oz of magnum if you're so inclined, or save it for a future batch. I'd go for the full-size propnae tank; they're only 15-20 bucks to refill and last a long time. Quick tip: weigh your tank when full so you can keep track of how much is left and whether or not you're going to run out mid-batch.

I average 3 brews sessions per 15lb tank, so about 5lb per brew. Buy a 15-20lb cylinder and a back up, or find a location that fills per lb and fill after every brew session.

I use a little over 4 lbs of LPG per brew day, doing 90 minute boils of 5G of wort. Your 2 lbs was not nearly enough to get the job done. Go on Craig's list, get a used propane tank for 5-10 bucks, take it to Home Depot and trade it in for a newish one. Better yet, get two so you never run out...UHaul is a good place to get propane. Most of the trade in places are about 20% higher than they should be. Propane is about $4 per gallon which is a little over 4 pounds, which is about what I burn through in a session.

Just started cracking open the first few of these beers. They could still use a lot of time to balance and what not, but they don't seem to have suffered much from a short boil time. The two pounds of roasted barley was too much though, it really kicks you in the teeth.

allenH said:

Buy a 15-20lb cylinder and a back up,

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A backup.
That 2nd tank is worth its weight in gold sometimes.

two is one, one is none.

amandabab said:

A backup.
That 2nd tank is worth its weight in gold sometimes.

two is one, one is none.

Click to expand...

:Yup, was at friends brewing last week and he ran out. Had to send someone down to get a refill. Lucky us as we were brewing at night and got the refill just before the placed closed.

I always have two tanks on hand. Ran out last Sat, but the backup tank was ready to take over. The empty one was turned in to HD and is full now.

Thanks for the thread, my wife suggested I go to Home Depot and pick up a backup tank for my 15 lb tank I already have after I told her about this thread
I said ,honey, that sounds like a good idea.

Once you get a regular sized tank, make sure your near one of these;

http://www.homedepot.com/hdus/en_US/DTCCOM/common/docs/Propane_Link.pdf

24 hour tank exchange :rockin:

Brewskii said:

Once you get a regular sized tank, make sure your near one of these;

http://www.homedepot.com/hdus/en_US/DTCCOM/common/docs/Propane_Link.pdf

24 hour tank exchange :rockin:

Click to expand...

Word of advice, I'm probably the only person this has happened to, but still...

Make sure the tanks aren't all in the wrong place. I went to HD one time for the automatic exchange and when I walked up to the cage where my tank was supposed to be, it wasn't there. There was another cage open with a full tank in it though, so I took that one and left mine. Forgot all about it. Some time later, I was checking my bank account and noticed that my propane exchange cost me forty something dollars! Turns out I got charged for two. I went and explained, pleaded, and finally complained for a good half hour and they wouldn't reverse the charge. Most expensive propane exchange ever.

I have a feeling that it's a rite of passage for everyone who uses a propane burner to run out in the middle of brewing. I mean, I've only done three batches so far, and I've already had it happen.

Fortunately, I had a backup cylinder ready to go. Unfortunately, it took me 15 minutes to get the burner started again because it kept backfiring and blowing the matches out before before I could get it lit.

Check Craigslist for 20# tanks. I got 3 of them for $10, and now I always have 4 on hand. One to brew with, one for the grill, and 2 spares.