Propane or Electric Element for small apt.

I posted on here before about being able to boil 7 gallons of wort in my new 15 gallon megapot on my gas stove. My previous calculations were almost right, it will boil slightly but not nearly enough to really be usable. Now I'm faced with the question of whether to go propane or electric, and I have questions about the logistics of both. Coming off my apartment I have a small (4 foot by 5 foot) area, concrete floor, that connects my apartment to the fire escape. It does have a roof over it, but it does have one side completely open. I'm wondering if that is enough space to use a small banjo burner/how much space you really need to use a propane burner, because it seems like it would be enough, but I've never used one before.
If the space does turn out to be too small, then I'm figuring that my only other option is to go electric. I've read about the DIY heating elements, but I don't want to drill a hole in my new brew kettle to insert the element. Is there a way to have the element come from the top instead? Are the screw in 5500 watt elements long enough to reach down and heat the water from the top?
Thanks for any help someone might have. I was hoping to brew my first batch in my new apartment but this snag has thrown me back and I'd like to get things up and running again asap. I can post a picture of the outside area connected to my apartment if needed. Thanks!

The propane will be fine, just keep a fire extinguisher ready and keep an eye on it. A foot or two of clearance on each side will be fine.

Just keep in mind that some landlords do not approve of propane being used in certain areas of the property, and the same can be said by the fire department.

4x5 is enough for a propane burner, if, as you said, you have an open wall.

M_C

Build a heatstick, http://www.3d0g.net/brewing/heatstick I use a 1500W element with my gas stove. It boils 7 gal. just fine.

What building? I'm going to guess that your landlord isn't going to be too keen on you firing up an outside burner on the deck.

I second DJ, build a heatstick and use it in tandem with your gas stove. You will get a great boil and not have to put a hole in your pot. You could even boil 10 gallons if you wanted to. I'm surprised you can get any kind of boil with a 15 gallon megapot, I couldn't get one with a 10 gallon megapot on my gas stove, megapots are pretty wide.

Thanks for all the replies. My landlord did say it would be fine as long as I was "discreet and didn't burn down the place," so sorry for coming off as a potentially irresponsible tenant. I don't think he knew the kind of powerful burner I would be using, though. It sounds like my best option is the heatstick, and the DIY info looks simple enough to put one together. The one that DJ posted looks great, but my question is how do I keep it in the water? Probably something really simple that I'm overlooking, but do I need to hold it or make something that will connect it to the kettle to keep it in? Thanks again.

Also, would it make sense to get some type of PID SSR controller with it to control the temperature to make sure I don't scorch the wort?

SeanS86 said:

Probably something really simple that I'm overlooking, but do I need to hold it or make something that will connect it to the kettle to keep it in? Thanks again.

Click to expand...

Just rest it on the bottom of the kettle; or what I did was clamp a hook that clips to the side of my kettle.

You could try insulating your pot so that it will boil on the stove.