Need advice on propane burner

What burner is needed to boil 6.5 gal in an 8 gal pot?

Typically heat 6.5 gal water in an 8 gal pot, 14" in diameter from Northern Brewer for a finished batch just over 5 gal. Currently work on the stove top but it takes forever. Looking to get a propane burner. Just read a posting on propane burners but it was like reading a foreign language with burner options for hi pressure, low pressure and needle valves.

Thinking of getting either of these burners from Northern Brewer but really don't know what I need. The first one is $80 and the second one is $140. Don't know if they are high or low pressure or if either of them have a needle valve. Don't mind spending a little more for the right burner.

Would be interested in hearing form people who brew 5 gal batches with a propane burner, especially if you use either of these burners.

http://www.northernbrewer.com/shop/low-profile-banjo-burner-burner-and-stand.html

http://www.northernbrewer.com/shop/blichmann-floor-burner.html

Way...WAY overkill
BG12 burner is plenty

That looks.like a bg14 burner I do 5 gal batches and its over kill but awesome

OK, like the Bayou Classic. My concern is it has a 10 PSI regulator and burns at 55,000 btu's. Don't want to overbuy but found this one on the same Bayou Classic Depot web site. It burns at 201,000 BTU's and has a 30 PSI regulator. My guess it would heat faster, be quieter and use less fuel but not sure. To jump from 55K BTU's to 210K BTU's you've got to use more fuel.

http://www.bayouclassicdepot.com/kab4_banjo_burner.htm

JoeyChopps said:

That looks.like a bg14 burner I do 5 gal batches and its over kill but awesome

Click to expand...

Joey, you are right. The item number is SQ14 so it must be the same. My guess is it works great. How noisy is it and how how much fuel does it use? How quickly does it boil 50 degree water and would the 210K burner work a little faster?

Thanks

fwiw, I'm pretty sure the SQ14 uses a BG-12 burner, the BG-14's little brother...

Cheers!

ImperialStout said:

Joey, you are right. The item number is SQ14 so it must be the same. My guess is it works great. How noisy is it and how how much fuel does it use? How quickly does it boil 50 degree water and would the 210K burner work a little faster?

Thanks

Click to expand...

It's not noisy at all. I don't see a huge difference in fuel consuprion over smaller burner cuz u use less propane when its goin. I do feel like it gets to a boil sooner but I do not use the burner to its full capability

I bought the Bayou Classic SP10 to boil a full brew in my 7.5 gallon kettle. 14 minutes to full boil, its pretty nice. It may be overkill but sure cuts down on waiting around for the water to boil.

I bought mine from Amazon-55.00-which was the cheapest I found.

I've used the SP10 for 2 years or so. It works well for 5 gallon batches. Boils 8gs of wort in 20ish minutes from mash temps. I also hear you can get a bigger regulator. The BG10 can apparently use up to a 40 PSI reg, but it comes with a 10 PSI. So you can always up the power..

OneHoppyGuy said:

Way...WAY overkill
BG12 burner is plenty

Click to expand...

+1

I have this burner (the SQ-14) and it works great for the one batch (5gal) I've done in my keggle (I got a bunch of stuff--burner included for Xmas). Through research on this site it also works well for 10gal batches if you so choose to go that route.

Bonus: it's only $52 on Amazon.

Has anybody extended the legs on that burner? I'd like to be able to drain the kettle straight into the carboy. It would need to be sturdy to hold a 10 gallon kettle w/ about 8 gallons of wort/grain.

I have an alternative as I could place it so that it drains off of my concrete deck into a carboy on a table, but I'd like to keep it all closer.

Get a Home Depot Bucket and a piece of plywood and put it on that. Done.

They sell a leg extension kit for the SQ14 FYI. But you could probably even pick up some pvc

Pvc?.....never mind just saw the smilie get some center blocks

zacster said:

Has anybody extended the legs on that burner? I'd like to be able to drain the kettle straight into the carboy. It would need to be sturdy to hold a 10 gallon kettle w/ about 8 gallons of wort/grain.

I have an alternative as I could place it so that it drains off of my concrete deck into a carboy on a table, but I'd like to keep it all closer.

Click to expand...

8x8x8 cinder blocks. About a buck a piece.

I was thinking more along the lines of extending the legs with pre-drilled metal L shaped bars used for shelving. Cinder blocks are heavy, and ugly.

zacster said:

I was thinking more along the lines of extending the legs with pre-drilled metal L shaped bars used for shelving. Cinder blocks are heavy, and ugly.

Click to expand...

If you're concerned about it being ugly.. go get yourself a blichmann. I found it hard to invest time or money into a burner I paid 48 bucks for at lowes.

I've got two of these (HLT and BK) and love 'em. They come standard with legs. It's almost a little low for a 6.5 gal carboy but it'll work.
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0000ASCU9/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20