started my first brewing build today!

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tstanonis1

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Joined
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Location
Murrieta
I have a bayou classic 10 gallon mash tun and a bayou classic 16 gallon kettle that can also be a mash tun. A chugger pump, and an immersion chiller that I made. I've done two all grain brews with what I have and I'm gonna take the plunge and grow my equipment up a step... Also considering converting to natural gas to get away from constantly filling propane bottles...

If anyone is interested I keep posting my progress.

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Added 100 feet of 1"x 1/8" flat bar to the top yesterday to make a grill surface for the kettles...
 
Ok, so I started work on the burners this week. I added a wind shield, and electric spark igniter. I made a mount to fit the two bolts under the burner that holds the two castings together. Used some huge all-thread I found in my shop to mount the burners. With the all-thread mounts I can raise and lower the entire burner fixture to my pot even when lit. I bored out the brass orifice to handle natural gas instead of propane. I found a 12 foot flex hose with a quick disconnect so I can roll my cart to the backyard and plug in an extension cord and gas and fire up...

some problems I have found:
I have a 1/2 inch gas line in my back yard and these are supposed to be 60,000 btu burners. I don't think that's big enough for all three.. however, I think I can get away with two at a time. so I can heat my mash tun and hot liquor tank at the same time then my boil kettle later.. "I hope we will see later"

My grill Idea for the top surface has the potential to warp from heat. If it does I already have plans on how to remove the grills that i made and how to improve it if I need to.

I purchased some 20 dollar 3/8 solenoid valves for the gas lines to start and stop each burner. Due to the low pressure of natural gas I'm not sure if they will close... anyone have experience with a regular 2 way alco valve and natural gas?

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Nice!
Info you: Your strips over your burners are going to bow like crazy!

The best thing is something that "floats", as in unsecured by welds around the perimeter, with some room to "grow" when heated.
 
yes, you are absolutely right! Took my cart home for some testing and use for the weekend and watched them bow until they touched each other...

but the story starts when I got home with the cart and flipped it upside down while trying to get it off the truck myself. It rolled over and crushed my gas lines... I was pissed!!!!

the flex gas lines were dented but I didn't have any leaks so I fired it up anyways...

I boiled 8 gallons each in two pots at the same time and it took 43 minutes to achieve boiling from 70 degree city water temp... then I boiled each pot for an hour to measure water loss at full blast... I lost 2 gallons of water in each pot over an hour. my propane burner would lose about 1 1/2 gallons in an hour.
 
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