Input on using natural gas?

[jbbeer]

I am designing my new 10gal brewery and plan on building it in the garage which has living space above (bedroom). The garage is relatively small, but has a garage door and a regular door at the back. I am undecided about natural gas or electric. If I decide on natural gas I will have the work done and/or inspected by a certified HVAC technician. I don't want to take chances or get screwed on my insurance. I just have a few questions.

Would it be legal to run 2 burners (HLT and kettle) indoors in this way? Or would the technician just laugh at me and label me insane?
What requirements would have to be met? Forced ventilation, stand construction etc? I assume there are specific state/country laws. I am in Ontario, Canada.

I would like to have a gas solenoid and pilot light installed at some point too to automate the HLT. Does this complicate things?

I am also looking for input on burners - I hear the hurricane NG works well, and how about the 10-tip jet burners? For 10gal batches? Any others? All of these burners seem hard to find online.

 

[Sawdustguy]

I am designing my new 10gal brewery and plan on building it in the garage which has living space above (bedroom). The garage is relatively small, but has a garage door and a regular door at the back. I am undecided about natural gas or electric. If I decide on natural gas I will have the work done and/or inspected by a certified HVAC technician. I don't want to take chances or get screwed on my insurance. I just have a few questions.

Would it be legal to run 2 burners (HLT and kettle) indoors in this way? Or would the technician just laugh at me and label me insane?
What requirements would have to be met? Forced ventilation, stand construction etc? I assume there are specific state/country laws. I am in Ontario, Canada.

I would like to have a gas solenoid and pilot light installed at some point too to automate the HLT. Does this complicate things?

I am also looking for input on burners - I hear the hurricane NG works well, and how about the 10-tip jet burners? For 10gal batches? Any others? All of these burners seem hard to find online.

For you automated HLT read this: https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f51/gas-temperature-control-dummies-116632/

Go with the Hurricane burner. The jet burners can be a lot of trouble.

I understand your need to be cautious but I think you are going a little over the top with the insurance thing. I would be worried a little more about carbon monoxide poisioning when brewing in an enclosed area first. Insurance is useless when you are dead.

 

[jbbeer]

Thanks Sawdustguy. Very nice DIY for gas control! Really liked your RIMS for dummies as well. I want to do something similar without PIDs, but with either a BCS-460 or custom programming and CPU relay controllers.

Insurance is useless when you are dead.

...and I hear they only serve Bud Light Lime in hell.

But I do take safety seriously. The previous system used 3 propane burners in a less well-ventilated garage using a box fan (and a CO detector of course). I feel that using NG will be relatively safer and ventilation will be more than adequate. I suppose my main concerns are tapping into the NG line in the basement (something which I am not sure I am allowed to do myself) and the fact that there is living space above the garage.

 

[Bobby_M]

Just have a plumber run a 3/4" line to the garage. Tell him you're installing a commercial sized stove in there. Tell him it's going to be 120k BTU.

 

[Dog House Brew]

Just remeber if you go NG that when you look at burners that NG is about 1/2 the output of propane. Most are listed as propane output. I bout 200,000 btu burners that give 110,000 btu in NG. Mine are 20 tip jet burners. Make sure you are looking at NG output

 

[Clayton]

Just remeber if you go NG that when you look at burners that NG is about 1/2 the output of propane. Most are listed as propane output. I bout 200,000 btu burners that give 110,000 btu in NG. Mine are 20 tip jet burners. Make sure you are looking at NG output

only if you try to use propane burners!
if you get the corect orifice it will have the as rated btu

 

[Dog House Brew]

I I understand that, but I was fooled when they didn't list btu as NG jut propane. Obvious when it is as listed

 

[Catt22]

FWIW,

I recently found this information regarding the NG vs Propane BTU's thing:

"Propane is the hotter burning fuel. Propane is a gas that is present in most natural gas and is the first product refined from crude petroleum. It contains approximately 2,500 Btu per cubic foot. Methane is the chief constituent of natural gas and has a heating value of about 1012 Btu per cubic foot. Therefore, propane has more than twice the heat value of natural gas per cubic foot."

 

[Sawdustguy]

While propane has more BTU output, it is also a ton more expensive.