Using 2 burners for stovetop brewing & the distance apart

As mentioned yesterday, I'm going back to extract for one batch. In the past I was able to boil about 3.5 (starting volume) on my one burner. I'd like to incorporate the other burner so I can start with 4-4.5 gallons. The two burners are about 10-12" apart on center. Is that too far apart to use both simultaneously?

 

I'm assuming you are planning on 1 brewpot over 2 burners. I do this when I'm brewing indoors. If your pot is big enough to cover both burners, I'd say you're set to go.

 

The width of the pots base will not cover both burners. That's why I'm wondering what to do. I'm assuming I'll have some flames creeping up the sides...

 

aproach the pot from the side to avoid burning your fingers.

 

sounds like an excuse to get a bigger pot.

 

You'll get it up to temp a little faster but you will be wasting a lot more gas due to the heat loss on the uncovered flame. I'd try to stick with one burner. Now, one idea is to fill the big pot with 3 gallons and fill another pot with another gallon or two. Keep it split up like that until you reach boiling, then dump the smaller one in the larger. The hardest part is the heating, after it's boiling it doesn't take much energy to keep it going.

 

That sounds good. I didn't think of splitting. What do you think of heating like 1.5 gallons in one pot to do my steeping, bring it to a boil, and then adding it to the 2.5 gallons of water in my main pot - once they're both near boiling? This is your old 30qt pot I'm referring to btw...

 

Before I got the grain bag, I used to do the steeping in a separate pot, then pour thru a strainer into the big boil pot to remove the sediment.

You could have 2.5 galls or so in your big pot coming up to boil and do your steep in another gallon on the side.

Works fine!

 

When I use the stove I use 2 burners, about 15-20% of each burner is off the kettle but it still is about exactly twice as fast as using one and I can maintain a vigouous boil with close to 7 gallons this way, with one just one burner its a gentle rolling boil.

 

That's exactly what I wanna do. I was going to mill my grains right into the smaller pot once it hit 150F or so, then steep in there, strain into something else, and bring both the wort and my water to seperate boils. I can't bring the steeping pot up to boiling while the grains are still in it (obviously)...

 

two burner's here too... the edges of the burners are right at the side of the pot, but all of that area between the burners gets used very effectively. Put the handles on the side so they don't get to like 500°F

 

You mean set the handles perpendicular or parallel to the burners?

 

I use two burners but also use a Heat Stik. It is essentially a water heater element with a power cord attached. I can just barely get 6 gallons to a boil this way. I have a gas stove and let me say, it is no Viking.

 

If you can't position one pot on two burners, I have done full boils by splitting the wort into two steel pots on separate burners, and it works just fine. Once I tried dumping the boiling wort from one pot into the larger pot, but couldn't get enough heat to maintain a rolling boil with the full volume. On a gas range, though, it might be possible.

My solution for my electric range was to (1) switch to a flat-bottomed aluminum pot, which has much better heat transfer), and (2) insulate the pot. I can EASILY maintain a rolling 6.5 gallon boil now on one burner, when the best I go do before was about 3.5 - 4 gals with the steel pot. My method might not work for a gas range, but here it is just in case:
http://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=53683

 

I've tried the two burner method and found the flame creeping up the side, and it seemed to burn while boiling. I went back to single burner, although I'd really prefer to build a brew stand with propane burner, and get more surface area for the flame. It takes a long while to get my stove to boil my wort.

 

Funny I was just talking to the owner of my neighborhood LHBS this weekend, he did a full 5 gallon AG boil on his electric stove by straddling 2 burners. But I was thinking about the awkwardness of all that weight on the boiler elements...I've been wondering whether flipping over a shallow baking pan like this,



over the 2 burners would help take the strain off as well make the heat more evenly distributed... The other thought way laying unglazed heat resistant ceramic tiles between the burners...again to take some of the strain off and also to spread the heat around a bit more evenly...

Anyone tried either of these 2 ideas?