BG14 on natural gas - weak flame

[calebgk]

I've got a KAB6 which uses the BG14 burner. On propane, the thing works awesome. I got the Blichmann NG conversion. I get flame, but cannot imagine brewing on it. I cannot get a blue flame, even with the vent open all the way. And it just seems so weak. I haven't tried a pot yet. I used the hose from my BBQ. BBQ always works awesome, so I don't think it's the hose.

Any ideas?

 

[GilaMinumBeer]

You need the explosives bobblehead from the WKML broadcast station.

The check that all the lines are clear, and the throat of the burner is clear. Finally, it could be you NG pressure is low.

 

[lurker18]

NG pressures are usually quite a bit lower than any propane source. There conversion should help, but the burner element may have too big jet openings for the NG.

 

[Chrisl77]

What do the ends of the bbq hose look like? are they open or do they have a restrictor or orifice in it? Pretty sure propane is mostly high pressure and dosnt need a large opening in the hose. Pretty sure NG needs larger hoses for proper flow.

 

[jackyl]

BG14s will work fine on NG. Make sure there's no clog on the orifice, check your NG pressure and look for restrictions in your hose.

To check the orifice for clogs, stick a drill bit smaller than the orifice through from the gas side.

To check pressure, fill a container of water to over a foot deep, stick the end of your NG hose in with a tape measure also extended and at the bottom, turn the gas on, then lift it and the tape together until you get bubbles. That will give you your NG pressure in water column. You can look up charts that will tell you max BTUs based on WC combined with your pipe length and diameter.

finally look for additional restrictions on the propane hose and consider replacing it with a NG hose that is rated for more BTUs than you figured out above

 

[bu_gee]

Just looking at the specs, the burner can output 210,000 BTU/hr with a 30 psi regulator which is what I assume you're used to. The Blichmann NG conversion kit claims it can do up to 60,000 BTU/hr. You're already looking at around a 7/2 drop in maximum output without any technical problems.