So I'm making a brew stand out of channel strut. I now need to figure how to plumb it. I'm using 2x banjo burners. I'm planning to mount the burners on top of a piece of strut and adjust the height of that strut piece in order to control the height of the burners.
I'm planning on controlling the burners manually for now. Each burner will get an ordinary ball valve for control (vs a needle valve) which gives me less precise flame control but that's all I need. My stand is going to be approximately 36" tall since I don't want to be crouching down or bending over to operate the valves.
I've read a bunch and found a few options for plumbing:
Option 1: black iron pipe with flexible appliance connector hoses to the burners.
PRO: easy to DIY. Assuming that Home Depot will cut and thread the pipe for me. Also I can plumb it so that there's a gas valve at an easy reach place like pictured
CON: in Canada, we don't have many options for these. Basically 24-36", and $35+ are our only options. Also I don't know if Home Depot in Canada will cut and thread your black iron pipe like they do in the states.
Option 2: corrugated steel tubing
PRO: far fewer fittings to deal with. Supposedly.
CON: Seems like I'd have to higher a gas worker to put it in for me...so cost.
Option 3: cheat. Black iron pipe with flexible water connector hoses
PRO: same as option 1 + far cheaper for the hoses
CON: Well, I know the threading is correct as it's iron pipe. I know going from 1/2" black iron pipes to a 3/4 iron pipe hose is kinda nuts...but the hoses are usually a little narrower (5/8 instead of 1/2) and I also know that 1/2" iron pipe is actually something like 0.61 not 0.50 so I think the difference in width would be a non issue. a big question is: ok so it's corrugated stainless just like a corrugated stainless gas hose. But can it actually work safely?
Option 4: iron pipe plus soft copper tubing
PRO: cheapest? I have about 20' of soft 1/2" copper tubing, type L I think. Used some it for my HERMS coil and a whirlpool outlet in my boil kettle. I could buy some brass compression fittings and just use the copper
CON: same problem with Home Depot probably not providing pipe cutting and threading. Also if I go this route I can't adjust the height of the burners anymore. Also super fiddly, bending copper to exact size and shape is a huge pain in the arse. Also I don't know if compression fittings are gas rated.
So...thoughts?
Note: the picture's not mine; I'm using it as inspiration for where I want my valve placement to be.
I'm planning on controlling the burners manually for now. Each burner will get an ordinary ball valve for control (vs a needle valve) which gives me less precise flame control but that's all I need. My stand is going to be approximately 36" tall since I don't want to be crouching down or bending over to operate the valves.
I've read a bunch and found a few options for plumbing:
Option 1: black iron pipe with flexible appliance connector hoses to the burners.
PRO: easy to DIY. Assuming that Home Depot will cut and thread the pipe for me. Also I can plumb it so that there's a gas valve at an easy reach place like pictured
CON: in Canada, we don't have many options for these. Basically 24-36", and $35+ are our only options. Also I don't know if Home Depot in Canada will cut and thread your black iron pipe like they do in the states.
Option 2: corrugated steel tubing
PRO: far fewer fittings to deal with. Supposedly.
CON: Seems like I'd have to higher a gas worker to put it in for me...so cost.
Option 3: cheat. Black iron pipe with flexible water connector hoses
PRO: same as option 1 + far cheaper for the hoses
CON: Well, I know the threading is correct as it's iron pipe. I know going from 1/2" black iron pipes to a 3/4 iron pipe hose is kinda nuts...but the hoses are usually a little narrower (5/8 instead of 1/2) and I also know that 1/2" iron pipe is actually something like 0.61 not 0.50 so I think the difference in width would be a non issue. a big question is: ok so it's corrugated stainless just like a corrugated stainless gas hose. But can it actually work safely?
Option 4: iron pipe plus soft copper tubing
PRO: cheapest? I have about 20' of soft 1/2" copper tubing, type L I think. Used some it for my HERMS coil and a whirlpool outlet in my boil kettle. I could buy some brass compression fittings and just use the copper
CON: same problem with Home Depot probably not providing pipe cutting and threading. Also if I go this route I can't adjust the height of the burners anymore. Also super fiddly, bending copper to exact size and shape is a huge pain in the arse. Also I don't know if compression fittings are gas rated.
So...thoughts?
Note: the picture's not mine; I'm using it as inspiration for where I want my valve placement to be.
