Outdoor Propane Burner Advice Needed.

[thejones59]

I am getting ready to up my game to all grain and using an outdoor propane burner. While browsing I see many different BTU's for the burners. Any minimum BTU's I should get?
Thanks in advance.

 

[Jim R]

I started out using a cheap turkey fryer propane burner and quickly got tired waiting for my water to heat up. It worked ok but it was frustratingly slow. I finally broke down and bought a Blichmann Hellfire burner. I couldn't believe the difference. It put out so much heat that the first time I used it I was afraid to even turn it up to high. It reduces all my heat times by about 50%. The turkey fryer burner would heat 6-7 gallons to boil temperatures in 50 min and the Hellfire in 25 min. When I factor in all the heating steps (heating water to heat up my mash tun, heating mash and sparge water and finally the boil kettle), it probably saves me 1 1/2 hours on my brew days. It was worth every penny and it should last forever.

I also doubt you can trust and reliably compare the stated BTU outputs of different burners on the market. I wouldn't put much stock in those numbers.

 

[Sammy86]

I had a banjo b14 burner...loved it.

 

[bracconiere]

nothing to really add...but propane is expensive....i use NG, and most people around here use electricity.....

 

[3 Dawg Night]

I have a Bayou Classic KAB4, and it will heat 6-7 gallons of water/wort to boiling in 10 minutes or so.

 

[bracconiere]

I have a Bayou Classic KAB4,

i used one of those for a while....could get 14 gallons to a boil in about 15 minutes....then i got sick of filling the tanks, and went back to brewing on the stove!

and if you do go propane remember to properly adjust your air thingy......i could only get 2 batches out of tank, till i found out although a jet engine might sound cool....it's not, or is?

edit: no mine was a bayou stainless steel square one.....

 

[Sammy86]

till i found out although a jet engine might sound cool....it's not, or is?

Nah it's def cool...just paying 16 bucks for a tank refill stinks

 

[bracconiere]

Nah it's def cool...just paying 16 bucks for a tank refill stinks

LOL, for the record you want to adjust the air flow thingy, and reg, so the you get nice solid tall blue flame, all the way from the burners surface, more heat, less noise.....

 

[Jim R]

I have been getting at least 4 five gallon batches from a standard 20 lb propane tank which cost me about $20 at the local gas station (tank exchanges). I keep a spare tank on hand which I also use for my grill. I spend at most $5 per batch of beer on propane.

 

[bracconiere]

I have been getting at least 4 five gallon batches from a standard 20 lb propane tank which cost me about $20 at the local gas station (tank exchanges). I keep a spare tank on hand which I also use for my grill. I spend at most $5 per batch of beer on propane.

yeah, my 10 gallon batches were like $6....but still that's A LOT for just a weeks worth of beer! lol

edit: i got 3 batches out of a tank, at $17 a fill.....last time i did that was 2015.....

 

[AJinJacksonville]

Right now my only option is propane. I get the tanks refilled at BJ's...$11 for a full fill.

Also, I've found that the mom & pop propane retail locations charge way less to fill or top off a tank. I probably had about an 1/6th to 1/8th of a tank left, took it there, and they filled it for like $8 after weighing it.

I was the guy who was always going up to the grocery store or box stores...$16-$17 a pop. That adds up...Yikes!

 

[wstumper]

One of the frustrating aspects of researching a propane burner (beer or otherwise) is the lack of information on the hose regulator. In particular, how low can you turn the flame. I've found a gentle boil serves me well and don't need 200,000,000 million BTUs. *Sarcasm* My first, and so far only burner, is the real basic Bayou Classic round burner. The regulator has a relatively course control knob. Getting a nice gentle boil requires baby sitting the regulator until it's low enough for my use--without the flame going out. (This is more evident now that I have a Spike 10-gal which maintains the heat better than my original thin Polar kettle.)

There's very little on YouTube and/or online reviews that discuss the regulator. I think the assumption is that most everyone is boiling 5 gallon batches and up and BTU's matter.

 

[bracconiere]

I think the assumption is that most everyone is boiling 5 gallon batches and up and BTU's matter.

now that would be funny! i want to see a 1 gallon batch on a outdoor burner now!

 

[bracconiere]

https://www.amazon.com/Nesco-Portable-Induction-Cooktop-1500-watt/dp/B01N7QXV8A
i boil 'wort' with a 1,500 watt hot plate ocassionally for 5 gallon batches also.....takes a while to get to boiling 7 gallons, but once it's there i have to use a fan speed controller to reduce the heat.....

 

[bracconiere]

oh and i looked up BTU def....1 BTU can raise the temp of 1 pound of water 1 degree....i couldn't find a time on it.....


so to get 7 gallons of water to a boil, or 56 pounds you'd need at least 8,000 BTU.....asuming the wort was at 70f......but most people want it to happen faster....


edit: i got away with boiling 14 gallons on two 10k burners.....

 

[camonick]

Also, I've found that the mom & pop propane retail locations charge way less to fill or top off a tank.

^^^ This^^^
I know it's not an option everywhere, but look into places that refill tanks instead of exchanges. A standard "grill" bottle is designed to be filled with 20 lbs of propane. A place like mentioned above (if they're honest) will fill a bottle with 20#. Exchanges like AmeriGas, Blue Rhino, etc. only fill the bottles with 15 lbs of propane and still charge full price.

 

[bracconiere]

only fill the bottles with 15 lbs of propane and still charge full price.

that's the same reason i'm bringing a scale next time i get my co2 tank swapped! so i can pick out the one that's "MOST" full, i've never gotten more then 18lb's from this place in my 20lb'r.....if i remember when they fill a tank, don't they use something like a gas pump guage to charge?

 

[wstumper]

now that would be funny! i want to see a 1 gallon batch on a outdoor burner now!

Ask and you shall receive!

 

[faithie999]

oh and i looked up BTU def....1 BTU can raise the temp of 1 pound of water 1 degree....i couldn't find a time on it.....


so to get 7 gallons of water to a boil, or 56 pounds you'd need at least 8,000 BTU.....asuming the wort was at 70f......but most people want it to happen faster....


edit: i got away with boiling 14 gallons on two 10k burners.....

as you found, a BTU is a unit of heat. so while you see burners rated in BTU, they are actually rated in BTU/hr. so to heat your 7 gallons to boiling on a cheap turkey fryer burner, often rated at 10,000 btu/hr, it takes close to an hour, as another poster had noted.

as for refills, we have Tractor Supply stores in our area. they charge by the gallon, often 2.99/gallon or less. they fill the tank on a scale so they know when it's full but you only pay for what they pump into it through a metered hose connection, so no penalty for refilling a not-totally-empty tank. factoids: a 20# tank holds about 4 gallons due to the overfill protection (safety) device, even though the volume of the tank is close to 5 gallons. also, the heat value of a gallon of propane is about 90,000 BTU (per Amerigas' website), but of course much of that heat is lost to the atmosphere while heating your kettle.

 

[govner1]

I am getting ready to up my game to all grain and using an outdoor propane burner. While browsing I see many different BTU's for the burners. Any minimum BTU's I should get?
Thanks in advance.

The best purchase I made when starting was my Blichmann burner with leg extensions. It’s very quiet and efficient. You won’t regret investing in one.

 

[jimyoung]

I love my Blichmann burner - bought one (pre hellfire, but same thing) based on reviews here.

I have a 8 gal kettle and I get 4-5 brews out of one propane tank. I refill it at costco for like $11 CAD. I used to go to the local gas station but they're like $25. a few refills at costco pays for an extra tank.

When I did the math, I figured that electric brewing would be /more/ expensive for me, cash wise.

 

[bracconiere]

Ask and you shall receive!

View attachment 695613

is the spritzer your sparge water?

 

[thejones59]

i used one of those for a while....could get 14 gallons to a boil in about 15 minutes....then i got sick of filling the tanks, and went back to brewing on the stove!

and if you do go propane remember to properly adjust your air thingy......i could only get 2 batches out of tank, till i found out although a jet engine might sound cool....it's not, or is?

edit: no mine was a bayou stainless steel square one.....

How many batches per tank did you get?

 

[bracconiere]

How many batches per tank did you get?

when i learned to adjust the little spinny air adjustment and reg right i got about 3 batches......with some left over...just remember, although jet engines sound cool, all that space at the bottom is unburned propane.....it's a lot hotter to be quite and tall.....but you don't need the flames that tall.....

 

[wstumper]

is the spritzer your sparge water?

That's good!

Actually, I use a 3-vessel system. HLT on the left, mash tun on the right. I was going to add ball valves but switched to 3 gallon batches late last year.

And, to keep this on topic, a new burner is on my wish list. The Bayou will be relegated to canning.

 

[Ragman]

I use a turkey fryer burner which works fine for me - got it super cheap (free) If Im dumping $7 to $10 a batch on propane, I feel better that I didnt spend $100+ on a burner. I dont mind waiting for water to boil, there are tons of things to do while waiting (cleaning, organizing,sanitizing, equipment gathering,etc) Ive done 11 gallon and 6 gallon batches using it and it gets the job done.