What are the Best Burners for Keggles?

SSBrew - 728
Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum

Help Support Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
Schlenkerla

Schlenkerla

Supporting Member
HBT Supporter
Joined
Apr 18, 2006
Messages
16,779
Reaction score
5,895
I have ~ $150 worth birthday cash to spend. I'm trying to select more gear to make AG brewing easier. I'm thinking about getting another burner, maybe an O2 kit too.

I bought a keggle around xmas and I have it set up to work on my king cooker turkey fryer, but I have too add a 17" circular grill to the top of it since the keggle is too big for the burner.

Q 1.) Do you guys know of a stand that is ready to go off the shelf for keggles?

Q 2.) Do most of you also run with two burners?

I assume most of you using a cooler MLT will boil water to preheat the MLT and then heat up the strike water ~162F. Then have sparge water heating during the mash.
 
I have been using the Bayou Classic SQ-14 for awhile now and really like it. Fits my keggle perfect. You can get them at home depot for about $45.
 
How bout a 4500 Watt "burner". Sorry, just had to plug electric brewing, ha no pun intended. Cheaper per batch, and less chance of running out of fuel mid boil.
 
I have both the banjo and the SQ-14. I bought the Banjo first, it seems to have a little more kick but is tougher to control. The SQ-14 works great, plenty of power (the Banjo can be overkill), runs clean, easy to control the flame.
 
ScubaSteve said:
It all depends on what you're into. Do you have a rig/stand? For $150 you can build one from 2x4"s and plumb the burners in. The separate burner is WAY cheaper...I bought my banjos for $25 a piece. Steel shelving http://www.lowes.com/lowes/lkn?action=productDetail&productId=64014-80752-61398&lpage=none is also a great option....just add wheels/remove tiers/make cuts as necessary.
Click to expand...

I'm glad that you mention it, I've been contemplating this as an option because I don't have rig. As it is right now I've just got the turkey fryer, kettle & Keggle, MLTs, 50' chiller, its all separate.

Do you know anybody using 2x4's? This might sound stupid... Do they use them just as a frame what keeps them from burning? I assume they have some type of metal center structure.

The modular shelving looks cool too. Sounds like a good project...
 
I used bed frames and just bolted them together, its holding up well. The only cost is in the bolts because you can get bed frames for free easily.
 
I have been using the Bayou Classic SQ-14 for awhile now and really like it. Fits my keggle perfect. You can get them at home depot for about $45.
 
Schlenkerla said:
Do you know anybody using 2x4's? This might sound stupid... Do they use them just as a frame what keeps them from burning? I assume they have some type of metal center structure.
Click to expand...

Yup.... I am....

BKGKM-97287710-MVC-691F.JPG
 
I have a Banjo and did my fist 8 Gallons boil yesterday handeled it GReat. I'll prolly pick up one of those $45 ones to use as an HLT in the future. Yesterday I just heater one pot then used it for boiling. Used Ale Pales to trasnfer water to Mash Tun
 
Schlenkerla said:
Do you know anybody using 2x4's? This might sound stupid... Do they use them just as a frame what keeps them from burning? I assume they have some type of metal center structure.QUOTE]

Do I? Check out my gallery. Here's my build thread from A-Z...http://homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=36267&highlight=Scuba%27s I'm a big fan of using wood. you just have to tweak it. FWIW, I find that the Banjos are actually overpowered. I never go past medium because the flames will lick up the sides of the keg. Lots of people report great success with these:http://www.agrisupply.com/cast-iron-burner-com/p/30295/cn/5400001/ They're way smaller, more efficient, and definitely cheaper. Most importantly, they are easier to mount. IMO, no burner is harder to mount than a Banjo. That's something I never thought about until I opened the box. I had to get seriously creative.

Lastly, you mentioned you already had a turkey fryer....if you look at my rig you can see I integrated mine. It works perfect for direct fire recirc/mashing because I can put it on very low heat and not worry about scorching.

Let me know if you have any questions, I'll be glad to help ;)
Click to expand...
 
Thanks ScubaSteve. I just got another $100 so now I've got $250 to play with to make a rig.

BTW - Alot of your pictures are missing in the links. What's up with that?
 
$250 will build you a nice rig. Do you have a pump? That will really determine what kind of rig you can build. I like mine, but if I did it again I might make mine like a Morebeer 1550: http://morebeer.com/view_product/15198/102323 I actually went in and restored all the pictures after having issues with photobucket...it seems now that the only ones that cannot be viewed are where people quoted my posts that had pics in them. I can't repair the links in someone else's post...so pretty much every picture I originally posted has been restored and you're still seeing the complete build. If that makes sense :D I've made a few improvements lately and will be installing pumps soon....so there's more to come.
 
the_bird said:
I have both the banjo and the SQ-14. I bought the Banjo first, it seems to have a little more kick but is tougher to control. The SQ-14 works great, plenty of power (the Banjo can be overkill), runs clean, easy to control the flame.
Click to expand...

+1 for the SQ14 burner. The only thing I did was upgrade the regulator for double batches. I don't know how necessary that was though...
 
+1 for the SQ14 for use with keggle. I'm very happy with mine. My only possible complaint might be the noise, but then again, I don't have much experience with giant propane burners. I'd be interested to know how the banjo compares with the SQ14 in terms of noise. Not that it's a big deal, but it's harder to rock out while brewing when the stereo is drowned out by the sound of a small jet engine. :D
 
MrFebtober said:
+1 for the SQ14 for use with keggle. I'm very happy with mine. My only possible complaint might be the noise, but then again, I don't have much experience with giant propane burners. I'd be interested to know how the banjo compares with the SQ14 in terms of noise. Not that it's a big deal, but it's harder to rock out while brewing when the stereo is drowned out by the sound of a small jet engine. :D
Click to expand...

:confused:

Mine's not loud at all. The Banjo's not bad, either; neither is a jet burner.
 
MrFebtober said:
+1 for the SQ14 for use with keggle. I'm very happy with mine. My only possible complaint might be the noise, but then again, I don't have much experience with giant propane burners. I'd be interested to know how the banjo compares with the SQ14 in terms of noise. Not that it's a big deal, but it's harder to rock out while brewing when the stereo is drowned out by the sound of a small jet engine. :D
Click to expand...

If your SQ14 is really loud, you need to adjust the air intake. You'll want to adjust it so the flames are almost entirely blue with just the tips being orange/yellow.
 
I was weak this evening and broke down and got me a SQ14. I'm thinking the full rig will have to wait... :eek:

....SWMBO is pregnent, gotta get the dead truck off of the driveway and boat out of the garage. SWMBO wants indoor parking during the pregnancy.

BierMuncher - I officially have your set-up.
  1. Turkey Fryer for HLT - w/ a King burner
  2. IGLOO MLT
  3. Keggle - w/ a SQ14 (50' Chiller)
The other deal is that I probably will not do AG outside in Iowa after the temp dips below 30F. I also don't have running water in the garage.

Good thing is that I still have 200 left to spend.

BTW - ScubaSteve, I have no pump. I contemplated getting one. I think I can dump my HLT. Do you use yours for anything else? Your is all on the same level so I guess gravity doesn't work for you.
 
Congrats on the pregnancy! Hide that money or it's gettin' spent on maternity stuff.....:) Working with a pump can be a PITA, but I'm finding it's necessary for a single tier. I use mine to transfer water from the HLT to the MT, recirc (vorlauf and direct fire) in the MT, and transfer to the BK. I've lifted my keg full of 7 gallons of hot wort from the ground and onto my rig. After a few times, I realized it'd only be a matter of time before I seriously injured myself....the pump is totally worth it. Working with gravity is great, especially with a setup like yours where you can use a table or crate to get the height...and then put it all away...but I'm not a fan of the giant 3-tier setup. FWIW, using a wort wizard with your plate/CFC or even just an IC will enable you to keep things low to the ground.....
 
So it sounds like the Bayou Classic SQ-14 is the way to go for an additional burner. I'm looking into adding a burner to my ghetto setup so I can do double batches this summer.
 
Thanks for this discussion, everyone - it's been immensely helpful as I try and fix the keggle setup I inherited (the old patio burner that came w/ it all took over 6 hours to bring roughly 10 gal. to boil)!
 

Similar threads

R
Red Mountain Valley Fryer/Burner Review
Replies
0
Views
6K
RedL
R
B
For Sale [Iowa] - Kegerator, Ferm Fridge, Keggle, Kegs, Equipment, etc... All gotta go
Replies
0
Views
559
bfinleyui
B
T
For Sale Awesome all grain home brewery for sale $1000 for EVERYTHING - Dallas,TX
Replies
0
Views
887
tealio
T
ryanj
Simplifying My Brew Day
Replies
34
Views
3K
6531Brewing
6
JerryMc
I have no idea what I'm doing but boy ain't it fun!
Replies
16
Views
2K
JerryMc
JerryMc

Latest posts

Back
Top