New Burner Rec

Northern Brewer General
1

I’m looking for a new propane burner; something in between the Blichmann top tier and the Bayou SP10.

Has anyone used this 220k BTU burner from Adventures in Homebrewing? http://www.homebrewing.org/14-Propane-B … _1190.html

Need something hot, safe and sturdy, that can support a full 20 gal pot.

Anyone have a better recommendation?

2

That burner looks very sturdy but one thing bothers me about it. The physical size of the burner element looks rather small in diameter. I can see how flames would cover the bottom of your kettle and come right up the sides. You can’t beat it for the price but I would probably also build a ring to sit between the burner and the brew pot just to contain the flames. I have insulation on my 25 gallon Megapot and I don’t like it when it burns (same thing for direct flames to the ball valve).

3

my vote is a banjo style. i just got a blichmann and love the crap out of it. worth the $, so i’d say for sure get a burner that covers the whole bottom of the pot. those jet styles have a tendency to blacken and heat unevenly, so ditto the prev post.

http://www.northernbrewer.com/shop/brew ... stand.html

or http://www.northernbrewer.com/shop/brew … urner.html

4

Didn’t our sponsor just release a new 52k BTU burner for $40?

I say get the blichmann :slight_smile:

5

+1 on the banjo style. I used a single jet type burner for a very long time. Saw and read about the banjo style, but just didn’t make the leap. The burner I had finally broke where the gas line screws in and I bought the banjo. Big difference for me. It heats quicker and I believe it’s more efficient. I have to admit that may be wishful thinking as I never really tracked propane usage very closely…and things change in my process depending on how much water I boil, sometimes I pre-boil the night before, etc.

Bottom line though, I have to say I am way happy with the banjo burner.

6

Nevermind on our sponsor’s.

It only supports 10 gallons…not a bad price though!

http://www.northernbrewer.com/shop/brew ... urner.html
7

I’m not a huge fan of most of these types of “blowtorch” burners.

I own a “heavy duty wok burner” (from India Joze, http://indiajoze.com/equipment.html) for my outdoor cooking station (using a wok). It is amazing at making things hot fast and rebounding after adding lots of cold food to a wok. I use it almost exclusively for cooking steaks, since I can get cast iron frighteningly hot. It’s also amazing for boiling water.

But, I will not let it touch my wort kettle because the likelihood that I scorch my wort while boiling is quite considerable.

From my point of view, the Blichmann and the Banjo are the right compromise of quick boiling and gentle heat transfer.

Cheers.

8

[quote=“Pietro”]Nevermind on our sponsor’s.

It only supports 10 gallons…not a bad price though!

http://www.northernbrewer.com/shop/brew ... urner.html[/quote]

I was looking at that burner in one of the new catalogs. I could use a decent small burner for heating strike water. I’m currently using one that doesn’t burn very well and leaves a bunch of soot. Nobody has reviewed it yet though. Anybody out there have it?