Vic Case Swap Equipment....ongoing..

[husky]

Burners sorted I think. 2 x Keg King units, I believe idzy uses one of these burners under his 600L so here's hoping two is enough here. The regulators that come with them say max 2kg/hr propane which I don't think will be enough so trying to find a couple of high pressure adjustable regulators.
Burner will be about 120mm from the base of the tank, anyone have experience with this? ok or needs adjustment?
Anyone that regularly uses gas advise if there is a way to get consistency in boil off between batches? Can a pressure gauge be fitted to the low pressure side to maintain a constant pressure each brew? My old 3V has gas and I could never get the same boil off rate between brews.

 

[malt junkie]

@husky I only link this site for the last of the product pics on the page, well ok it's some pretty cool gear but I think it answers one of your questions.

 

[husky]

Ooo nice, haven't seen that site before. So looks like I need to find some LPG suitable TEE's and gauges. Same style burner so more confident now that 2 burners is fine.

 

[MartinOC]

Seriously, mate, what you've achieved so far is waaay above & beyond the call of duty. Absolutely STELLAR performance!

The two you have will be fine. Idzy's single burner was enough to get 600l of pre-boil volume absolutely cranking & actually had to be turned down a few times to prevent boilovers ('Gotta say, I'm not generally impressed with KK stuff, but this is one piece of their kit that they got absolutely right & is MUCH better than they advertise).

Are you planning on fixing the burners in place, or have them moveable under the framework? I honestly think that once the boil gets under-way, a single one (possibly under the centre of the boiler) will do the job admirably to keep a good rolling boil.

BTW, you're going to be IC volume/boil-off rates for reference to future brews with this monster....

 

[husky]

Seriously, mate, what you've achieved so far is waaay above & beyond the call of duty. Absolutely STELLAR performance!

The two you have will be fine. Idzy's single burner was enough to get 600l of pre-boil volume absolutely cranking & actually had to be turned down a few times to prevent boilovers ('Gotta say, I'm not generally impressed with KK stuff, but this is one piece of their kit that they got absolutely right & is MUCH better than they advertise).

Are you planning on fixing the burners in place, or have them moveable under the framework? I honestly think that once the boil gets under-way, a single one (possibly under the centre of the boiler) will do the job admirably to keep a good rolling boil.

BTW, you're going to be IC volume/boil-off rates for reference to future brews with this monster....

The burner looks like a standard design available is many other places so hopefully ok.
I was going to have them moveable beneath and have built a slide bar to mount the burners to but when I picked up the burners the height of the standard frame suits to within 1mm(just lucky) so I think I will leave them as is moveable beneath the frame. Once its to the boil one can be turner off but there's no room to remove it so it will be an off centre boil if only running 1 burner, should be ok and might help turn the work over better? Will try first and mount them to the frame if it doesn't work as is.

 

[malt junkie]

Martin you missed using our newest and best emoji specifically for this kind of effort!!

 

[MartinOC]

Buggered if I know how to do emoji's under the new regime, but that's a perfect one for this situation!

How the **** do I do this new stuff??

 

[husky]

Who knows stuff about gas?

Below is what I have conjured up from some bits and pieces. Before I go to a gas type place who can answer me this:
- Do I need a specific gauge? I have a compressed air one currently but does it need to be made of certain materials?
- Materials, assume stainless is ok? Nicer than brass
- Does the orifice have to go right at the inlet to the burner or will it be ok before the TEE for the gauge?
- Where do I go to talk gas and parts? Reece?

 

[malt junkie]

Does the hose unscrew from the reg? I think the gauge would be better further away from the heat.

 

[TheWiggman]

I've never seen stainless on a gas system except at the burners. Not sure if there's a reason for this but I'd prefer the benefit of the doubt. Normally gas fittings have O-rings on them and threaded fittings to suit but I think this is mainly to minimise the chance of a leak.
I wouldn't bother with the gauge, I think the anger of the flames will be enough of a giveaway of how hard it's going. Reece might give you tips but a qualified plumber is probably your best bet.

 

[malt junkie]

BOC do have this low pressure gauge, (if 600kpa is in the ball park) and for that money, I'd be happy knowing the gauge was fit for purpose. I think the stainless would be fine though the jet does need to be in the burner to create the venturi effect to suck in oxygen. Also those nipples look to be a different thread to the burner and T, and around stuff that burns .....

 

[husky]

The threads are all 1/4" BSPT I just haven't screwed them all the way in during test fit. Moved the gauge. Will call some people tomorrow but I like the idea of the pressure gauge so there is a variable to adjust when aiming for a certain boil off rate.

 

[malt junkie]

May be simpler there is a third outlet on the bottom for a gauge, just not sure if it's high or low, but wouldn't take much to figure out. And the reg is Npt

 

[droid]

If there's a bit of wind about it can take forever to boil with no walls/guards around the base. Idzy fashioned some windbreakers.

 

[Whiteferret]

+1 to the idea of wind guards. Most of you guys have seen my boiler but here's a picture. This saved roughly 1/3 the time and gas to get to the boil

 

[malt junkie]

Actually if the burners were later to be permanently mounted, the sides could be completely enclosed; and a fan blower (think supercharger people) rigged to the air intake. This would improve fuel efficiency too. Yes it's been done before with LP natrual gas, but principle applies. And the fan blowers are cheap too (12v from memory).

ED : LINK to the fan, then you'd just use a cheap POT or voltage controller to control fan speed.

 

[technobabble66]

Fantastic work, husky.
+1 on the wind guard. Might be good to look at both a guard for the kettle (like whiteferret has pictured), plus a guard for the stand similar to what idzy has on his.


-1 for whiteferret's poor photography skills [emoji1]

 

[Nullnvoid]

Fantastic work, husky.
+1 on the wind guard. Might be good to look at both a guard for the kettle (like whiteferret has pictured), plus a guard for the stand similar to what idzy has on his.


-1 for whiteferret's poor photography skills [emoji1]

In whiteferrets defence, all the times I have seen it, I have been drinking heavily and so my eyesight probably was that hazy. Probably wouldn't have recognised it, if it was a clear picture

 

[husky]

I have put 100mm sheet down the 4 sides as a wind break but sounds like it needs to be completely enclosed?
Also turns out brass is usually used to prevent sparks/static when assembling/disassembling so have ordered some brass fittings and gauges. Can't see stainless being an issue here anyway but better safe than sorry I guess.

 

[MartinOC]

Nope, 'doesn't need to be completely enclosed, just enough to stop draughts blowing the flames out/sideways from the burners.

Idzy has some heavy-duty aluminium(?) foil surrounding the base of his burner stand & seems to work a treat.

Dunno about MJ's blower idea, 'though. As long as air can get in/under/through the stand (read: a few perfectly acceptable leaky-bits), there shouldn't be any need for supplementary airflow.