Burners on craigslist?

I've been demoted from brewing in the kitchen to the garage. I looking at it a different way I'm closer to the beer fridge at least!

At any rate I need to purchase a propane burner for my brewing. I'm in Kansas City and currently am only brewing 5 gallon batches but am looking to move to all grain soon. I've seen people mention that they've found burners on craigslist but any time I look I get zero results!

What are people searching for to find these burners? Maybe I'm just in the camping capital of the world and burners get sold before making it to craigslist.

At any rate, this is a dual thread...Bayou SQ14, KAB4, KAB6 or Blichmann? Before everyone says Blichmann hands down keep in mind that I'm doing 5 gallon batches, probably won't ever go to 10 gallon batches either. To me a Blichmann seems like overkill and it'd take a LONG time to make up the propane cost between the cost of the SQ14 and the Blichmann.

Taking all this into account, which burner should I get and where can I get it for the cheapest?

Don't think of it as a demotion.
Think of it as being given the opportunity to upgrade your gear, and heighten your potential for making better beer.

I don't think I have ever purchased a new burner. My SWMBO was on the garage sale circuit for a few years, and I had her buying burners that met my brewing criteria. ie, cheap, elevated, strong enough to hold a keggle.

I have never had a reason to upgrade after all these years of use. They all just simply work.

also search for turkey fryers...

For all the hype about banjos, blichmann, etc., I found the plain old turkey fryer does a good job of boiling water.

Well I've got a $50 gift cert from brewmasterswarehouse.com because I ordered the Blichmann with birthday money. Five days after ordering I got told they were a week behind and 17 days later I got told that they didn't carry Blichmann burners anymore. Nice...I'm glad I had to call to get you to refund my money. In the end it turned out to be a good thing so now I'm just trying to decide, use that $50 cert and won't ever deal with them ever again.

Marc77 said:

I've been demoted from brewing in the kitchen to the garage. I looking at it a different way I'm closer to the beer fridge at least!

At any rate I need to purchase a propane burner for my brewing. I'm in Kansas City and currently am only brewing 5 gallon batches but am looking to move to all grain soon. I've seen people mention that they've found burners on craigslist but any time I look I get zero results!

What are people searching for to find these burners? Maybe I'm just in the camping capital of the world and burners get sold before making it to craigslist.

At any rate, this is a dual thread...Bayou SQ14, KAB4, KAB6 or Blichmann? Before everyone says Blichmann hands down keep in mind that I'm doing 5 gallon batches, probably won't ever go to 10 gallon batches either. To me a Blichmann seems like overkill and it'd take a LONG time to make up the propane cost between the cost of the SQ14 and the Blichmann.

Taking all this into account, which burner should I get and where can I get it for the cheapest?

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I agree with others that it is not a demotion to the garage. After you get up and running out there, you may look upon it as an advancement. I did! :rockin:

I am one of those that will advise you to go with the Blichmann hands down. I do 5 gallon batches. Does it cost more? Yep. Is it the "Cadillac" of propane burners for homebrewing? Yep. For good reason, in my opinion. You will save on propane. The thing sips it. It uses a 10 psi regulater (vice the 30 psi on the others you mentioned). It is also much, much, much quieter. The others sound like a jet engine taking off in your driveway but the Blichmann is very quiet. I have sometimes thought the thing went out because I couldn't hear it at all. For me, thats a plus. Finally, the Blichmann is solidly built. It will last more than long enough for you to make back your money in propane. Plenty of brewers love their Bayou Classic burners and you may too...but I like the Blichmann.

Looking back on it now, I wish I had gone with the Blichmann burner. I have the Banjo burner, but it was available locally for me and that's why I bought that. I'm not a person who likes to wait for things. Especially when I wanted to be brewing now. The price difference really isn't all that much, for the praise that I've heard for the Blichmann, so, do consider it.

That being said, there is a reason I'm still brewing on the Banjo burner, the thing works great. I haven't really noticed the loudness issues other people speak of though, Yeah, it's loud when I'm trying to get to a boil, but once I hit it, I'm able to turn it down quite a bit and still keep a big rolling boil. It uses the same burner as the blichmann, so you will still get the same heat distribution. I'm also not sold on the whole 10lb regulator thing saving that much gas. The banjo burner has a control valve on it. Just because 30 psi is available, doesn't mean you are using it. I bet my gas flow is pretty similar to most with the Blichmann when I'm just keeping the boil going. I have a 60lb regulator on my CO2 tank at home, but I am only using 11 lbs. when serving. I am probably using more at first though, when bringing my pot to a boil, but dang, does it get to a boil quick. I have a co-worker who's owned both, he said the big thing is that their seems to be more precise control with tit though.

I don't think you'd go wrong with either, but if you are really trying to save every penny possible, the Banjo works pretty good. Heck, a basic turkey fryer burner will boil water too. Wal-mart usually has those for pretty cheap. I almost bought one one day, that came with a pot for like $40. I was thinking of adding a second burner for heating sparge water up, but found out that my stove works better from the sheer fact that it's almost perfect timing for when I need my sparge water, my stove has heated it to 168. Plus, that saves on propane.

The noise level is probably my only major dislike of the "banjo" style burner. Like RuffRider says, they do roar.

I have noticed that, with a few exceptions, most of the common cookers on the market use the basic cast iron "banjo" style cast iron burner.

The cooker framework design may vary, but the actual burner seems to be the same, simple two-piece design. They probably all come out of the same foundry in China.

What to buy depends on whether you want to save a few bucks and need a pot or want some bling built like a tank and will likely outlive you.

I use a turkey fryer I purchased new a few years back for $40. It came with a 7.5 gallon pot, lid, thermometer, and a few other cool accessories. It is loud (I like it loud), brings 7 gallons of wort from mash to boil in just a few minutes, and was cheap. It also sips propane with it's 10psi regulator. I get 4-6 batches out of a standard 20lb tank depending on the outside temp, wind, and whether I heat my mash water on my stove to conserve propane. The turkey fryer has served me well and will likely continue to do so for a very long time.

When my current burner dies....(and it will at some point).......I will likely upgrade to the Blichmann with the leg extensions. It will likely be the last burner I will ever have to buy.

I would say get the Blichmann. Upfront cost is high but factor it over the life of the equipment and I think it is very reasonable. I just made the switch and you couldn't pay me to go back.

I have a Bayou Classic (turkey fryer) and a Blichmann. The Blichmann is worth the money to me. It is quieter, and I know that sounds like a nitpicky thing, but it's just nice to be able to hear the stereo while brewing. The Blichmann is much more efficient on propane, really nice. The Blichmann also funnels the heat to where it needs to go, again efficiency. All things being equal I would purchase a Blichmann. In fact as soon as I get the funds saved I will purchase another and a pump to round out my system.

Toga said:

When my current burner dies....(and it will at some point).......I will likely upgrade to the Blichmann with the leg extensions.

Click to expand...

It will die? How? Its about as simple of a design is it could be. My banjo style is all of 15 years old and its just as good as the day it came from the Sportman's Warehouse.

I started brewing stovetop, then moved to an Sp10 (the 'fish fryer' from Bayou Classic). I went through a 20lb. tank every two brews and ran out just at flame-out on my third brew with it one day. I converted that burner to natural gas and it didn't have the output I wanted. Next up was a BG14 mounted to the fish fryer stand, also NG. It works perfectly. Super quiet...it blew out on a recent brewday and I didn't notice for a minute...and heats 6.25 from 140 to a boil in about a half hour. I'm still dialing in the system though so it should get faster. I recommend the BG14 for the power, though it may use more propane. Incidentally this burner is similar to the Blichmann model.

One side note: my Sp10 probably would have worked better if I'd have known it wasn't venting exhaust very well. And running NG lowers BTU output quite a bit. Kyle

I have the Bayou SQ14 and it's been great - zero complaints. I guess it could be quieter, but it heats wort fast and is a third of the price of a Blichmann.

I went from the kitchen to the garage with a turkey fryer bought at Home Depot. I then got a Bayou Classic SP10. It boils a lot faster than the turkey fryer so I mounted the fryer burner under the HTL pot and have the SP10 for the boil pot. I don't feel any need to go for anything more expensive, though I may replace the fryer burner with another SP10.