Banjo Burner on LP propane problem

[ChrisfromAbby]

I hijacked an old thread but didn't get any response so I'm posting a new thread.

I've set up my brew stand with with 2 BG-14 burners on low pressure propane. I'm using a 2 stage regulator a 5/8" LP hose from the reg to the stand where it's 1/2" BIP to the burners. I've got flexible 1/2" supply lines between the BIP and the burners. I've got some of those sweet little low pressure valves from homebrewstuff.com that screw directly into the burners.

My problem is with only one burner. It produces a very yellow flame unless the valve is turned pretty low. The other is fine. There is a shorter run of BIP to the "good" burner but only by 18 inches. On "high" I can actually get a decent flame if I blow into the air intake manifold. I've pulled the fittings apart and there is no obstruction. I'm not getting much of a soot problem, just the heart output seems low.

Is this a case for experimentally soldering the aperture and redrilling to find the right hole size, or should I be looking at the height of the space between the burner and the bottom of the kettle? Or something else.

Chris

 

[ChrisfromAbby]

One other question.

It takes a Good hour or more to heat my 40L HLT to 167F. Is that pretty normal?

I'm debating going to HP as I'm not super impressed by these massive burners compared to the little 6" HP burner I used to use. I'm not planning on automation, although I had considered plugging into my household NG.

Chris

 

[BigRob]

Sounds like you need to adjust the air shutter on the yellow flame burner, sounds like it's not pulling in enough air through the venturi for the proper air/fuel mixture. Make sure both orifices are the same size too.

If that doesn't fix it, I'd suspect you're getting too much of a pressure drop at the farthest away burner. Does the yellow flame occur all the time, or only when you try to run both at once?

 

[ChrisfromAbby]

I've got the air shutter wide open. The yellow flame is independent of whether the other burner is operating or not.

It would appear to be oxygen starved.

Chris

 

[BigRob]

Having it wide open can cause a yellow flame. Worth giving it a try adjusting from a mostly closed position and slowly opening it until you establish a nice blue flame.

 

[paperairplane]

What is the flow rate on your regulator and how big is your propane tank? I'm guessing your gas demand is exceeding your gas supply.

 

[ChrisfromAbby]

My regulator is a Camco 59333 rated for 160,000 BTU/hr

The supply hose is 3/8" x 18" - could be an issue I suppose, I'd prefer bigger but am I not restricted by the size of the fittings on the regulator?

Chris

 

[ChrisfromAbby]

Worth giving it a try adjusting from a mostly closed position and slowly opening it until you establish a nice blue flame.

I will try this to see what happens, but I sort of mimicked it by using my fingers to close off the air and it just made it worse. :-(

Chris

 

[joesmink]

How about spider web inside air intake?
Also discovered that wide open air intake not necessarily the best setting as it will vary with gas flow

 

[beernbourbon]

Having it wide open can cause a yellow flame. Worth giving it a try adjusting from a mostly closed position and slowly opening it until you establish a nice blue flame.

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Mine has to be nearly wide open to light, then I adjust from there. "mimicking' it by using your fingers may not be an accurate depiction of what needs to happen. The shutter should be quite easy to move (not loose, but still easy to move). Mine run nearly closed most times. However, there also needs to be a balance between the position of your shutter and how much your gas is turned on. If you have your gas too high, and close your shutter too much, it will cause the little flames from the ports to 'jump' up off the burner and float, which leads to cut off of flame. It's all a matter of fine tuning your adjustments for your burner, elevation, pressure.
Also, remember when you switch to NG, it is a different orifice.

 

[ChrisfromAbby]

OK. Problem solved.

I had to modify the shutter. When I removed the shutter entirely, it worked great. On full. Also a little scary closing it down. WOOF!

So, I used a coping saw and a couple of files to match the orifice on the burner to the opening on the shutter. Now I can go from completely closed to wide open or anywhere between.

Works great. Beautiful blue flame. And I can shut her down safely.