Blichmann Hellfire on a Wood Table?!?

[JayZeus]

Hi Guys,

I wanted to get some advice on getting my Hellfire Burner off the floor. I have a very study, butcher block, shop table that can easily withstand the weight.
The heat is going to be an issue for sure... My thought was to use a piece of "Fireboard" that is designed to protect the floor underneath a wood burning stove.
Does anyone have experience with something like this?

Thanks!

 

[Mr. Vern]

I use a hellfire on wood without any protection and it has not harmed a thing. Granted, they are simple boards and not a butcher-block or even finished for that matter, but the radiant heat should not be a major problem IMHO. I should fire my burner up for a few and take some temperature readings

 

[JayZeus]

Thanks for the feedback, Mr.Vern. I just used this burner for the first time a few days ago... the wood under the burner got so hot that I couldn't keep my hand on it so I stopped what I was doing and moved it to the floor. I'm curious if you'll find the same thing.

 

[Mr. Vern]

Thanks for the feedback, Mr.Vern. I just used this burner for the first time a few days ago... the wood under the burner got so hot that I couldn't keep my hand on it so I stopped what I was doing and moved it to the floor. I'm curious if you'll find the same thing.

You put my attention on this which I hadn’t thought about. I stack a couple boards on a cart for enough height to fill a fermenter by gravity. I normally have a 1-2” gap in between the 2 boards. The hellfire is propane and mounted to the factory feet which leaves a 2” gap to the bottom.

I did a 30 minute boil with a board to cover the “gap” and here is what I found:

The outside edge stabilized near 80F until I moved the thermocouple to the middle at 160F. It seemed to be stable but it was only a quick test

My hillbilly risers haven’t scorched or even smelled hot during brew day but 160 is enough to have concern

 

[HopSing]

Before switching to electric, I put a 24x24 concrete paver under the burner to protect the table I was using. A $8 insurance policy, in my opinion. It also caught some of the drips and spills and stopped the burner from sliding around on the smooth surface of the table I was using.

~HopSing.

 

[JayZeus]

Just following up, I used the "fireboard" as a heat shield and it worked just fine.

 

[day_trippr]

Next time you use the burner atop the "fireboard", check the temperature of that "board" after you've been running the burner for 20-30 minutes. You might be surprised to find it's actually cooler than the surrounding ambient temperature.

When I used to run my Blichmann Floor Burners atop 20" pavers the pavers would actually get damp right below the burners. They were cool enough to condense the prevailing humidity...

Cheers!