so im am currently getting into all grain and want to get a burner to work with. I am just wondering which one to buy, if anyone has any suggestions please let me know, thanks!
I love my Bayou classic it works great for the 5 gallon batches I do. There was a thread here this week about using natrual gas and that is an option you should explore to. If you have the ability to plumb it out side you would be set! I wish I would have looked into NG because it is way cheaper and you can't convert a Bayou classic to burn NG.
You could buy a second burner for natural gas. The same number of BTU that are in 20 lbs of propane costs just over a dollar. It seems like it would pay for itself after only a few batches.
My wife bought me the burner as a Christmas gift. I would switch but If I keep the propane burner I can keep the peace to
does this take into account the service fee? i mean the cost per btu is one thing, but the utility hits you with the pipleine service, taxes etc. i have to say i hope the difference is not that striking. the NG pipeline runs about a 1/2 mile from my house but we don't get service here in the holler. it is all propane out this way. Cheers.
The marginal cost of natural gas, including the gas, itself, taxes, delivery charges, etc. on my most recent bill is .3677 per therm. At this price, 430,000 BTUs of natural gas (the energy content of 20 lbs of propane) would cost approx $1.58. If you exchange your propane tank, you're typically getting 15 or 17 lbs, so the price would be $1.18 and $1.34, reapectively. So the difference is pretty striking. If propane is your primary fuel, however, you're likely paying a helluva lot less than you would with the traditional 20lb tank, so these numbers probably don't apply to you.
If you're going Bayou Classic, the SP10 is great. It doesn't use a lot of propane and gets the job done for 10 gal batches.
All-grain doesn't require a new burner. I've been brewing 5 gal batches on my kitchen gas stove for almost 5 years now. Natural gas is quite a bit more economical if you go to larger batches or brew a lot.
And if you're still making 1/2 batches, an electric stovetop is all you need. It's especially nice for the Winter because you double up on heating your house.
