Author Topic: Burner for 3 gallon boil?  (Read 792 times)

Offline a witty man

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Burner for 3 gallon boil?
« on: September 21, 2012, 10:43:01 AM »
Our homebrew club, the Albany Brew Crafters, are planning on brewing a extract / partial boil batch at a local bar for Learn to Homebrew Day on November 3rd. I'm looking for a portable stand-alone type burner to boil 3 gallons of wort, and am wondering if anyone has any suggestions. I think it needs to be at least 1100 watts to get 3 gallons to boil, according to these calculations:

Water Volume (lb) x Temperature rise (°F) x 1 Btu/lb°F= Heat required
(3gal x 8.34lb/gal) x 150*F x 1 = 3496 BTU or ~ 1025 watts

Am I correct? And does anyone have any suggestions regarding burners? We'll most likely be brewing inside.
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Offline erockrph

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Re: Burner for 3 gallon boil?
« Reply #1 on: September 21, 2012, 10:58:27 AM »
Do they have a stove you can use? 3 gallons is perfect for stove-top brewing.
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Offline kramerog

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Re: Burner for 3 gallon boil?
« Reply #2 on: September 21, 2012, 11:40:58 AM »
A 15 amp hotplate should be able to maintain a rolling boil.

If you want to do a calculation, you need to produce enough heat to boil about 0.3 gallons of water in 1 hour plus extra due to heat loss.
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Offline a witty man

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Re: Burner for 3 gallon boil?
« Reply #3 on: September 21, 2012, 06:42:05 PM »
A 15 amp hotplate should be able to maintain a rolling boil.

If you want to do a calculation, you need to produce enough heat to boil about 0.3 gallons of water in 1 hour plus extra due to heat loss.

Why only .3 in 1 hour? Would that mean it takes 3.2ish hours to boil 1 gallon? (Sorry -- Its been awhile since high-school science, and I'm kinda figuring this out on the fly...)

I do appreciate the help! :)
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Albany Brew Crafters Homebrew Club
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Offline kramerog

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Re: Burner for 3 gallon boil?
« Reply #4 on: September 22, 2012, 08:18:17 PM »
You should expect to boil off 10% of the wort in one hour => 0.3 gallons.
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