Just bought a IR-2.5...propane vs natural gas for garage roasting?

Discuss roast levels and profiles for espresso, equipment for roasting coffee.
CelliniEVO
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#1: Post by CelliniEVO »

Trying to decide on the best way to hook this little beast up in my garage...it's currently set up for natural gas, but its a cheap conversion to propane so I'm not sure what way to go. When I took the Diedrich course, Steve told me propane will allow the burners to hit 7 WC vs. 6 for natural gas so I'm thinking that could get me closer to using a full 2.5kg? (My past experience roasting on Diedrichs with natural gas seems to get the best results at about 80% of the stated capacity)

How big of a propane tank would I need to efficiently use a roaster of this size? For instance, how many roasts could I ballpark get out of a grill-sized tank?

I've got a gas line already near where I'll be putting the roaster, so I could easily go either way....what other things should I be considering? Was thinking it would be kind of nice to have the propane underneath in the roasting table and be able to roll it around it on casters when I'm not using it.


Thanks


kwantfm
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#2: Post by kwantfm »

I had to consider propane vs natural gas when I bought a Proaster. I'm very risk averse and I decided to go for natural gas. The big difference for mine (and this may seem ridiculously conservative) is that natural gas is lighter than air and propane is heavier than air. Propane can, theoretically, pool in an indoor setting and there is a risk that that pool of gas can explode.

Way too conservative a reason I'm sure!
LMWDP #602

PBJ
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#3: Post by PBJ »

Depending on where you live---- Low temperature will affect the flow rate of propane. I'm in Minnesota and propane will not work from a grill sized tank on cold winter days.

CelliniEVO (original poster)
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#4: Post by CelliniEVO (original poster) »

kwantfm wrote:I had to consider propane vs natural gas when I bought a Proaster. I'm very risk averse and I decided to go for natural gas. The big difference for mine (and this may seem ridiculously conservative) is that natural gas is lighter than air and propane is heavier than air. Propane can, theoretically, pool in an indoor setting and there is a risk that that pool of gas can explode.

Way too conservative a reason I'm sure!

Having kiddos, I'm pretty risk averse as well! Without them, I'd be locating it in my basement for sure. I'm planning on always roasting with the garage door open and setting up a smoke alarm right next to it with a C02 extinguisher.

CelliniEVO (original poster)
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#5: Post by CelliniEVO (original poster) »

PBJ wrote:Depending on where you live---- Low temperature will affect the flow rate of propane. I'm in Minnesota and propane will not work from a grill sized tank on cold winter days.
I didn't realize that! I was thinking of going with propane just to get it up and running quickly but I'll definitely be roasting on some cold days.

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turtle
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#6: Post by turtle »

A 40# vertical tank should last you 2-3 weeks of 4-6 roasts a day. If you need more you can go up to 100# which should be well over a month.

These can be filled by a delivery truck just like the large 350# horizontal home tanks but take up much less space (they are like a BBQ tank only taller)

Call your local propane dealer, they may provide the tank with scheduled delivery of fuel.
Mick - Drinking in life one cup at a time
I'd rather be roasting coffee

CelliniEVO (original poster)
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#7: Post by CelliniEVO (original poster) replying to turtle »

Thanks for that info! I think I'm gonna start on propane while I sort out how to splice into the natural gas line in my garage for cold winter days.

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ripcityman
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#8: Post by ripcityman »

If you have natural gas in your garage, that is the way to go. I roast in my garage with the little roaster you see on your right. I use a 1 lb propane bottle and camp stove. I refill the bottles with a valve that attaches to a 20 lb propane tank, so cost is not an issue. Two issues come to mind other than cost. First, propane bottles tend to freeze when drawing larger quantities of fuel from them. I see this with my roaster in the colder months, not only with my roaster, but my high pressure propane cooking stove in my back yard. My stove burners are rated 75,000 BTU's, so they can boil 5 gallons of water in no time. As the tank freezes, your pressure goes down.

Secondly, you better have a very accurate fuel gauge mounted to your propane tank as that IR 2.5 can roast a lot of beans. What if your tank runs dry?



I love that roaster you have. Have fun.

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JK
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#9: Post by JK »

If not too expensive I would hook it up with LPG till I got it plumbed in for NG...
I just run my 1KG machine on LPG since I only do a few roasts a month..
My tank lasts much longer than I expected it too..

PS: Best gauge for your LP tank is a scale..
Weight the tank empty and that's when your out of gas..
-----------------------------
I'm on a Mission from God!

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cannonfodder
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#10: Post by cannonfodder »

You get more BTU's out of LP. I run a one pound + roaster on a 20 pound LP with around 3 pounds a week roasting. A 20 pound tank lasts months. You can always go with LP and see how long a 20 pound tank lasts. Nice thing about a 20 or 30 pound tank, they fit under my roasting cart so the entire assembly is mobile.
Dave Stephens

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