Propane Regulator

[GregLaROCHE]

I have a very old cast iron burner. It has three rings that can be adjusted or turned off independently. It’s served me well for many years for making ingots. I can run all three to start and then turn one off while pouring ingots to save on propane. I have a steel ring to direct all the heat to the bottom of the pot. Now I want more heat.

I have a normal size regulator, that I’ve opened up and adjusted to max flow. I used an iron skillet and was content with the speed of the melt. Now I’m using a Dutch oven and it takes longer than I would like to bring up cold lead to pouring temperatures. I’m even thinking of going to propane bottle for a melting pot. The flames are not all that long, but because there are so many of them, they always provided enough heat. Now I think I could use more.

Those of you using turkey fryer burners, are you using a standard size regulator or a high volume type. Maybe no regulator at all? I once had a weed burner that was connected directly to the tank and worked fine.

Thanks for your input.

[Mitch]

I have a Double jet burner 200k BTUs.and a old plumbers furnace 80k BTUs.the jet burner has i think a 30lb psi regulator.the old plumbers furnace has no regulator and has a 20lb pot on it.i use a propane tank pot that holds 380 lbs of lead.
Can i melt lead fast yep sure can. with that come an empty tank.i have found on both burners slow and ezy melts more lead per tank.I think you are use to a smaller amount of lead so the bigger pot take a bit longer.I did the same thing when i went from a 100lb Dutch oven the the propane tank pot it just take a little longer with more lead. Depending on what you are meltingI some times put a small amount in the pot and get that hot before a addmore.this more when i am mleting solid pieces or ingot for makeing up alloy.for pipe and things that may have some water in it i start out cold not matter what.

The plumbers pot without the regulator works just fine it lets you know when it gets more propane that it can take.so is up to you if you want to try that it may or may not get you more heat.

I do some things while the pot is warming up for big batches that take a while.Like weigh pout my tin or super hard,cut up scrap to put in the pot.weigh lead for the next batch of alloy.

Fair warning the big pot is alot harder on the back and you need more ingot molds.i find i am happy when i get the big pot empty.i take some IB or something like it before i start.The less bending over the better think over your melting setup a bit and figure a safe way to get things off the ground a bit.

[GregLaROCHE]

I agree with the no bending approach completely. I think everyone should consider it. I now even have a setup where almost everything is done, from a sitting position.

I gave up pouring directly from the pot a while ago. The weight made me shake and I would over or under pour the ingots. I now use a ladle that gives me an exact five pound ingot with one pour and no strain on my back.

For me, five pound ingots are the perfect size to use in my casting pot. If I go to a bigger pot, I will have to make some more angle iron moulds though, to keep up with the speed of the melt.

[Jeffrey]

Use a high volume regulator. A standard regulator has a safety device that shuts off flow if / when the flow goes too high. Resetting this device requires closing the bottle, then disconnecting the regulator from the bottle. Something of a nuisance if the high flow shut off was not triggered by a cut fuel line.

[BK7saum]

I had a regulator go bad on a cheap turkey fryer burner assembly. The setup also included a needle valve to adjust the flow. I removed the regulator and have had zero issues using only the needle valve to adjust the propane.

If I open the needle valve too fast. The safety valve in the tank will activate and cause a low flow event. If that happens, just turn off the tank, bleed pressure on the valve, close the valve and open the main tank shutoff slowly.

At this point, I prefer using only the needle valve for propane flow.

[Mitch]

i still have a l;ittle bending in my setup but not like working off the ground.I have angle ingot molds just 2 that make 5,4lb ingots each.the only thing i dont like about them is the weight of the ingot molds.the angle i used was the heavy duty stuff but the price was right.I am a tool and die maker by trade so i made my own molds. milled the ends on the angle and made them all the same length.everything fit realy well.i pout some bird **** on the back side and all works well.

My hi pressure regulator on the jet burner will frost up now and then when i get in a hurry.the needle valve on the plumbers pot is a little touchy but works fine.the Plumbers pot is i am sure 60plus years old but still works good.they still make them to!!

I need to alloy some lead soon.but in no huge hurry.looks like the way things are going i may have plenty of time to do things if the factory dont get me sick fist.

[GregLaROCHE]

I lucked out when I made my molds. Some thin angle was all I had lying around, so I used it. When filled they are much lighter, but the best thing is that they cool down a lot faster.

[44magLeo]

I might suggest instead is to visit Harbor freight and pick up one of their weed burners. When you first fill the pot and fire up your cast iron burner, fire up the weed burner and aim it down in the pot. This gets thing going very fast.
Once things are going fall back to just the cast iron burner.
I have turkey burner that holds up my cut off 20lb. propane tank. With a full pot it can take a while to get going. The weed burner helps a lot.
Once you get things going you don't need as much heat.
Leo