Flame comes mostly out of air holes

[nlerner]

Hello,

I built a simple paint can forge and ordered a burner online (picture attached), and tried it outside of the forge last night. The flame mostly comes out of the air holes on the side of the burner. No matter what we tried, the same would be true. We tried adjusting the collar to cover more/less of the air holes, adjusting the propane rate on both the regulator and the tank, and even the position of the burner. Nothing seemed to work. We then put it in the actual forge and turned it on. It worked correctly once but was in the wrong position, so we raised it up. Upon doing so, it never worked properly again. Any help would be greatly appreciated! 

[Latticino]

This is a very dangerous operating point.  I have seen similar burners operating properly and working very well, but perhaps not by the same manufacturer.  I would contact the manufacturer and get a replacement rather than futzing with it further.

From the photos it appears that the ventauri effect to entrain air at the gas mixer is not working properly.  I am more familiar with blown burners than atmospheric type, but in my experience this is usually related to orifice size, gas pressure and/or orifice location in the mixing assembly.  It does look like there is a set screw in the side of the burner to adjust the nozzle location, but you should get direction from the manufacturer for the proper setting. They can be a bit tricky (and if the orifice is obstructed with any flash from drilling the behavior of the ventauri can certainly suffer).

Also in looking at your photo it appears that the nozzle assembly is not set inline with the overall burner.  Was it dropped at some point or damaged in transit?  For most naturally aspirated burners it is very important to have the nozzle perfectly centered and aligned to operate properly.

Since you went to the expensive of buying a commercial burner I would go directly to the manufacturer for resolution.

Edited July 26, 2015 by latticino
additional feedback

[Frosty]

Welcome aboard, glad to have you. If you'll put your general location in the header you might be surprised how many of the IFI gang live within visiting distance.

That's way more burner than you need for a paint can forge. That isn't the problem though, have you looked down the burner tube to see if there's something blocking it. Please don't make me tell you to TURN IT OFF first!

The next most likely problem is the jet got knocked out of alignment in shipping. This is evident as shown by the flame coming primarily from the air intake ports closer to the fitting where the gas hose connects. The second pic from the last shot of it running shows the bras fitting knocked well out of position.

The jet of propane is impacting the side of the burner where the longest WRONG flame is. If the burner has a mechanism to adjust the jet position, set screws for instance then realign the jet so it's aimed directly down the center of the tube. If there is no such mechanism return it to the maker and suggest they do a better job of packaging for shipping.

Frosty The Lucky.

[Belz]

It actually looks like the jet is before the air intakes. From what I have read, isn't the jet meant to be almost past the last air intake hole? That's how T-Rex's are made... and that's all I have had experience with. 
I would have thought you would want the air/fuel mix to be after the intake holes. It can only ignite if the air/fuel mix is the correct ratio, and if it can't possibly mix before the last intake hole then there wouldn't be a problem.

[kayakersteve]

Are you lighting it at the air holes or at the bottom?

[jmccustomknives]

Looks like your gas pressure is too low, what are you running?

 

[phabib]

I've made burners similar to that and you're getting good advice.  I'll put it all in one place for you.

The nozzle must be centered and in line with the axis of the outer tube.

You must have enough gas pressure to pull air in from the vent holes.  With burners I have made, 10-15 psi does it.

I put my jet, just even with the air intake holes.

The burner needs to be in the forge to operate right.

I would make sure the nozzle is centered, install the burner, then put a piece of newspaper in the forge, light it, and turn up the gas pressure until the flame is a steady roar.

[Yuppiejr]

Are you lighting it at the air holes or at the bottom?

+1 on this advice, it needs to be installed in the forge to work properly, and if you light it at the intake holes rather than the business end the pictured effect is exactly what you get.  These come equipped with a Bayou Classic 0-30 PSI regulator hose assembly which should mean plenty of gas pressure if you open the valve far enough, I know mine took quite a few turns to get there.  http://www.amazon.com/Bayou-Classic-Adjustible-Regulator-Assembely/dp/B007PS0938

It's possible you have the regulator on the Bayou Classic turned town too far, or that the check valve on your propane tank is engaged and limiting flow to the regulator as well.  I've had a problem with low gas flow on my grill after swapping tanks and this was the fix:

The first step in resetting the propane check valve is to turn the valve the shuts off the container. Twist the connection to unscrew it, which will detach the propane tank from the hook up site.
Flip the valves to the highest setting possible if you are using a gas grill, which will get rid of residual pressure or gas that may remain in the lines. 
Turn off the grill. If you do not while resetting the valve, it could be dangerous.
Twist the connection in the opposite direction you did to remove it to reconnect the container.
Turn the tank valve switch to the "on" position. Move the lever very slowly, so the gas goes back into the lines and grill slowly. This will help put the tank back in check.

[phabib]

Yes.  I hadn't thought of tank safety stuff.  The modern tanks have a leak detection valve that interprets high use with a leak and shuts off the gas to prevent a fire.  If your tank has a triangular valve handle, it likely won't work.  You should be using at least a 100lb tank which is the smallest size where the safety valve is not present.  That's also the smallest size tank you can use to avoid freezing the tank and to be able to continue to supply the amount of gas one of these burners demands.