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THE BBQ BRETHREN FORUMS

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Open a BBQ restaurant, they said. It will be fun, they said

Not sure what the deal with the propane is. We have a 1000 gallon tank and I checked it a few weeks ago and the gauge was still showing about 30%. Considering it was filled months ago, it would seem that would leave enough gas to get by for a while. But apparently the gauge dropped like a rock over the past two weeks.

I'm going to ask them about a regular periodic fill schedule or something rather than just filling it all up at once and having to call when it gets low.

The good news is they are coming out to do an emergency fill in about an hour, but the bad news is that it's going to cost me the after hours surcharge of about 200 bucks, and it's still too late to be able to salvage anything today.

Oh well.
 
If you can't be open today, and you are usually closed Monday and Tuesday, why spend the $200 after-hours surcharge for propane you won't use until Wednesday?
 
castlepines said:
If you can't be open today, and you are usually closed Monday and Tuesday, why spend the $200 after-hours surcharge for propane you won't use until Wednesday?
Click to expand...

No furnace without gas, and temps will likely be at or below zero the next few nights. Frozen pipes are the last thing I need.
 
My recommendation, we would buy propane in blocks ie $5,000.00 but usually $$10,000.00. During the height of the summer. This would allow to buy at a huge discount and it would be auto delivered. The key to propane and cost is to one the tanks! Alos, keep in mind that when completely filled its only 80% full. Hope this helps.
 
Sorry to hear about the troubles but thanks for sharing with us. We are pulling for you. My mom is waiting for the weather to break to come and try out the Prized Pig. Hang in there...this is just part of the fun:-D
 
marubozo said:
No furnace without gas, and temps will likely be at or below zero the next few nights. Frozen pipes are the last thing I need.
Click to expand...

Ah, got it. I was thinking the heating and water were on natural gas and the cookers were using propane for some reason. I reread your post. My bad.

Is it colder now than it was when you read the gauge a few weeks ago? The pressure gauges will fluctuate with temps. The higher the temps, the higher the pressure. When temps fall the gauges will fall...even if no gas has been used. It's possible your reading at 30% a few weeks ago was with higher temps than now, giving you the impression that you had more gas than you actually had. Temps drop and the gauges drop, in addition to using more gas to heat things at the lower temps. That might explain the massive drop on the gauge. This is why tanks are considered full at 80% and empty at 20%. It allows for the expansion and contraction of the gas volumes with temp changes. It doesn't solve your problem, obviously, but might give you one less thing to worry about if you're thinking something is wrong with your gauge or tank.
 
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You really should think about making this into a book for those thinking about going into the business. What makes a journey great, it the adventure of getting there. Keep the faith brother.
 
Marubozo, remember it has been very cold and you have been doing lots of cooking the last few weeks. My suggestion is treat the tank like a car on a long trip in the wide open West - when the tank hits 1/2 full start looking to fill up. I grew up with propane, and we did not let it go below 25%.
 
castlepines said:
Ah, got it. I was thinking the heating and water were on natural gas and the cookers were using propane for some reason. I reread your post. My bad.

Is it colder now than it was when you read the gauge a few weeks ago? The pressure gauges will fluctuate with temps. The higher the temps, the higher the pressure. When temps fall the gauges will fall...even if no gas has been used. It's possible your reading at 30% a few weeks ago was with higher temps than now, giving you the impression that you had more gas than you actually had. Temps drop and the gauges drop, in addition to using more gas to heat things at the lower temps. That might explain the massive drop on the gauge. This is why tanks are considered full at 80% and empty at 20%. It allows for the expansion and contraction of the gas volumes with temp changes. It doesn't solve your problem, obviously, but might give you one less thing to worry about if you're thinking something is wrong with your gauge or tank.
Click to expand...

That might explain it, actually. When I checked last it was an unusual warm spell and above freezing. That's why I checked, because it was warm out and I didn't have to hike through three feet of snow. But the last few days it's been 30-40 degrees colder. Lesson learned. The hard way.

Oh well. In the grand scheme of things, this is just a minor issue and part of the learning process. We will be back up and running full speed again on Wednesday and kill it like usual.
 
marubozo said:
I don't think I got into much detail on that in the thread, but I did plan on putting together a rough outline of costs so that people can have a better idea of how realistic taking the plunge might be for their situation.
Click to expand...

Jeremy,

I've been following this thread with great interest since I found it (and it's why I joined Brethren so I could comment). Congratulations on your well-deserved success so far!

I would love to see the outline of costs and revenues you mention above. I am currently residing in KC now, but I would love to bring a BBQ restaurant back to South Jersey where I'm from. Some info on how you're making out would be a big help as I develop my business plan. I'm sure other would agree.

PS: About the iced tea, I am a tea junkie. Golden Peak is good for a simple solution, but the poster who said to get the brew pot from your coffee purveyor is spot on. It's simple, will make a large quantity in a single batch, and is night and day better from a quality perspective.

Thanks!
 
Great job with the TV spot Jeremy. Also, 1st time I have been to the website since it was finished. It looks really good.
 
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