BETHLEHEM S.S. MINNOW BURNER User manual

S.S. MINNOW BURNER™OPERATING
INSTRUCTIONS:
The Bethlehem SS Minnow Burner was designed for use
with gas and oxygen. Propane is the gas of choice, even
though all fuels will burn in the torch. Be sure that your
gas distributor can supply you with a pressure regulator.
The regulator should be equipped with a gauge so you can
see how much fuel remains in your fuel tank, and indicate
the pressures you are sending to the torch.
BEFORE OPERATING ANY GAS BURNER YOU
SHOULD BE FAMILIAR WITH THE ODOR OF
THE FUEL YOU ARE USING. ALL GAS FUELS
HAVE A DISTINCT ODOR. THE ODOR IS
PURPOSELY ADDED BY THE MANUFACTURER
SO YOU CAN EASILY DETECT A GAS LEAK.
THE ODOR IS DIFFERENT FROM THE SMELL
OF BURNED FUEL (CALLED PRODUCTS OF
COMBUSTION). READ ALL INSTRUCTION
MANUALS SUPPLIED BY YOUR GAS
DISTRIBUTOR BEFORE OPERATING YOUR
NEW BURNER.
HOSE CONNECTION
The S.S. Minnow Burner has two hose connectors at the
rear of the burner. The valves are marked as to respective
gas type.
Use 1/4 inch inside diameter hose to connect to the burner.
Both the gas and oxygen hose connectors are the same
diameter. Be sure to use hose clamps to secure the hoses to
the burner.
FUEL PRESSURE
Gas: 1.3 to 5 lbs.
Oxygen: 6 to 20 lbs.
DO NOT EXCEED 25 lbs. pressure on any feed. Excess
pressure may cause gas or oxygen to leak through the
valves and increase the chance of leakage through the hose
connections.
THEORY OF OPERATION:
The SS Minnow Burner is designed to produce a wide
variety of flame configurations so you can have the greatest
versatility in your glass-working. The flame is surface-
mixed and operates without loud noise or flashback.
Surface-mixed flames have the distinct advantage in that
they are soft, quiet flames while producing a penetrating
heat. Turning the precision needle valves easily changes
flame settings. For best results, keep the fuel flow to a
minimum. On Bethlehem burners, loud noise does not
indicate more heat. The soft, intense blue flame will bathe
your work in heat which will quickly penetrate the glass.
For best results, you should light the gas flame first. Once
you have the yellow flame close to the burner head, you can
slowly add oxygen. As soon as oxygen is added, the color
will change from yellow to blue. This indicates complete
combustion. As you change the flame height you should
always keep the flame color as blue as possible. The
individual jets (small cones of sharp color near the burner
face) should be kept from giving off any yellow “candles”.
Yellow candles indicate unburned fuel. They are usually
caused by the addition of too much gas, either by volume or
pressure.
Unburned fuel will cause carbon deposits in the face of the
burner. Keep carbon deposits to a minimum. If deposits
build up on the burner face, you will overheat the front
face, causing the burner to deteriorate. Carbon deposits
will also change the flame characteristics of your burner.
Use the stainless steel cleaning wire to remove all carbon
deposits.
To extinguish the flame you should always turn off the
oxygen before the gas. Do not over tighten the valves.
For more information about Bethlehem Burners
visit our web site at http://bethlehemburners.com.

BETHLEHEM S.S. MINNOW BURNER
TECHNICAL CHARACTERISTCS:
Surface-Mixed Burner
All Bethlehem Burners are gas and oxygen surface-mixed.
The gas and oxygen are kept separate until they leave the
face of the burner. This style of burner allows for the
greatest flexibility in operation without flashback.
Bethlehem’s S.S. Minnow Burner allows the operator the
freedom of regulating the flame size simply by turning the
gas or oxygen valves. Whereas a standard pre-mix burner
would require the operator to change burner tips to achieve
similar results in performance.
Flashback
A flashback is when pre-mixed fuels burn inside the burner
body, resulting in a flame blow out, or even an internal
flame that will destroy a burner.
The surface-mixed burner, as in the S.S. Minnow Burner, is
safer because they will not allow the fuel mixture to burn
inside the burner body. Therefore, as in pre-mix burners
fire checks and flame arrestors are not required with the
Betta. To test your burner for proper performance, just
simply turn off the oxygen flow, then re-open the oxygen
very quickly. If there is a loud bang, then pre-mixing is
occurring and the burner should be returned to Bethlehem
Apparatus for repairs.
CAUTION
DO NOT USE BURNERS THAT MAKE A LOUD BANG
WHEN THE OXYGEN SUPPLY IS ABRUPTLY CUT
OFF.
Gases
Bethlehem’s S.S. Minnow Burner is designed to either burn
natural gas, hydrogen, propane or butane fuels. Do not use
acetylene. Acetylene contains excess carbon that will clog
the gas ports on the burner face.
Oxygen Pressure
Do not operate the S.S. Minnow Burner at less than 6 psi
oxygen pressure. This will cause the front face of the
burner to heat up and cause deterioration.
OVERTIGHTENING VALVES CAN
DESTROY THE CLOSING MECHANISM!
SNUG, SNUG, SNUG, GORILLA STRENGHT
NOT REQUIRED TO CLOSE VALVES.
Carbon Build-Up
High carbon content fuels, like propane, will deposit carbon
on the front face of the burner. Eventually, the gas holes
will clog. Unless the carbon is cleaned away, the surface
temperature of the burner face will get too hot. High burner
front face temperatures will cause a rapid deterioration of
the burner head and shorten the life of the burner.
On a daily basis, use the attached stainless steel cleaning
wire to remove carbon buildup from the burner face. Push
the wire through each hole on the front face of the burner.
After cleaning, turn the burner onto high flame so the dirt
generated from cleaning will be flushed out. A slight
tapping on the burner with a piece or wood or soft faced
hammer during the high flame cleaning will also help
loosen the dirt.
If the carbon is not cleaned away daily, the burner will
begin to generate a localized hot spot at the carbon deposit.
These hot spots will cause the tellurium copper front plate
to deteriorate. Eventually the gas holes drilled in the front
plate will become too large for proper gas and oxygen
distribution causing an unbalanced flame.
Backsplash
DO NOT WORK GLASS TOO CLOSE TO THE FRONT
FACE OF THE BURNER. Working glass too close will
cause backsplash, which is when heat from the burner
flame is reflected off the glass being heated. Too much
back splash will cause the surface temperature of the burner
face to get too hot. High burner front face temperatures
will cause a rapid deterioration of the burner head and
shorten the life of the burner.
Carbon Monoxide Warning
Bethlehem Burners are all designed to be used with gas and
oxygen. The burners are intended to produce an open
flame. EXTREME CARE must be taken to assure that
combustible materials are kept away from the open flame.
The burner flame is Combustion, which results in the
production of water vapor, carbon dioxide, and Carbon
Monoxide which is a highly poisonous, odorless, colorless,
tasteless gas. It is very flammable. Be sure to use adequate
ventilation when operating burners. Use a Carbon
Monoxide detector in the room where burners are operated.
Do not smoke around combustible gases.