Are your cast iron hot dog cart burners not working as well as they should be?
Here’s how to fix them.
Hot Dog Cart News reader Shannon recently emailed me and shared a procedure for getting cast iron hot dog cart burners working again.
You many not have to buy new cast iron burners after all!
Shannon writes…
Hi Steve,
I have many gas burner units and operate in cold, wet areas in the northwest. I’ve found that doing the following procedure every so-often revives performance:
I disassemble the cast iron hot dog cart burner units and take them to my buddy who has a nice enclosed bead-blast cabinet. I thoroughly blast the burners (especially the inner passages) to remove any rust.
Then I coat the unit in melted lard, inside and out to slow the rusting process, like seasoning a cast iron skillet. It vastly prolongs the burner life and performance.
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Now is a great time to pull your hot dog cart burners, blast them clean, season them and reinstall them. I bet you’ll see a big difference in performance.
Awesome tip Shannon. Thanks so much for sharing that!
-Steve
P.S. As you can see, there’s a lot to know about starting and running a successful hot dog cart. Here’s a website that has everything you need to know all in one place. Click here.
Awesome! I have a farmer friend who lets me use his shop. I think he has a bead blaster, thanks. I also need to get a few new 15k btu burners for another cart I am putting together and have not found a great source yet. Any input would be appreciated.
tractor supply or agri supply
Hi, I use my local propane/gas dealer that sells equipment as well. I have purchased many different kinds of burners from them.
The local propane dealer is a great place to buy burners. I’ve heard this from a lot of my slingers. Thanks for the tip Chris!
Hi Steve, What an awesome idea, ill try that asap..thanks heaps ..kind regards, jules.
Thank Shannon. I have the best readers in the dogosphere!
P.S. I’m always looking for fresh tips to share here. EMail me if you want to contribute!
My dad used to get those burners from old chicken houses. You know the really long barns where they grow chickens. They were used to keep the chickens warm in the winter.
Really?!! Would our hot dogs smell like chicken? 😉
Knowing that I think I’d be too “chicken” to try one if it did!
Bawk! Bawk!
that is really good news since i live in the northwest parts and we do have alot of wetness. my trailer has been parked since oct and i havent done anything with it so i better look these things over since im going to do a show on the 1 & 2 of feb. im doing an antique show. wish me luck. im going to be the only vendor there hope to make bunches of dogs and make bnches of money. lol keep slinging and thanks for all you do for us to help us keep slinging also. god bless you steve for all the work you put into this for us.
Thanks Debbie. Sell ’em all!
Great tip!
Nothing much more frustrating, than needing to get the burner going and “no response”
so we use them on chicken dogs and they feel right at home.
Ha!
Chicken Turkey it is all good
Bernie Null
I bought the same type of burners and I can’t get them to work at all. Do they require a special regulator?
Thanks.
BobK
Hi Bob, I would check with the company you bought them from.
How about, temp vs line size and burner size?
I have heard about cheaper carts that dont stay lit in real cold weather.
True. Bigger is better. I have a tip along those lines coming soon. Stay tuned Corey!
help my burners are burn they dont sell it puerto rico
Get parts for a gas grill or replace your burners with a propane camp stove.
Thanks Steve for all you do to help us.
I’m just having fun. Glad it’s useful too, lol.
i have done the bead-blast,works well and like-new preformance.in the noeth-east,we also get wet weather and rust is a bitch
Glad it worked Joe!
Great info on the burners. I have drilled mine out before and worked out nicely. Look on Amazon for large burners (like for turkey fryers,etc.) around $60.00(?) but, may be to big for some. I got one it can fill up the burner area in my cart!! I use for a back-up with a pan of water for a quick, fast dog cooker.
“Sell em’ All”
Jerry
Thanks Jerry.
Right sized drill bit is great also have used torch tip cleaner and air pressure to get the rust residue out of the inside where it counts
Thanks Joe!
How about taking your burners out and putting them in a shallow pan of CLR. It works well and then you can season them or paint outside with high head grill paint.
Great idea. I’ll have to try that.
So how much does it cost just to get new burners?
You should be able to find them from whoever manufactured your cart, or on Amazon or Ebay.