Gas to propane genset conversion?

[daved20319]

I have a good generator that stood us in good stead during the Carlton Complex fire a few years ago. Problem is, it's gas only, with all of the issues that that includes. Last year I added a propane heater to my shop, being fed by a 500 gal. tank. At the time, I had them include a drop for my generator, as I've been planning either a conversion or replacement for awhile. As we're seriously behind in snow fall so far this year, it's looking like we could be facing another bad fire season, so I'm starting my preparations now, and the genset is high on the list. So here's my question(s).

For those that have done a conversion, who's gear did you use, and why?
How well did it work?
How difficult was it to do, and did you have to make any permanent mods to your genset?
Was there any noticeable decrease in generator output?
Would you do it again, or would you invest in a propane generator from the get go?

Other than power, we're pretty well self-contained, and as long as I can keep my irrigation going, pretty fire resistant. Although not a full on standby generator, I have mine pretty well integrated into our power system, and can transfer over in a matter of minutes. It's a 10KW unit, so I can't run everything, but I can keep the essentials going with a little creative scheduling. My biggest concern is fuel, although I never got caught without gas, there was a period when all roads in and out of the valley were closed due to fire, had that gone longer, things could have gotten dicey. Appreciate any thoughts and insights, thanks.

Dave

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[CountryGent]

I cannot answer the questions related to conversion. However, I will say we've been very happy with our propane-fed, whole-house generator. It is fed from a 500-gallon propane tank. Costs are reasonable and the fuel stores for pretty much forever.

 

[Defense Minister]

When you say "gas", do you mean gasoline? If so, that could get involved and may not be possible depending on whether conversion parts are available for your model. Does your manual give any indication as to whether or not a propane version of your genset was available at the time of purchase?

This is probably a question for the manufacturer.

 

[P7M13]

Haven't read these yet, but here's some DuckDuckGo Foo:

Convert Your Lawn Mower to Propane - ThompsonGas

Now is the time to convert your entire lawn mowing fleet to operate on propane rather than traditional gasoline. The benefits of propane are tremendous and you can actually save some serious cash!

thompsongas.com

Convert Your Lawn Mower or Small Engine to Propane! – Mother Earth News

First in a series of blog posts which will cover conversion of lawnmowers and small engines from gasoline to propane.

www.motherearthnews.com

 

[terdog]

Not that its a big deal, but you will need to add at least 1 new regulator at your Gen stub, assuming that you have a high pressure (red) at your tank.
Also, propane does not have the BTU's that gasoline or natural gas have.
Just FYI.

 

[Johnny Tremain]

If your genny isnt set up for LP, do not use it, they leak. the regulars are fine Chinese made wonders.

LP is an after thought, and we get them in the shop every week. They do not like our winter weather.
We un-LP more than LP them.
We had one on Friday, the OEM regulator was new and not calibrated right.

Ill stick with gasoline. With UN-ethanol fuel and stabilizer, my genny goes years without every running.
When I need it, its there. Clean the system every 2 years.
OR
Leave it 100% dry and clean

 

[terdog]

They do not like our winter weather.

Interesting point.

As a former LP employee, I saw LOTS of LP Generators. Bridgeport Ca was my territory. It gets dang cold there too. 99% were GENERAC's. Never heard any customer complaints (except about the cost of LP )

In fact, with the Ca power companies shutting down the grid whenever someone would fart, those gennies got alot of work.

Not disputing your claim of regulator failures. Good to hear from boots on the ground.

 

[jake2far]

Honda EU2000i Propane Kits | Honda EU2000i Natural Gas Kits

The Honda EU2000i Generator Runs Best on Propane,Natural Gas,Dual Fuel and Tri-Fuel Conversion Kits.

centuryfuelproducts.com

Have done 7 different conversions using these people.
Don't work for them, don't get kick backs.
They make a simple great product.
Jim

 

[jake2far]

If your genny isnt set up for LP, do not use it, they leak. the regulars are fine Chinese made wonders.

LP is an after thought, and we get them in the shop every week. They do not like our winter weather.
We un-LP more than LP them.
We had one on Friday, the OEM regulator was new and not calibrated right.

Ill stick with gasoline. With UN-ethanol fuel and stabilizer, my genny goes years without every running.
When I need it, its there. Clean the system every 2 years.
OR
Leave it 100% dry and clean

Not sure where this guy gets off. Propane conversions are THE only way to go.
Do your research "Chinese" regulators make for a bad install, "they" undo" conversions.
Male Bovine Excrement!
You can find made in the USA kits, they work, they allow for tri fuel running. Proper install pre carburetor is not a conversion.

DO IT you won't regret it.
Jim

Ya, if ya want to hate on me go ahead.

 

[Johnny Tremain]

and all you guys work on these everyday like we do.
Do here in Oly land we have lots of off grid genny customers. NONE use LP. The ones that dual fuel, give up LP.
CA is not WA (tho the commies are trying) Western WA and OR, and Maine all have similar weather.
Thats why John Deere using these areas for test beds.

We had The Forestry service bring a brand new LP only genny to us last week. We changed out he regulator and it works again.

You buy a genny from a box store, you get a Chinese product. Champion has copied the Honda motor so well, we use Honda parts on them.

A LP conversion is a hole in the side of the carb, with a 1/8 tube and hose from hose. You flow LP directly into the venturi. It wastes gas, just the way it is made.

Jake, all those inverters, the motherboards fail in them regularly. We have a stack of them in the junk pile. Not cost effenient to run them. Ok for home owner emergencies, until they find out how much a replacement board is.

So keep on biting the hand that feeds you information.

 

[Alexx1401]

Interesting point.

As a former LP employee, I saw LOTS of LP Generators. Bridgeport Ca was my territory. It gets dang cold there too. 99% were GENERAC's. Never heard any customer complaints (except about the cost of LP )

In fact, with the Ca power companies shutting down the grid whenever someone would fart, those gennies got alot of work.

Not disputing your claim of regulator failures. Good to hear from boots on the ground.

Seems strange to me too. When I was in AK decades back many cars were set up to run both. LP and Gasoline. The cars could then use either fuel when one was easier to get. Cars ran fine on LP in winter up there.
I have an LP Gen that came that way, so don't know if that makes a difference. Have had it about a decade, still works great. I love it as storing Gasoline is a PITA. Storing LP for these is simple and safe. Stuff does not seem to go bad. The few times I need the Gen I just hook up, turn on gas, run it. When done no gas to drain, just unhook the gas and put it away till next time.

 

[daved20319]

and all you guys work on these everyday like we do.
Do here in Oly land we have lots of off grid genny customers. NONE use LP. The ones that dual fuel, give up LP.
CA is not WA (tho the commies are trying) Western WA and OR, and Maine all have similar weather.
Thats why John Deere using these areas for test beds.

We had The Forestry service bring a brand new LP only genny to us last week. We changed out he regulator and it works again.

You buy a genny from a box store, you get a Chinese product. Champion has copied the Honda motor so well, we use Honda parts on them.

A LP conversion is a hole in the side of the carb, with a 1/8 tube and hose from hose. You flow LP directly into the venturi. It wastes gas, just the way it is made.

Jake, all those inverters, the motherboards fail in them regularly. We have a stack of them in the junk pile. Not cost effenient to run them. Ok for home owner emergencies, until they find out how much a replacement board is.

So keep on biting the hand that feeds you information.

So, Johnny, if propane generators are such crap, why are most of the smaller homeowner backup units propane? Yours is the ONLY voice I've heard making these claims, so forgive me if I take what you say with a large grain of salt . I suspect the major problem most of your customers have is a lack of understanding of how propane works, so they're trying to run a big genset, in the cold, on a too small tank. And you're happy to charge them to "fix" a problem that could be solved with a little education.

I do know there are different types of propane conversion units on the market, some turn your gas unit into propane only, some allow duel or tri-fuel operation. I actually have a couple of different gensets, a small duel fuel unit that goes with my travel trailer, and the big Rigid that I'm looking to convert. The problem for me is, I can go months without firing up the big genset, and I don't like storing gasoline. Trying to find non-ethanol gas in my area is a PITA, but so is draining the tank after every use, it holds 8 gallons when full, which is great if it needs to run all day or night, but not so much when it's only a few hours. I HAVE to have a ready to go machine, my wife has health issues that make being without power for more than a short period unacceptable. Not made of money, though, a conversion costs a couple hundred, a full on standby genset is several thousand. And I won't even consider diesel, totally out of the question price-wise, and I hate the sound/smell anyway. Plus, I still have to store fuel, and treat is so it won't gel in the cold. So propane really is my best alternative, now I just need to figure out if the conversion is a viable option, or do I need to figure out how to come up with the bucks for a dedicated propane unit, which is why I posted this in the first place.

Thanks to all that have responded, I really appreciate it, later.

 

[edzz]

Odd, Lots of people here in North Idaho use LP for backup power. Only one I know of in the neighborhood that had problems was my neighbors 50k generator, mind you Caterpillar had a new set of battery's up there within 4 hours. Was fun giving him Sh.. about that...

 

[edzz]

Honda EU2000i Propane Kits | Honda EU2000i Natural Gas Kits

The Honda EU2000i Generator Runs Best on Propane,Natural Gas,Dual Fuel and Tri-Fuel Conversion Kits.

centuryfuelproducts.com

Have done 7 different conversions using these people.
Don't work for them, don't get kick backs.
They make a simple great product.
Jim

The Honda eu2000i is a great setup for those of us that only NEED to run a few low draw items like a few lights and the blower for the fireplace or a pellet stove. Even running on gas using the boat tank converters they can run for days without refueling. Hooked up to a big LP tank or to city natural gas and ... Why run the 20 - 50 k gen-sets when you don't need the power 24 hours a day? Just run them when they're needed.

 

[Alexx1401]

The Honda eu2000i is a great setup for those of us that only NEED to run a few low draw items like a few lights and the blower for the fireplace or a pellet stove. Even running on gas using the boat tank converters they can run for days without refueling. Hooked up to a big LP tank or to city natural gas and ... Why run the 20 - 50 k gen-sets when you don't need the power 24 hours a day? Just run them when they're needed.

The one we have is only 6K running and it has worked great. Runs Freezer, Fridge, plenty of lights and of course the #1 most important thing, TV
Back when we had Sat TV it was all there. Now the cable net and so TV dies about an hour after the power does. So we just fire up one PC and have plenty to watch saved. Of course we are not out for weeks at a time here though. In summer I can even run the AC for the bedroom which is a must for me trying to sleep during the day. The not having to mess with gasoline has been so nice I always wonder why I did not buy an LP unit decades before.