Anyone Gone All Propane - Outboard , Generator ?

[cal40john]

Originally Posted by capn_billl

I am interested. Not having to lug around a can of gasoline for my outboard would be great. In my small sailboat I have no place to put it, and spend more than the cost of the outboard to fix the problems from ethanol.

The little propane cans are cheap, readily available in the US, and don't smell or spill fuel everywhere.

The first time I used my bbq, when I removed the green bottle I could hear hissing. I tried to reseat it by putting it back on the bbq, no luck. I got it off the boat. An hour or so later the smell and fuel spill were gone.

[HopCar]

Manitu, you can convert gasoline engines to propane but you will lose power. Propane has fewer BTU per gallon than gasoline and a higher octane rating. The Lehr outboards were designed from the ground up to run on propane. They have a higher compression ratio than gasoline engines to take advantage of the higher octane rating. A 5HP Lehr puts out 5HP. A gasoline 5HP engine run on propane will put out less.

[manitu]

What is the weight of the 5hp propane engine compared to a 8 or 9,9 hp, say, Yamaha? (edit: about the same, I see, couple posts above) My main point for world cruisers is that the you can run both fuels , you can even get a kit who enables you to run gas , propane or LPG even.
You can buy ready made tri-fuel generators too.

Ofcourse, propane is in many ways the better fuel , but the logistics around it is not the best. I would prefer a engine wich I actually can get fuel for.

I see your point about octane.. what octane is american gas nowadays?
Here , I can get gas at 95 or 98 octane.. But the BEST fuel for my outboard is without doubt 100LL wich you can get at any airstrip around the world. NO ethanol *****! Dont use it if your 4stroke has a catalyst converter though..

.manitu

[cal40john]

Originally Posted by manitu

What is the weight of the 5hp propane engine compared to a 8 or 9,9 hp, say, Yamaha? (edit: about the same, I see, couple posts above) My main point for world cruisers is that the you can run both fuels , you can even get a kit who enables you to run gas , propane or LPG even.
You can buy ready made tri-fuel generators too.

Ofcourse, propane is in many ways the better fuel , but the logistics around it is not the best. I would prefer a engine wich I actually can get fuel for.

I see your point about octane.. what octane is american gas nowadays?
Here , I can get gas at 95 or 98 octane.. But the BEST fuel for my outboard is without doubt 100LL wich you can get at any airstrip around the world. NO ethanol *****! Dont use it if your 4stroke has a catalyst converter though..

.manitu

If you're saying put a tri fuel carb on a Lehr engine, then the octane rating of the gas is important since Hopcar says it is a higher compression engine.


Higher octane gas does nothing for engines that don't require it.
Fact or Fiction?: Premium Gasoline Delivers Premium Benefits to Your Car: Scientific American

[manitu]

I know, I know.. my 70's american made 2stroke would probably not run at all on the stuff you call gas today.. but what is it? like 89-90 octane??

edit: found the answer regular = 87 octane Would not give that to my lawnmover even..
edit2: My outboard is made for 95 octane
.manitu

[HopCar]

A 5hp propane engine weighs about the same as a 5HP gasoline engine. It will be lighter than a 9.9 HP gasoline engine. The idea of a multi fuel engine is appealing but you lose power when you run a gasoline engine on propane. I have one of those tri-fuel generators. It is rated at 6KW on gasoline, 5.5 KW on Propane and I think 5KW on Natural Gas. I will never put gasoline in it as I need it to start in an emergency after sitting unused for long periods of time.

As to running 100LL in your outboard, the higher octane does nothing for you if your engine was designed to run on regular 87 octane. The lack of ethanol might be a good thing. Strangly enough 100LL (low lead) has more lead in it than the stuff you put in your car.

You can convert a gasoline engine to propane but not a propane engine to gasoline. Gasoline doesn't have enough octane to prevent detonation (knock) in the higher compression propane engine.

[manitu]

Gas= 87-112 octane. Typically 90-95
Propane=110 octane
LPG=95-120 octane. Typically 105-110.

So the only real obstacle for a efficient tri-fuel motor is the crappy gas wich many countries have...

adjustable compression, anyone?

.manitu

[4arch]

HopCar,

Sent you a PM inquiring about pricing on the Lehr outboards.

[shelbycobra5]

All,
I have converted all my auxilliary equipment on my boat to Propane.

I have the 5hp LEHR outboard
I converted my Honda EU200i to Propane
I have a gas grill.

I use the small 1lb cylinders on my outboard and grill, but I also refil them as needed with an adapter. If Im taking a long Dingy ride I will bring my Fiberglass 20lb tank.
I Just finished a 2 week vacation and was on the hook for 7 days and only burned through 1 20lb tank for the the genny and a portion of another for cooking and refilling my cylinders. My Lehr Outboard only burned through 2 green 1lb cylinders.

This is the first trip that I have taken with no gas cans.

[HopCar]

shelbycobra5, Very nice. Where did you find a kit for converting the Honda genny?
I've already got my Lehr and would like to convert my Honda 2000i as well.

[shelbycobra5]

Originally Posted by HopCar

shelbycobra5, Very nice. Where did you find a kit for converting the Honda genny?
I've already got my Lehr and would like to convert my Honda 2000i as well.

I bought my kit from generatorsales.com The kit requires drilling of the carburetor. I sent mine off to them and they did it for me. I do not see on their site the ability to order a kit anymore. The best thing would be to call them at 207-941-1188.

I did convert a home generator to propane and the kit I ordered was from Generator Conversion Kits to Propane and Natural Gas. This site is more DIY.

FYI the refil adapter for refilling the small 1lb canisters is "Mr. Heater F276172 Propane One Pound Tank Refill Adapter"

[shelbycobra5]

HopCar,
I bought the conversion kit from http://www.generatorsales.com
They did have kits available on their website but I can't find the link anymore. You can call them @ 207-941-1188 and they will have the info if they still make them available. For their conversion kit you will need to send off your carburetor to have a hole drilled in it to accept the propane. The turnaround was a few weeks if I remember correctly.
Another site that you can use for the conversion is http://www.propane-generators.com this is a more DIY approach. I used one of their kits for a larger generator that I have at home.

To refill the small propane cylinders I use this adapter
"Mr. Heater F276172 Propane One Pound Tank Refill Adapter" I found it on Amazon but hardware stores and Harbor freight have the also.

[TrojanMan]

Originally Posted by HopCar

Minaret, Our customers had problems with bad assembly. Things were loose, leaked or needed adjustment. We only sold a few of them before problems showed up. The distributor asked us not to sell any more and took back the ones we had in stock. I'll have to check to see if anything has changed. The ones we sold were from the first container to hit the US.

I purchased a 9.9 at the beginning of July. It runs great, however I keep have pieces break off. Is that the kind of assembly issues your customers were having Hopcar?

[s/v Moondancer]

Great idea as long as you are attached to a Home Depot.

We are in Bonaire in the S Caribbean, propane is $3,50 a pound ($70/cylinder) and you get a cylinder filled by leaving it for two weeks while they send it to Curacao, the next island over, to get it filled!

The French Islands use Butane...does that run those cute outboards?

[Vasco]

When you're cruising getting propane is difficult. Even in the US East Coast, without a car it's always an adventure. A propane outboard when your dink is your lifeline just will not work. In the Bahamas, forget about it!

The guy with the propane dink is still rowing in. By the time he gets here the propane truck will have left.