Not another portable generator thread!

[valhalla360]

Originally Posted by dfelsent

This is about houseboats but ...

https://www.cdc.gov/Mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm4949a1.htm

This would suggest we should all be using portable generators as the houseboats in question use built in generators that caused the issue.

The issue on houseboats is people swimming under or around the swim platform and the exhaust from the generator directed out under the swim platform where it gets trapped and concentrated.

Swimming in an enclosed area with exhaust fed into that area is generally a bad idea (built in or portable). Even with lower CO, diesel exhaust can easily be fatal in this scenario.

[ranger58sb]

Didn't read the whole thread, but...

Consider converting the portable genset to run on propane. Pros and cons, of course...

-Chris

[valhalla360]

Originally Posted by ranger42c

Didn't read the whole thread, but...

Consider converting the portable genset to run on propane. Pros and cons, of course...

-Chris

If you have a large supply of propane onboard and the ability easily refill while cruising, it's a nice option. Eliminates concerns of the carb gumming up. Plus propane never goes stale. You do lose a little on the peak output from the generator, so if you really need the peak output (say to start an air/con), that can be a problem.

Problem is on most boats, you have 1, maybe 2 20# BBQ tanks (about 4gal). That's not enough if you will be out for a week or two without refills available.

Now if you just have limited needs, say an hour or two to charge batteries and run an electric stove each day, that's more viable but in that case a nice solar system becomes appealing.

In the RV world, propane generates are not uncommon in gas motorhomes. Motorhomes often have 20-40 gal built in tanks and it's easy to swing by a propane place to get it refilled (some RV parks will even have a truck come thru once a week doing refills in place). I've never seen a cruising boat with that type of setup and marinas with propane refills are rare.

[Dockhead]

Originally Posted by PeroniPete

I did find a YouTube video once, about a fella who by-passed his Honda generator fuel tank, and fitted his generator up with a fitting that would accept the hose from his outboard tank. That sounds like the safest solution to me, also with the Honda you can run the carb dry when you switch off. Also the new Honda generators have a CO2 sensor and cutoff feature built in, at least the U.S. ones do. Then another chap ran his Honda with the exhaust extension hose fitted, and dangled the end of the hose into the water. Any Thoughts?
We had a 50' Hanse with a German brand diesel gen fitted, Cost..10,000 Euro not incl tax. It was fitted poorly, with the exhaust rubbing somewhere as it passed down inside the hull and it would rattle the whole boat. This Generator lasted 550 hrs before a major failure required a full rebuild. Never Again. The Honda for me, a tiny fraction of the price.

Fischer Panda no doubt. I would never have one of those!

[Dockhead]

Originally Posted by valhalla360

If you have a large supply of propane onboard and the ability easily refill while cruising, it's a nice option. Eliminates concerns of the carb gumming up. Plus propane never goes stale. You do lose a little on the peak output from the generator, so if you really need the peak output (say to start an air/con), that can be a problem.

Problem is on most boats, you have 1, maybe 2 20# BBQ tanks (about 4gal). That's not enough if you will be out for a week or two without refills available.

Now if you just have limited needs, say an hour or two to charge batteries and run an electric stove each day, that's more viable but in that case a nice solar system becomes appealing.

In the RV world, propane generates are not uncommon in gas motorhomes. Motorhomes often have 20-40 gal built in tanks and it's easy to swing by a propane place to get it refilled (some RV parks will even have a truck come thru once a week doing refills in place). I've never seen a cruising boat with that type of setup and marinas with propane refills are rare.

You can also use alkyd chain saw fuel. Infinite storage life and won't gum up the carb. I'm using this in my outboard now.

[valhalla360]

Originally Posted by Dockhead

You can also use alkyd chain saw fuel. Infinite storage life and won't gum up the carb. I'm using this in my outboard now.

Not sure if it's a terminology thing but I can't find alykyd chain saw fuel online. Does it go by another name?

How much does that cost per gallon and where do you buy it?

I don't recall ever seeing it at a marina fuel dock, so you are back to is it a pain to find while out cruising.

[Jammer]

Originally Posted by valhalla360

Not sure if it's a terminology thing but I can't find alykyd chain saw fuel online. Does it go by another name?

Tru-fuel among others.


Exactly what is in it, and whether it is all alkyds, is unclear to me.

How much does that cost per gallon and where do you buy it?

$20 or so a gallon at your nearest home center.


They market it to people who own chainsaws but don't use them.

[wsmurdoch]

Originally Posted by Jammer

There isn't a good spot. Portable generators emit CO. Lots of it. CO is heavier than air. People have suffered CO poisoning while swimming next to a swim platform where the generator is running. People have suffered CO poisoning while below decks while the generator was running in the cockpit.

Carbon monoxide is slightly less dense than air. The density of carbon monoxide is something like 1.14 kg/m^3, and air is around 1.23 kg/m^3 at atmospheric pressure.

[valhalla360]

Originally Posted by Jammer

Tru-fuel among others.

Exactly what is in it, and whether it is all alkyds, is unclear to me.

$20 or so a gallon at your nearest home center.

They market it to people who own chainsaws but don't use them.

That's kind of what I thought but wasn't familiar with the term...As you say, if you rarely use it and then only burn a tiny amount when you do, it's an OK option. Who cares if it's $20 if it covers 5yrs of use.

As a teen, my dad bought a semi load of logs and sent me and my brothers out to cut it up...I don't think we used more than a couple gallons to do the whole load with the chainsaws.

Even for a small generator, you will use 3-4 gallons per day of use...so $60-80 for the fancy fuel.

A 20# propane tank will typically run you about $15 and contains (I believe) 3.4gal.

Regular gasoline and just run the carb dry...$6-8. On our Yamaha, I just close the fuel petcock and let it run dry (kill the loads first). 14yrs old and still runs good.

[Cheechako]

The big advantage of a Honda 2000 is it's very quiet and simple. Diesels are noisy and heavy. Now if you rely heavily on generation then maybe they make sense. But anchored next to a boat with a Honda you will never even know they are running it. Even with a water cooled diesel gen your neighbor will know it's running.

I'm a musician and we played an outdoor gig by the river once. As we were setting up on a big trailer, I asked the guy where the generator was... he replied "you're standing next to it... and it's running" It was the first Honda 2000 I ever saw. It was powering some stuff in his travel trailer. It ran entire band equipment for 4 hours.

[FL Dan]

If interested in running Honda generator off propane, Genconnex markets a nicely done conversion: https://genconnexdirect.net/honda_ge...opane_kits.htm
I have three of them.

[Letterkenny]

Originally Posted by Jammer

A CO sensor will not make an unsafe installation into a safe installation.







They are a nuisance and safety hazard on boat. Don't do it unless your plans are for very occasional use i.e. as a backup when other equipment fails, or use while ashore.





It isn't safe to store it anywhere with fuel in it except in a vented fuel locker.



There is no practical way to defuel them. Your best bet is to run them until the fuel is exhausted, or convert them to use an external fuel tank using a hose, like an outboard motor.






Rock, paper, scissors. Anchor pierces tank. Steel chain rode makes sparks. Gas explodes.






There isn't a good spot. Portable generators emit CO. Lots of it. CO is heavier than air. People have suffered CO poisoning while swimming next to a swim platform where the generator is running. People have suffered CO poisoning while below decks while the generator was running in the cockpit.






You trade off the problem of the generator getting wet for the problem of it overheating.


Also, you forgot to ask about noise.

I was waiting for you to make a post here as I have seen you make similar posts on every other cruiserforum gas generator thread. I’m just curious if you have personal experience with a big massive issue with gas generators or something else? Seems like a very viable and good option.

[Jammer]

Originally Posted by Letterkenny

I was waiting for you to make a post here as I have seen you make similar posts on every other cruiserforum gas generator thread. I’m just curious if you have personal experience with a big massive issue with gas generators or something else? Seems like a very viable and good option.

I have personally owned a suitcase generator and a diesel generator and have been responsible for the maintenance of a propane generator belonging to family for the last 20 years. I had an off-the-grid friend who had a near miss where his cabin nearly burned down due to a failure on the electric side of a construction-type generator.


I have met and spoken with attending nurses who work at one of the hyperbaric oxygen chambers in Minnesota. They chiefly treat CO poisoning victims.



My grandfather was a surgeon and once performed skin grafts for an emergency room patient who suffered life-threatening burns in a refuelling accident involving a portable gasoline engine.



The Texas blackouts a week or two ago gave us how many CO poisoning deaths? A bunch confirmed based on carboxyhemoglobin fractions, God knows how many that were blamed on heart attacks or whatever because no one ever ran that particular forensic blood test


You go do what you want. It's your boat

[Letterkenny]

Originally Posted by Jammer

I have personally owned a suitcase generator and a diesel generator and have been responsible for the maintenance of a propane generator belonging to family for the last 20 years. I had an off-the-grid friend who had a near miss where his cabin nearly burned down due to a failure on the electric side of a construction-type generator.


I have met and spoken with attending nurses who work at one of the hyperbaric oxygen chambers in Minnesota. They chiefly treat CO poisoning victims.



My grandfather was a surgeon and once performed skin grafts for an emergency room patient who suffered life-threatening burns in a refuelling accident involving a portable gasoline engine.



The Texas blackouts a week or two ago gave us how many CO poisoning deaths? A bunch confirmed based on carboxyhemoglobin fractions, God knows how many that were blamed on heart attacks or whatever because no one ever ran that particular forensic blood test


You go do what you want. It's your boat

These seem to fall under the “don’t be an idiot” category.

[GoneDiving]

Originally Posted by FL Dan

If interested in running Honda generator off propane, Genconnex markets a nicely done conversion: https://genconnexdirect.net/honda_ge...opane_kits.htm
I have three of them.

For the unwashed, what's the benefits of propane for small engines? I know it's popular in the US but basically unheard of here. Is it a cost/availability thing there only or are there benefits that translate elsewhere?

If it matters, I'm in Australia but looking to travel around Asia

Thanks