CNG vs. Propane?

[Roniszoro]

I don't. But many good 30 year old boats for sail have CNG stoves, hence the question.

[james247]

Originally Posted by IslandHop

Not at all difficult or expensive. The two use different pressures . A simple matter of changing the orface valve. Most regular home gas appliances brand new will come setup for low pressure piped ng, even where none is available, just as standard. But also come with the hp lpg orfice, takes about 2 minutes to unscrew and screw, like a light Cheers

Seriously 10 min work

[Stu Jackson]

These comments are good ones for a subject that has been a recurring topic for decades.

We have CNG on our 1986 boat. It was the first year of manufacture. Shortly thereafter the factory started building in propane boxes and switched.

I was fortunate that there was a CNG tank swap place very close to my marina when we lived in Northern California. It simply does not exist for recreational boats in Canada. Nor does it exist outside the US.

For our trip north we bought a single burner butane stove. I'm still using it a year and a half later. Will I switch? I don't know, yet...

It's a simple changeout of the burners and the oven gizmo (!!!). Too early in the morning to remember the right term.

The West Marine Advisors discuss the differences and a Google search will find you the details necessary to make the swap. And it's not only boating, RV-ers do it, too.

Good luck, not a big deal.

[john61ct]

The swapping of jets may be easy, but as stated propane requires much more stringent safety precautions since it is heavier than air and very dangerously collects below.

To the point that many many smart boaters swear off any propane in the living space.

Even trained military personnel diligently following stringent checklists have fatal accidents.

[Chuck34]

Originally Posted by foggysail

Propane has twice the BTU rating of natural gas. Why would you want natural gas?

My boat had CNG when we bought it. While not as easy to find CNG, it wasn't a
big issue for us the few times we needed a refill.
As stated above, from the safety standpoint, CNG is way safer than propane.

[boatpoker]

Originally Posted by john61ct

To the point that many many smart boaters swear off any propane in the living space.

and many smart boaters swear by it

[Jim Cate]

Originally Posted by Chuck34

My boat had CNG when we bought it. While not as easy to find CNG, it wasn't a
big issue for us the few times we needed a refill.
As stated above, from the safety standpoint, CNG is way safer than propane.

Let me guess: you didn't live aboard, didn't cook many meals aboard, were not heavy coffee or tea drinkers, and never baked bread on board... etc.

Your usage is pretty slim with a consumption rate of about one half of a tank per year, and is not representative of some folks life aboard.

As contradictory evidence, our Yankee 30 had a CNG stove. Worked ok for weekend sailing in SF bay, marginally for coastal trips to the Channel islands, but when we sailed to Hawaii, we took three tanks and barely made it across. Had to drive a long way in a rental car to get them refilled in Honolulu, too.

Jim

[hellosailor]

Every town's gas station, supermarket, hardware store, feed store...Propane bottles are swapped out all over the east coast of the US. In contrast, yes, CNG is more efficient but you'll find the big heavy tanks can only be refilled typically a the one or two CNG fleet vehicle refill stations in larger cities. And at the DIY stations, you often need a membership card that has to be obtained in advance, or the pumps won't turn on.

Great idea if you are staying in one location and the CNG station there is convenient to you. Not so good if you're going to need to play hide n seek or use one of the CNG station directories to find them.

[Chuck34]

Originally Posted by Jim Cate

Let me guess: you didn't live aboard, didn't cook many meals aboard, were not heavy coffee or tea drinkers, and never baked bread on board... etc.

Your usage is pretty slim with a consumption rate of about one half of a tank per year, and is not representative of some folks life aboard.

Never said we were heavy users. We are just like the vast majority of sailors...weekend sailors that rarely venture very far from home. While there certainly are full time live aboards and sailors that travel long and far that need the added convenience of propane, just visit most marinas and you will see tons of boats that rarely leave their slips and when they do, they aren't crossing oceans.

[Jim Cate]

Originally Posted by Chuck34

Never said we were heavy users. We are just like the vast majority of sailors...weekend sailors that rarely venture very far from home. While there certainly are full time live aboards and sailors that travel long and far that need the added convenience of propane, just visit most marinas and you will see tons of boats that rarely leave their slips and when they do, they aren't crossing oceans.

Most of us were trying to address the question that the OP posed which involved cruising the US east coast, the Bahamas and the Caribbean. This venue does not seem compatible with your sample usage, and would involve far more frequent refills for CNG, refills that are not available in most of the proposed cruising grounds.

And FYI, I have occasionally visited marinas and noted that most boats are lightly or never used... yep, got that!

Jim

[boatpoker]

Originally Posted by Jim Cate

Most of us were trying to address the question that the OP posed which involved cruising the US east coast, the Bahamas and the Caribbean. This venue does not seem compatible with your sample usage, and would involve far more frequent refills for CNG, refills that are not available in most of the proposed cruising grounds.

And FYI, I have occasionally visited marinas and noted that most boats are lightly or never used... yep, got that!

Jim

We really need a "like" button

[bensolomon]

I have CNG on my 37.5, with a family of 5. I have two tanks. I get it mailed from Connecticut. Very easy. I have a magma propane grill in the rail for meats, fish, etc. We use the stove for breakfast foods like eggs, etc, toasting bagels and bread, and boiling water for pasta/rice and coffee, as well as occasional pan seared whatever. We also have an oven we use for pizza making and biscuits.

We can go months between tank changes. I keep CNG equipment for safety and I don't need power to cook (solenoid). When I get ready to sail to Bahamas and caribbean, I will take three tanks with us.

It will not be easy to get outside of the US. Within US go the mail order route, and keep CNG.

[boatpoker]

Originally Posted by bensolomon

I have CNG on my 37.5, with a family of 5. I have two tanks. I get it mailed from Connecticut. Very easy. I have a magma propane grill in the rail for meats, fish, etc. We use the stove for breakfast foods like eggs, etc, toasting bagels and bread, and boiling water for pasta/rice and coffee, as well as occasional pan seared whatever. We also have an oven we use for pizza making and biscuits.

We can go months between tank changes. I keep CNG equipment for safety and I don't need power to cook (solenoid). When I get ready to sail to Bahamas and caribbean, I will take three tanks with us.

It will not be easy to get outside of the US. Within US go the mail order route, and keep CNG.

Another scenario that would not satisfy the OP's requirements. Mailing ahead to various marinas (if used) is simply not practical.

[Dennis.G]

The big issue with conversation to LP is the propane tank locker. When I was looking into conversion ended up design with external mounted tanks as existing CNG locker could not be properly vented.

[Tricolor]

It seems that in the US, although more complicated, CNG is still an acceptable option. Be aware that in the EU it's even more difficult or not possible to find filling stations.