Sabre 30, Conversion to Propane?

[bythesurf]

My Sabre 30 (Hull #13) SV Chinook's gas 2-burner stove was
removed. Any help with a conversion to propane,
configuration and placement of propane locker would be
much appreciated!

[rognvald]

Surf,
If you don't find the answer to your question, why not consider a portable alcohol stove? It is less expensive, simpler and if you're not involved with baking, a perfectly acceptable alternative. We cooked on an alcohol stove for 17 years and never had a problem. And, alcohol is available everywhere. Here's an Origo. Good luck and good sailing.
Origo 3000 Non-Pressurized 2-Burner Alcohol Stove

Defender Page Not Found

[Dennis.G]

One of several articles on subject:
BoatUS – BoatTech – Propane Systems by Don Casey

My Dana had a CNG system and I did a lot of research on converting to Propane. A suitable locker location was my biggest issue (later built Danas came with a propane locker, but mine was designed for CNG and the locker was not suitable for propane). I never did convert, and just suffered along with CNG till I sold the boat. If I had converted I would have likely gone with an external tank mounted on rear of cockpit railing.

Most all stoves using CNG can be converted to LP no problem. Plan on all new plumbing for the propane. Include a propane detector mounted low inside boat

[Cheechako]

Depends a lot on your boat. Some opt for a propane tank with bracket on the stern pulpit. You don't need a big tank for cooking.... even a 3# one will work and with a nice Sunbrella cover doesn't look too bad.

[Suijin]

Certainly your biggest challenge is going to be locating and building a locker. As you know, it needs to be vented at it's bottom to the exterior of the boat. What space you're willing to sacrifice in your cockpit is up to you and how you use the boat. Consider that you can use smaller tanks...10 lb., or even the small 1 lb. tanks, if that meets your usage of the boat. A propane stoves uses dramatically less fuel than a propane grill, so don't base your expectations of capacity on that.

I live aboard, use my stove and oven daily, and a 20 lb. tank lasts me probably 4+ months. If you're a weekender, 1 lb. tanks might be a good solution if you don't want to build a big locker or hang a bigger tank off the pushpit.

[CarlF]

+1 on the 1lb tanks.

For weekends and even week or two trips, the 1lb tanks are hard to beat. Buy them at the same market that you provision. The $4 tanks will be an insignificant part of your meal budget. Figure a way to lead a hose so that the bottle can be secured on deck (a short piece of PVC drain pipe secured to a stanchion is a good holder). Have a valve at the bottle.

Stack spares in a longer piece of PVC drain pipe attached to the aft rail. Paint the pipe the color of the gelcoat and it will look like Sabre put it there.

[Cheechako]

I saw a real cute 3#(?) tank at Tru Value hardware a couple months back. It was a real propane tank and maybe the size of a soccer ball. Perfect. Not a fan of the 1# tanks on boats. They seem to rust if you look at them sideways. ... and any not used for the season will be looking pretty bad by next season. Shouldn't be used in the cabin either.

[Dennis.G]

We have three 10-pound (about 2 1/2 gal each) aluminum LP tanks in a locker on our boat. That is a lot of LP and we never come close to running out. Nice to have more than one tank so you can take time to refill an empty tank while using another. Three tanks really is overkill. For your size boat I would recommend two 5 or 6 pound tanks.

We also use the little 1# tanks for our BBQ. I have an adaptor to allow me to refill these from our 10# tanks, so cheap to use. You will burn through a 1# tank pretty quick. An issue with the 1# tanks is where to store them. They can leak. We use brass caps (instead of the plastic caps) to make sure they are sealed, and store them in our propane locker. Storing them anywhere where any leaked propane can sink to the bilge is not safe.

[Orion Jim]

The first thing I did when I bought my boat was to remove the propane locker which took up my lazerette. It was a trident unit properly secured and vented so it wasn't some Mickey Mouse crap. I installed a suremarine.com bracket on my stern rail for a 6lb.. tank and I have a sunbrella fitted cover over it. Looks great, perfectly safe, and I gained valuable locker space!

[psk125]

West Marine has a useful "Propane installation" piece in their catalogue. It shows the different pieces you need and how they relate to one another. Where they go, of course, depends upon you and your boat. You may have part of a lazarette you can close off with fiberglass and put a drain in. You may decide to hang a tank on the rail, as suggested above. You have to decide what works for you. CNG solves a lot of problems if you can find it, too.

[GordMay]

ABYC A-01: Marine Liquified Petroleum Gas Systems

➥ Full text of "ABYC A-01: Marine Liquified Petroleum Gas Systems"

➥ https://law.resource.org/pub/us/cfr/....A-01.1993.pdf