Generator tri fuel conversion kit

kpm · Sep 9, 2012

Anyone attempted this mod?

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Gator 45/70 · Sep 9, 2012

Yeah...About 55 and 3 welding machine's...It work's.

alex · Sep 9, 2012

Works VERY well. PM Smokeless. I got to see his setup and was really envious.

rocko · Sep 9, 2012

works for me.

scooterj · Sep 9, 2012

Works great and beats the hell out of chasing gasoline around town.

cnodie1 · Sep 9, 2012

What's the cost of getting a hookup to tap your home's nat gas?

toddrod · Sep 10, 2012

Yep, here is a video of me and my setup.

toddrod · Sep 10, 2012

cnodie1 said:
What's the cost of getting a hookup to tap your home's nat gas?

Should be less than $150 for a plumber to do this.

jmeng · Sep 10, 2012

Been looking at these online. Is there a reduction in generator capacity or the watts produced when running on natural gas compared to gasoline?

drumz2129 · Sep 10, 2012

jmeng said:
Been looking at these online. Is there a reduction in generator capacity or the watts produced when running on natural gas compared to gasoline?

It does not necessarily go down, they are not always as efficient per gallon of fuel, but if that fuel is cheaper per gallon or easily accessible, who cares. Here are the 4 most common generator fuels listed from highest to lowest energy potential per gallon of fuel.

Diesel: 129,500 BTU/Gal or 37.95kWh/Gal
Gasoline: 114,000 BTU/Gal or 33.41kWh/Gal
Propane (LPG): 84,300 BTU/Gal or 24.75kWh/Gal
Natural Gas (LNG):75,000 BTU/Gal or 21.75kWh/Gal

When using compressed natural gas it changes, 1 gallon of gas is roughly equal to 126.67 cu ft of CNG @ 900 BTU/cu ft.

toddrod · Sep 10, 2012

As long as you are getting 3600 rpm you are getting your rated output. So all you do is adjust the NG / propane flow rate until you achieve this.

drumz2129 · Sep 10, 2012

toddrod said:
As long as you are getting 3600 rpm you are getting your rated output. So all you do is adjust the NG / propane flow rate until you achieve this.

Something like this: http://www.amazon.com/Tiny-Tach-Hour-Meter-TT2A/dp/B0045L9GA0 is great to add to your gen to make sure you are getting proper RPM. Most residential sets are designed to run at 3600RPM. More efficient gensets like those used on some RVs run at 1800RPM.

jmeng · Sep 10, 2012

Thanks. I'm not worried about using more fuel if I switch to nat gas, just want to make sure I'm still getting my 5000 watts (or whatever the generator is rated for). I've been looking at the kits from www.propane-generators.com , any other good sources?

drumz2129 · Sep 10, 2012

another benefit of NG or LPG conversion is how much cleaner burning it is. You can get more life out of your oil due to less soot build up.

kpm · Sep 10, 2012

Guys you all answered one of my questions - yes the product works as advertised.

I pm-Ed a few of you and basically my second question is advice on how to hook up to my natural gas. My meter is about 100' from where I put my generator (protected under my carport). One thought would be to tap into the meter and run pipe (40 ft) out of site and buy a 60' temp hose to the generator. I thought about tapping into the gas pipe in the attic but it looks like 1/2" on that side supplying the hot water heater. That option would be longer than 100 ft so I'm leaning toward plan a.

I'm enlisting a gas expert soon but looking to the folks who have done this and may have a similar challenge.

By the way my generator is 5000 w. thanks for your feedback!

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scooterj · Sep 10, 2012

My NG piping is 1/2", I have 20' of 3/4" hose between the house and the genny. NG is very low pressure, it's the volume you need and the hose acts as a reservoir. BTW, I ran my machine for nearly 50 hours and my gas bill was less than $15.00 more than normal.

El Rubio · Sep 12, 2012

jmeng said:
Thanks. I'm not worried about using more fuel if I switch to nat gas, just want to make sure I'm still getting my 5000 watts (or whatever the generator is rated for). I've been looking at the kits from www.propane-generators.com , any other good sources?

http://www.propanecarbs.com/

I purchased the conversion kit from these guys, but got my 1/2" fuel hose and quick connect ( just like the one in the video) from propane-generators.com. Propanecarbs was slightly cheaper. Here in the Ponchatoula area, we lost power a week before the hurricane during a thunderstorm. I set mine up and ran it for about 3 hours. It was good test for the 2 days that would be necessary within a week. My neighbor, who had purchased a sweet Honda generator after Katrina, didn't run the gasoline out of his and it wouldn't start. Fortunately for him, that also was a good test before the hurricane because it gave him time to pay someone $145 to get it running just in time for Isaac. Now, all of my neighbors who run portables, are asking for info on converting theirs. I am VERY pleased with the performance of mine.

jmeng · Sep 12, 2012

Thanks. If I stick with a portable I'll probably go this route.

bwalke1 · Sep 12, 2012

jmeng said:
Thanks. I'm not worried about using more fuel if I switch to nat gas, just want to make sure I'm still getting my 5000 watts (or whatever the generator is rated for). I've been looking at the kits from www.propane-generators.com , any other good sources?

propane-generators.com worked for me also! good kit

scooterj · Sep 12, 2012

mine came from http://uscarburetion.com/

Generator tri fuel conversion kit

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