Portable generator powering most of house in power outages.

[Sawyer Rob]

There's not that big a spread between the two fuels here and your generator will use more fuel on propane.

SR

 

[MossRoad]

There have been several discussions on choosing propane as a generator fuel. Such things as cost, actual usable amount of propane in the tank, delivery of propane during disasters, etc... were all discussed. Many folks liked their propane, however, it's generally conceded that they never actually ran the actual cost numbers to run a propane whole house generator for several days, weeks, etc...

Diesel appeared to be the most cost effective for long term generator usage.

If you're just talking about using a generator to run a few tools or appliances for a few hours a day, then fuel usage probably isn't a big concern. $300 to convert to propane is $300 worth of gasoline you could have purchased. How many hours can that Honda generator run on, say, 100 gallons of gasoline? Even if it used half a gallon per hour, that's 200 operating hours. I haven't run my portable generator 50 hours in 24 years. :laughing:

 

[shooterdon]

The numbers I ran showed a significant cost savings by using bulk propane....not 20 lb tanks. But the biggest advantage of propane is that it lasts for years and will not gum up carburetors or get moisture in the fuel tank.

One option is to get a dual fuel generator. But Honda does not offer one. Chapman looks like a decent option.

I will stay with gas this year unless I sell the Honda. Just ran both generators today so they are ready for winter. The Honda started on the third try after sitting idle for over 8 months ran it for 15 minutes. Did not need starter fluid. Had to use starter fluid on the HF. It took over three hours to run the old fuel out of the HF.

 

[Industrial Toys]

APPARENTLY, here in a potentially cold climate, the turn-key style propane generators often just don't start. Which is the kicker, because people bought them to be installed and forgotten, and ready for service when it matters.

Just curious. Are propane generators running on gas or liquid propane?

 

[LouNY]

All propane engines run on vapor, many small engines on the vapor from the supply tank,
larger units may have a liquid feed to there own vaporizer.

 

[shooterdon]

APPARENTLY, here in a potentially cold climate, the turn-key style propane generators often just don't start. Which is the kicker, because people bought them to be installed and forgotten, and ready for service when it matters.

Just curious. Are propane generators running on gas or liquid propane?

When I investigated a whole house propane unit, Generac told me I would need to add another 500 gal. tank to get enough vaporization to supply the generator during cold weather.

 

[grsthegreat]

APPARENTLY, here in a potentially cold climate, the turn-key style propane generators often just don't start. Which is the kicker, because people bought them to be installed and forgotten, and ready for service when it matters.

Just curious. Are propane generators running on gas or liquid propane?

Not sure where you come up with that. we get -20F here and mine starts up in few seconds. I usually suggest a minimum of 500 gal propane so you have a good supply in power outage. i PERSONALLY could care less what it costs to operate as i like my comforts. Saying that, i do manually shut mine off during prolong outage during the day if i dont need to have it running. takes a few seconds to do. I have a 1,000 gal buried tank myself.

For EXTREMELY cold climates, Generac offers a breather tube heater for better starts. I use a battery heat pad and oil heater myself.

 

[cqaigy2]

In our mild wet climate, propane works well for the portable generator. I've had fewer problems with gunk in the carburetor and it starts much easier. I have larger portable bottles i us for the propane.

 

[shooterdon]

Not sure where you come up with that. we get -20F here and mine starts up in few seconds. I usually suggest a minimum of 500 gal propane so you have a good supply in power outage. i PERSONALLY could care less what it costs to operate as i like my comforts. Saying that, i do manually shut mine off during prolong outage during the day if i dont need to have it running. takes a few seconds to do. I have a 1,000 gal buried tank myself.

For EXTREMELY cold climates, Generac offers a breather tube heater for better starts. I use a battery heat pad and oil heater myself.

That was an honest admission. "PERSONALLY could care less what it costs to operate as i like my comforts. Saying that, i do manually shut mine off during prolong outage during the day if i dont need to have it running."

They are expensive to run!! BTW, I do the same with my portable unit. Sure, I have to fuel it, start it and connect it, but once that is done. it takes a few seconds to shut off and then put it back on line. But I have a fraction of the capital cost invested and lower operating costs.

Look, the whole house option is great if someone can afford it. But there are other ways to get the job done with less cost and a bit more effort.

 

[Industrial Toys]

I'm not sure what affording it has much to do with anything. I know multi millionairs that don't have standbye systems because they don't think they should have to. Indoor/Outdoor swimming pools and a riding arena, but no permanent standbye generator. I don't get it. To each his own. It's a hobby of mine, and I wouldn't feel covered unless I had four or so Diesel slow running sets of various capacity. I have pretty much assured the power never as much as flickers here anymore!