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ALL ENGINES 12hp or smaller use
ALL ENGINES 13hp or Larger use
Dedicated High Pressure Propane
Bi-Fuel Propane and Gasoline
Type 3 Kits
Dedicated Natural Gas and Low Pressure
Propane
Type 4 Kits
Tri-Fuel Natural Gas, Propane, and
Gasoline
Remote Start
The parts needed to start a generator
remotely by wire or even wireless
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what kit is best for your application?
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Monday August 09, 2010
News & Features
Kit Production
Update:
Production
is currently at:
1-3 days
As always, some kits take a little longer due
to heavy order volume.
Kit
Center Regular Hours of Operation:
Monday thru
Friday
9:00 am -
4:30 pm
Eastern
Time.
If you
require assistance please fill out a request form using this link
Tech Help
or the
email address found in your Master Conversion Instruction Booklet.
(end)
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ORDERING & QUESTIONS
Use your credit card and
safely and securely order on-line. Or call our office toll
free at :
1-800-553-5608
Monday thru Friday 9-4:30
Eastern time. You can place your order over the phone if you feel
more comfortable doing that or if you would like to speak with a company
representative to answer any further questions you may have.
Please
check our BASIC INFO page first.
1-800-553-5608
For our
Canada customers call us here in the
U.S. toll free at
1-800-486-0077.
| |
 Portable Propane using 20# Cylinders and Larger
Propane 20# cylinders can be used to operate a
generator portably. This is useful for all of the Kits available from our
website. We have a hose kit for all kits to allow use of portable propane
cylinders.
A common question we are asked is what pressure is my propane
tank? Or what kit should I order, high or low pressure? The
following should be helpful:
PROPANE CYLINDER LEGEND
BLACK AREA: Represents liquid propane which actually
is as perfectly clear as water.
YELLOW AREA: Represents the vapor space and vapor
is actually colorless.
YELLOW BUBBLES: Represent the vapor that is
created when propane boils.
PROPANE TERMS FOR CYLINDERS AND TANKS*
 |
Tank Pressure
Unregulated
vapor pressure in any size propane tank can range from about 60 to 120 psi
on average. This pressure is not consistent and fluctuates constantly
based on the temperature of the propane and the draw of vapor from the upper
vapor space. When the temperature of the liquid drops due to the
boiling process, the pressure
decreases. When the liquid warms the pressure increases. Due to this
constant fluctuation and the fact that the engine fuel components operate best
at steady input pressures, a regulator must be installed to keep the OUTLET
pressure consistently the same or REGULATED. There are two types of
regulators in the propane industry as described next. |
| High Pressure
Typically RED in color this regulator
reduces the
unregulated tank pressure to a constant outlet pressure between
8 to 12 psi (10 psi is average) no matter how much the tank pressure may
fluctuate. |
| Low Pressure
Within this category there are 2 different types. This regulator can be
many different colors such as green, gray, brown, etc. and is a SECOND STAGE
regulator designed to reduce the 10psi HIGH PRESSURE to a consistent 11" water
column. Silver is also a low pressure regulator but is considered a
SINGLE STAGE regulator because it will accept tank pressure and drop it to a
consistent 11" water column. |
Other Characteristics of Propane and
propane systems
|
Liquid and Vapor:
Propane is transported pumped and stored as a liquid. Most systems use
vapor and 1 gallon of liquid propane will turn into 270 gallons of vapor gas.
The process is easier to understand if it was water. Imagine an engine
that could use steam vapor for power. Every gallon of water would make ?
gallons of steam that could be burned. Propane is just like that and it
has to boil to produce the vapor to be used. |
|
Boiling Point:
44 degrees
Fahrenheit below zero (Just as the boiling point for
water is 212 degrees above) |
|
Recovery time:
If propane vapor is pulled off very quickly the gas boils very rapidly to
replenish the vapor. If the area directly around the liquid can not
provide enough heat for the liquid to absorb, the liquid will basically turn
into a gel and stop vaporizing. (In theory, a person could carry propane
around in a bucket in 50 below zero Antarctica.) The result can be
a cylinder that is 1/2 full but have no vapor pressure as if it were empty.
When the gas warms up again it will replenish and the liquid will be usable
again. |
|
Propane Pressure:
Most common domestic system use is at 11" water common (28 inches = 1 psi so
11" wc is just under one half of one psi) |
The size of the cylinder, how full it is, and the outside air
temperature, all determine what size generator can be operated with any given
cylinder.
As a general rule of thumb, a 10 horsepower engine will run fine
on a 20# grill type cylinder if the ambient air temperature is above freezing.
Larger engines require a larger cylinder. We have a device called a TC-18
that ties two cylinders together if needed which more than double the
vaporization rate of two cylinders.
|
20# cylinders hold approximately 5 gallons of propane. |
|
30# cylinders hold approximately 7 gallons of propane. |
|
40# cylinders hold approximately 10 gallons of
propane. |
|
100# cylinders hold approximately 25 gallons of
propane. |
|
420# cylinders hold approximately 100 gallons of
propane. |
*For simplicity, this
article uses the term "tank" to refer to either type of vessel since the terms
are synonymous. Statements made about regulators and other industry
equipment is not absolute and does not qualify or restrict any device but are
used for the sake of a basic discussion. |
