Anyone ever done this?  I'm looking at converting a Troy-Bilt 1919 (5550 watt, 10hp OHV Briggs & Stratton) to run on propane, natural gas, or gasoline.

I've looked around and found US Carburetion that offers conversion kits (tri-fuel), but can't find anything about the quality of these kits or how generators run after conversion.

Anyone know anything about this?

ar15.com/forums/topic.html?b=1&f=123&t=266060

Quoted: Anyone ever done this?  I'm looking at converting a Troy-Bilt 1919 (5550 watt, 10hp OHV Briggs & Stratton) to run on propane, natural gas, or gasoline. I've looked around and found US Carburetion that offers conversion kits (tri-fuel), but can't find anything about the quality of these kits or how generators run after conversion. Anyone know anything about this?

My uncle did this,  used it to run a well and supply electric to a hunting cabin.  Destroyed three generators in the process and spent BIG $$$.  They would overheat,  burn out rings, pretty much cook to death. Plus the fact that they are real propane hogs. He found it cheaper to run a power line out to the place and go with electric.

For emergency short term use, hurricanes etc, I don't see a problem with it,  but I don't think the engine or propane supply is going to last long.

propane is an EXCELLENT motor fuel and if somebody burns up 3 engines trying to run a generator off of propane maybe they should have been smart enough to figure out sooner that they were RUNNING TOO LEAN!!!!!!!!!!


tagged, this isn't my expertise but i'll try and see what i can find out for you

look up IMPCO and Century alternative fuel parts in the meantime, ive worked on those systems before...............

Propane doesn't produce as much power as gasoline, lower generator output.

Other than the storage issues associated with gasoline, gasoline is your best bet  next to diesel. The exception would be if you had natural gas plumbed to your home.

for now i will tell you this much:

propane runs about 112 octane and is shitpiles cleaner both intake and exhaust than gasoline or diesel though has about 15% less BTUs than gasoline so expect about 15% less 'mileage'

and won't "cook engines"  my first two trucks i ran almost exclusively on propane ('98 454 and '98 350)  and still would if computer system controlled engines hadn't made it so fucking cost prohibitive.  there is NO difference in power between gasoline and propane if the system is done correctly, thats the most common horseshit line by people............

Propane doesn't produce as much power as gasoline, lower generator output.

i was even beat to it while in the process of typing it

Propane-fueled generators (mostly Onans and Kohlers) are quite common in travel trailers (which already have propane tanks, but no gasoline tank). They have a pretty good reputation for reliability, but as others have mentioned, produce slightly less AC power than their gasoline-fueled counterparts. Propane burns much cleaner than gasoline or diesel, which means that the engine runs longer between tuneups and oil changes.

Propane can be stored almost indefinately. Also, it doesn't produce varnish, which means you don't have to drain the carburetor bowl before putting the generator into storage. For these reasons alone, it's definitely worth consideration for a SHTF generator – as long as you've also got plenty of propane stored up.

Yet another option is a dual-fuel generator that can run on both propane and natural gas. This allows you to hook the generator up to your local utility's natural gas supply, yet be able to run on propane if the natural gas supply fails during an emergency (which is very possible).

Quoted: ar15.com/forums/topic.html?b=1&f=123&t=266060

Hey! Thanks.  Looks like you had the same idea I did.

Quoted: Propane can be stored almost indefinately. Also, it doesn't produce varnish, which means you don't have to drain the carburetor bowl before putting the generator into storage. For these reasons alone, it's definitely worth consideration for a SHTF generator – as long as you've also got plenty of propane stored up.

This would be primarily a SHTF generator, with some occasional use during the year for other purposes.

Yet another option is a dual-fuel generator that can run on both propane and natural gas.

Ideally that's what I'd like since it offers the greatest flexibility.  The site I linked to above offers kits that they call tri-fuel, which means once the kit is installed the gen will run on gasoline, propane, or natural gas.

Propane won't go out of spec and clog up carb jets like old gasoline.
Propane is a better choice for home standby power.