propane outboards?

M

mx8

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I saw them in the defender catalog with the little propane can screwed on...just curious if anybody has one or knows how long they run on a pound of propane?
 
unless you don't have any gas available, propane would be a waste. You'll get very poor performance and mileage compared to gas.
 
I think the point is it's cleaner burning, doesn't go bad when stored for a long time and it's relatively cheap. That and you can store the motor aboard with the fuel tank removed with no worries about spillage and odor of the fuel.
 
quote:
Originally posted by Capt. Bill1

I think the point is it's cleaner burning, doesn't go bad when stored for a long time and it's relatively cheap. That and you can store the motor aboard with the fuel tank removed with no worries about spillage and odor of the fuel.

Click to expand...
Safer too I'd imagine.
 
The real question could Gasoline inboards safetly be converted and run on Propane?
I seriously doubt it for a number of reasons.
The Propane outboards I have seen are all low horsepower units.
Bill
 
No worrying about ethanol either:) Ethanol is slowing killing my little 6hp Suzuki.

Niles
 
Getting rid of the gas tank is a good thing

Cars have been converted to run on LPG for years in Europe where LPG is signicantly cheaper than "petrol". No performance loss and minimal mechanical mods

Another 4 years of gas price hikes on this side of the pond and it will become popular here as well
 
Propane is heavier than air (as are gasoline fumes), so it will seek the lowest point. That is really not a issue with a low HP outboard motor mounted on a open skiff.

LNG (Liquefied Natural Gas) on the other hand is lighter than air and will eventually replace diesel as the preferred clean/green fuel. At present there are at least ten (10), large, 300'(+), US Flag, Offshore Service Vessels under construction that will be fueled by LNG. LNG is the future of commercial vessels and it will not be long before the technology trickles down to the custom yacht market. Will we be seeing Bayliner's and Sea Rays using LNG in the future? I hope not.

Here is a link to the PDF file on the boats constructed by TY Offshore.

http://www.gulfcoastshipyardgroup.com/images/OffshoreVessels/SV310Energy-fwd-port-Sea-HR.pdf
 
I owned a 30 foot Motorhome on a ford F350 chassis for many years. It had a Ford 460 with dual fuel kit.
It had twin 40 gallon gas tanks and a horizontal 50 gallon LP tank which was also used for the furnace, stove, water heater and fridge.
Propane as an engine fuel was half the price of gas at the time in Canada and the engine performed with about 10% worse mileage on propane than on gas. It was a big saving.
The biggest problem was that the refueling statons in the US were few and far between or I had to pay BBQ tank pricing there from retailers with no way to sell it by the gallon.
When I towed my boat I could use propane on the flats and would switch to gas in hilly areas.
Oil changes were double the mileage on propane and the oil came out almost as clean as when it went in.
I would have a dual fuel vehicle again if the numbers worked.
 
10% less mileage than straight gas, right? Ethanol blended gas is less efficient than pure gas
 
Good Point Pascal, it is probably close to even now when you factor in ethanol.
 
GGE - Gasoline Gallon Equivalent (US Gallons) table

GGE Calculated for Gasoline in US Gallons at 114000 BTU per Gallon,
or 7594 kilogram calories per litre

Fuel - Liquid, US Gallons
GGE GGE % BTU/Gal kWh/Gal Cal/litre

Gasoline (base)[3] 1.0000 100.00% 114,000 33.41 7594

Gasoline (conventional, summer)[3] 0.9960 100.40% 114,500 33.56 7624.5

Gasoline (conventional, winter)[3] 1.0130 98.72% 112,500 32.97 7496.5

Gasoline (reformulated gas,ethanol) 1.0190 98.14% 111,836 32.78 7452.4

Gasoline (regular unleaded)[5] 1.0000 100.00% 114,100 33.44 7594

Diesel #2[5] 0.8800 113.64% 129,500 37.95 8629.8

Biodiesel (B100)[5] 0.9600 104.17% 118,300 34.80 8629.5

Bio Diesel (B20)[5] 0.9000 111.11% 127,250 37.12 8437.7

Liquid natural gas (LNG)[5] 1.5362 65.10% 75,000 21.75 4943.3

Liquefied petroleum gas (propane) 1.3500 74.04% 84,300 24.75 5625.2

Ethanol fuel (E100)[5] 1.5000 66.67% 76,100 22.27 5062.7

Ethanol (E85)[5] 1.3900 71.94% 81,800 24.04 5463.3
 
You get about 1/3 less power than from gas. Like paying for a 15 HP OB and getting a 10 HP
 
At a recent boat show the Lehr salesperson explained that for now the propane outboards are essentially being marketed to sailboaters who just want to get in and out of the harbor with their outboards and not have to store gasoline.
 
I think the "Riverwalk" boats in San Antonio TX run on CNG or LPG. Last time I was there they used Evinrudes. Whether the conversion was factory or after-market I don't know.
 
quote:
Originally posted by Billylll

The real question could Gasoline inboards safetly be converted and run on Propane?
I seriously doubt it for a number of reasons.
The Propane outboards I have seen are all low horsepower units.
Bill

Click to expand...


Lehr is introducing a 9.9-hp model, optimized to use the larger propane tanks (which can also work with the 2.5- and 5-hp models) instead of the screw-in bottles.

A company (US Carburetion, or something like that) converts Yamaha gasoline generators to run on propane. Don't know if they become dual-fuel, or only propane after that... but in any case that would seem to suggest an outboard could also be converted.

-Chris
 
I can drive around all day on 3 gallons of gas, how much propane would I have to carry to do the same?
 
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