Propane

[Eliosso]

I know and have read most of what has been said about the topic but have not seen anything about installing a 20# tank. Has anybody installed a 20# tank?

[Gene Regan]

Wow Paul

 you must have a huge gas grille. Never considered a 20 but have  friend  who did do a 10 or mybe its 12  and its on his stern rail on a bracket he fashioned up and mounted it to. no room any where on my boat for one. I have a seaward in the stern locker did a new tank as spare and changed old tanks valve.Now have enough gas on board to power all my stuff, even my weber.
good luck

Gene Regan

Drink up, me'earties, yo ho

[Eliosso]

Yes my grill is big but not that big .A real nice Parker grill came with the boat.
Am a new owner, I don,t know how long a 10# will last me to work the stove and BBQ. I need to get new tank and maybe change valve on old to use it as a spare although spare should also be kept in propane locker
Paul

[Gene Regan]

Paul,
  maybe give it a season to find out,propane is readily available most places and unless your gonna cook every day I'd hold off. Last season only used about 1/2 my tank and never broke into spare . Yes storage is an issue but when compared to the ease of refills not a big one so go with the one tank for a while.
  Does your boat have any pressing needs that may relate to saftey or engine issues, maybe spend the $$ on those things first. Its easy to overlook some things that may cause you problems while underway . For instance your heat exchanger , when was the last time it was removed ,cleaned and serviced and also hoses for cooling system. I just did mine and what a surprise I got. Found chafed hoses and clogged exchanger, failure was iminent, glad I looked.
  The list is endless take your time and look over all the things that could fail and stay in touch , this board is the best, just ask and help is there.

Gene Regan

Drink up, me'earties, yo ho

[Ray & Sandy Erps]

I think Ron did a write up on installing a bigger tank.  I have the original four pounder?  It lasts me our entire four week vacation.  I bought a small adapter and carry a small coleman tank in case I run out in the middle of dinner, which I can run on for a couple of days until I fill the four pounder back up.  I found that easier and cheaper than converting to a bigger tank.

[Eliosso]

Well I'm glad to see an 10# tank will last as long . I do have the lazarette propane locker. will make the needed adjustment, thank you for the info. My admiral will be happy to hear the news.
Paul

[agbenoit]

Would anyone share experience with how long a CNG tank lasts?

[Andrew Harvey]

Helen, Last summer was our first season with the boat. That's when we found out that the Tstat for the oven didn't work. We used about 80% of the cng over 2 weeks just for the stove, for general cooking, boiling water etc. Most of the cooking was done on the barbie. I figure that if you BBQ and had a functioning oven you would be lucky to get 3 weeks of cruising. I am switching to propane.
Andrew

[Stu Jackson]

SafGas  CNG

Tony

We've had the boat for 5 1/2 years.  Needed seven CNG bottle refills.   Use the boat once a week, cooking coffee.  Many weekend overnights using the stove.  I would guess for daily use for two meals with reasonable cooking that you'd get at least a month or two out of a tank.  We have a backup tank on board.

Stu

[Andrew Harvey]

Stu, Must be because it's colder here in Canada,takes longer to heat things up! I'm impressed that you can remenber the amount of refills over 5 years,I can't remember what I did last week.
Andrew

[agbenoit]

Paul,

If you make the switch to propane, are you interested in selling your old CNG tank?  It sounds like I could use a spare.

Tony

[Eliosso]

Well have modified my propane installation and installed an 11 lbs tank. By lowering the base of the tank by 10 inches and installing it off center, have greater acces to the lazarette.I also made a new lower vent I use the port side for fenders and the port side for life jakets and other stuff. Also have a small shelf in front of it to put my tool box
I actually had enough room to install a 20 lbs tank but for now this will meet my needs.
Thanks to this great site , was able to use  others ideas and add my own.

[Eliosso]

final installation

[Eliosso]

Also made a small bulkhead to give the compressor a little breathing room and protection from all the stuff in the locker.

[Eliosso]

Hoses were not installed at time of picture, needed longer upper hose. True for the 20 lbs box unless it was built inside the locker. When I leave for my sabbatical, I'll probably hang a 20lbs on the stern rail and use the lazarette space for storage .