OutdoorKing Repair Forum Forums General Discussion Forum Off Topics LPG generator

Hi Max,
You are the go to man here because as you know we are facing rolling blackouts here due to the ineptitude of our governments both State and Federal to be able to provide a stable power supply. I'm planning on getting something 3./4 KVA and I was thinking due to it's intermitten use it might be best to set it up LPG, doesn't go stale and no carby problems.
Any info or advice you have is most appreciated
Is this all I need
https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/166171912893?

Hi Norm,

I've looked at those LPG converter kits before but haven't tried one Norm.

The thing I didn't like about them is they look cheaply made and I can't see a diaphragm pressure adjustment screw
on the converter, they say they will run LPG and Natural gas but to do this you usually have to increase the diaphragm
pressure .

I saw a guy in the US and he bought this kit and the gas carby was fine but he couldn't get the generator to run
on natural gas, to get this carby to run on Natural gas he used the KN Garretson type converter that will also run an engine
up to 40 hp., the KN Garretson type is a copy of an Impco converter.

The converter you are looking at some say it's rated to 2.8 kw or 3.75 hp, although your eBay ad says it suits a GX200 and
that's 6.5 hp and sometimes the eBay specs are wrong and they over exaggerate the output.

Some 4KVA generators are 8 hp so it would still be too small if it's only rated to 6.5 hp.

I don't know how safe these cheap converters are and did see a person say PROPANE CONTINUED TO FLOW WHILE ENGINE WAS STOPPED. DANGEROUS! When it was installed from day one but it could have just been a dodgy one.

There are reviews here some say it won't work with NG and some say it will , maybe it won't run on larger generators on NG.

https://www.amazon.com/HIPA-Generator-Carburetor-Conversion-4-5-5-5KW/product-reviews/B019RLSJQ4

All the good LPG generators I see have the KN Garretson type converter, I'd rather use that converter as it can be used on more
engines and a rebuild kit is available for it as well and it has the pressure adjuster to use it with natural gas.

With the KN Garretson type converter you can plum a gas line from your gas meter and there is no need to fill any gas bottles,
for me the KN Garretson type converter has more options for usage and I know they work well and are safe but the $23. one
is cheap enough if you want to try it ,you haven't lost much if it's no good ,as you can still use the carby with the KN Garretson type converter.

Both types of gas converters you will still need to use a gas bottle regulator first.

https://store.nashfuel.com/products...ref_pid=7169146388637&pr_seq=uniform

https://www.rv.net/forum/index.cfm/fuseaction/thread/tid/21337191.cfm

https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/305010894862?

Cheers
Max.

Thanks Max,
A lot of good points there and something I hadn't thought about was gas flow if the motor stopped. This I could overcome by fitting a Carmtroll type unit that runs off the plug wire detecting the spark and if no spark it shuts a solonoid valve to shut the gas. I can be done but a quite a bit of work to solve a problem caused by these inept governments we have here

Hi Norm,

Yes if you had a small gas leak when the motor stopped it shouldn't be too difficult to have a shut off valve controlled by the
spark.

If the gas was leaking a lot, a safety regulator would automatically turn the gas off .I have a few safety regulators as I see them
thrown out with old BBQ s. The safety regulator Valve is good as it also tells you how much gas is left in the bottle.

When I looked on Gumtree in the morning I saw a 3 kw generator with a Briggs 8 hp selling for $75. but was in QLD.

I far as I know the cheap LPG converter isn't going to be suitable for 8 hp but the KN Garretson type converter will
work well and has no problem shutting the gas off when the motor stops.

Cheers
Max.

Hi Max, is the Garretson converter running high pressure to it as per in a car. If this is the case then back to a 12 volt HP solonoid but this requires a 12 volt power supply to it controlled by a Carmtroll spark activated unit

Hi Norm,

No the converters for small engines are not like a car converter, the small engine converters must use a gas bottle regulator before the gas reaches the converter,the regulator brings the pressure down to less than 10 psi.

The last image I posted shows 2 regulators but they are a different type to the normal BBQ regulators because they also have a built in safety shut off if they detect a leak also they have a gas.bottle level indicator showing how much gas is left in the bottle.

With the KN or impco copied small engine converter you
Don't need a gas cut off solenoid as these automatically cut off the gas when the engine isn't running as they use manifold vacuum to open a diaphragm valve to let gas into the motor and when the motor shuts down spring pressure will shut the gas flow off.

Cheers
Max.

Thanks Max,
I'm still looking around for a genny, no rush yet they say the blackouts will be during summer, so I have time to prepare

Thanks Max,
I'm still looking around for a genny, no rush yet they say the blackouts will be during summer, so I have time to prepare

Hi Norm,

I usually see more generators on Facebook marketplace but sometimes they are really cheap at Auctions.

I would have thought the old Briggs generators would be one that lased the longest ,I have a 1965 Briggs 10 hp one here.

Cheers
Max.

I have a Honda 5 KVA unit here, it charges but only at higher revs. Probably not worth fixing it. My father bought it second hand in 1990 and used it a bit. I tested it a few years ago and I had 2 x 9 inch grinders running on it.

Might just be a faulty voltage regulator Norm.

Thanks Max, I might have a look when I get a chance. My son said there was something wrong with it when he was doing his apprenticeship in the early nineties, so it just got put aside in the corner.