Food, fixes and notes from the casual coastal sailor.

[chester]

the next peson that says "orifice"...so help me god!

 

[Whinging Pom]

LPG on boats is my business. You must get the right injectors (aka orifice) if you want the stove to burn safely. Too big an injector and you'll get flame lift off. Too small and not enough air will be entrained and the flame will be yellow and luminous, thus producing Carbon Monoxide.

Don't poke bits of wire, drill bits etc. The brass is very soft and you'll enlarge the injector. If you must have a go, use a nylon bristle from a toothbrush.

 

[Ajax]

@Whinging Pom Do you have a recommended replacement interval for the flexible hose sections between the tank and the appliance?

 

[Kris Cringle]

LPG on boats is my business. You must get the right injectors (aka orifice) if you want the stove to burn safely. Too big an injector and you'll get flame lift off. Too small and not enough air will be entrained and the flame will be yellow and luminous, thus producing Carbon Monoxide.

Don't poke bits of wire, drill bits etc. The brass is very soft and you'll enlarge the injector. If you must have a go, use a nylon bristle from a toothbrush.

Great, thanks for this info.

I've ordered the LPG orifi,...shiny metal threaded bits with precision holes that look to be the same burners as my stove (long out of production).

Another question: The cooker with 3 burners and an oven, is the only appliance. Single or 2 stage regulator? I ask because space is tight on the deck box.

 

[Whinging Pom]

Hi guys,
Ajax it's recommended that the flexible hoses are replaced every five years. The regulators are good for ten. I am obliged to fit regulators that comply with a UK-EU standard: BS EN 16129 annex M.
Basically they are made of much better materials than the cheapo barbecue ones buy more importantly they have a pressure relief valve which will open if the pressure goes too high ie if you broach the boat and turn the cylinder upside-down.

Kris, a single stage wll be fine.

Apologies if this is a bit disjointed as I'm typing on my phone having skived off early to my boat for the weekend.

Great, thanks for this info.

I've ordered the LPG orifi,...shiny metal threaded bits with precision holes that look to be the same burners as my stove (long out of production).

Another question: The cooker with 3 burners and an oven, is the only appliance. Single or 2 stage regulator? I ask because space is tight on the deck box.

 

[chester]

Great, thanks for this info.

I've ordered the LPG orifi,...shiny metal threaded bits with precision holes that look to be the same burners as my stove (long out of production).

Another question: The cooker with 3 burners and an oven, is the only appliance. Single or 2 stage regulator? I ask because space is tight on the deck box.

thata boy!

 

[Kris Cringle]

The bits are on their way from Seattle to Maine., thanks to Nick's website referrence.

Meanwhile, we're still enjoying mid to upper-60-degree days on the coast of Penobscot Bay.

I passed the yard crew pressure washing the travelift. All in tee shirts, no stress, and an abundance of time on their hands as opposed to all-out combat with the typical mid-November weather elements.

It's eery rowing on the harbor. Boats, docks, and mooring tackle, all put away suffice for a few.

Coasting back into the empty ramp on a building Southwesterly thanks to Nichol, the dinghy was met with the force of the Goose River fighting back the incoming surge. We came to a dead halt, stuck between the opposing forces. Curious calm.

 

[Kris Cringle]

The higher-pressure LPG bits do have a smaller pinhole. Installed the 5, re-used the old CNG 15' gas line and connected to a 20lb LPG tank via one of those cheap grill regulators and cracked it open.

I'm converted. I'll make the tanks/gas line/wiring installation over the winter.

Right off I noticed some differences: The flame is stronger on the burners. At first I thought it might be the LPG regulator was off but I always suspected the lower pressure CNG was a little weak. Maybe the length of the line, the regulator, and the CNG which is reputed to not burn as hot.

The oven especially surprised me. I set the temp to 350F and closed the door. The oven thermo shut the flame down pretty quickly, 5-10 minutes. I cranked it up to 500F and it did get hotter than I ever remember the oven doing.

Plus I fired the oven with all 3 top burners on high. I think this used to starve the CNG set up. This tells me that as Whinging Pom advised, I can use a single stage regulator. That will allow me to build my own connection set up at the tanks.

I'd like to add a pressure gauge (before the regulator) as well. I'm not sure how useful they are to get a sense of LPG amount. A pressure gauge is quite accurate as a fuel gauge with CNG, which requires a 3,000 PSI gauge.

Anyone have thoughts on an LPG pressure gauge?

 

[Ajax]

it's recommended that the flexible hoses are replaced every five years.

Whoops. I'd better get on that this winter.

Anyone have thoughts on an LPG pressure gauge?

I have one. I'll try to take a photo of my setup.

 

[Howler]

Anyone have thoughts on an LPG pressure gauge?

A CNG tank contains compressed gas; the pressure gauge tells you how much gas is in the tank. An LPG tank contains liquid with gas in the headspace above the liquid. As long as there's liquid in the tank, whether it's a quarter inch sloshing around the bottom or tank nearly full, the liquid and gas phases are going to be equilibrium at a pressure that depends only upon temperature, so the pressure reading for a nearly full tank and a nearly empty tank will be the same.

 

[Brae-Burn]

Anyone have thoughts on an LPG pressure gauge?

Got mine off Amazon. Just screws onto the tank then the LPG line screws onto the pressure gauge.
I used it for awhile to make sure I had no gas in my lines once I shut the tank off ( kept the flame going ) now I am comfortable with the system I just leave it on ( I live on my boat ). I need it to be Coast Guard Certified.

 

[Kris Cringle]

A CNG tank contains compressed gas; the pressure gauge tells you how much gas is in the tank. An LPG tank contains liquid with gas in the headspace above the liquid. As long as there's liquid in the tank, whether it's a quarter inch sloshing around the bottom or tank nearly full, the liquid and gas phases are going to be equilibrium at a pressure that depends only upon temperature, so the pressure reading for a nearly full tank and a nearly empty tank will be the same.

That makes sense. The best way is the weight I suppose, so picking the tank up will give you an estimate.

 

[Jim in Halifax]

A CNG tank contains compressed gas; the pressure gauge tells you how much gas is in the tank. An LPG tank contains liquid with gas in the headspace above the liquid. As long as there's liquid in the tank, whether it's a quarter inch sloshing around the bottom or tank nearly full, the liquid and gas phases are going to be equilibrium at a pressure that depends only upon temperature, so the pressure reading for a nearly full tank and a nearly empty tank will be the same.

That makes sense. The best way is the weight I suppose, so picking the tank up will give you an estimate.

Weight works - that's how they measure the filling of your tank - but there is also a temperature sensitive, color-coded strip you can affix to the side of your tank. As the LPG boils off into propane gas in use, there is lot of cooling of the liquid phase, so the liquid level in the tank shows on the indicator strip. Good tool on a home BBQ but not very useful if your boat's tank is in a top-loading propane locker...

 

[Kris Cringle]

These guys are connecting 5 ASHP indoor units to a manifold that goes to one outdoor condenser.

They work for a large heating-only service and oil distributor. I asked how much of their work is now heat pumps. "This is all we're doing" they said.

They are behind on this project as they're understaffed. The guy in the closet works 4 days a week. He fishes 600 lobster traps on the other three days.

'How's that going?',.I asked. 'Terrible' he said. 'Boat price just went up to $3.25 cents a pound'.... 'Diesel has tripled this season. Bait doubled.'

'When you retire, which job will you stop doing?', I asked. 'This one', he said with a smile.

 

[Jim in Halifax]

'How's that going?',.I asked. 'Terrible' he said. 'Boat price just went up to $3.25 cents a pound'.... 'Diesel has tripled this season. Bait doubled.'

My wife just came home with some CDN$5.00/lb lobster. The lobstermen up here are taking it on the chin as well. Between the soft Chinese market and everyone here watching their money due to inflation, the price on the dock is terrible. But a year ago the price was >$20/lb so the smart ones should survive the downturn...

 

[Ajax]

That makes sense. The best way is the weight I suppose, so picking the tank up will give you an estimate.

Yes, weight is reasonably precise if you know the weight of the empty tank. Honestly, I've gotten good at picking the tank up, sloshing it around and feeling/listening to the liquid inside to figure out how full it is.

 

[accnick]

Yes, weight is reasonably precise if you know the weight of the empty tank. Honestly, I've gotten good at picking the tank up, sloshing it around and feeling/listening to the liquid inside to figure out how full it is.

The tare (empty) weight of a propane tank is stamped on it. No need to guess.

 

[Kris Cringle]

My wife just came home with some CDN$5.00/lb lobster. The lobstermen up here are taking it on the chin as well. Between the soft Chinese market and everyone here watching their money due to inflation, the price on the dock is terrible. But a year ago the price was >$20/lb so the smart ones should survive the downturn...

About the same here. They have been stuck at 6-7 per pound retail, all season.

I just paid $7.59 a gallon for 10 gallons of K-1.

Went to get a 4X4 sheet of Baltic Birch. None. It comes (used to come), from Russia....

 

[Jim in Halifax]

Went to get a 4X4 sheet of Baltic Birch. None. It comes (used to come), from Russia....

Yeah, Im sure the Finnish stuff - if you can find it - is selling for top dollar these days. I suspect it is probably produced more sustainably than Russian stuff too.

 

[mgs]

@Kris Cringle I see your young pup is officially a boatyard dog, well done to him; although is he really named tommy?