Propane versus gasoline generator

I never put ethanol blended gasoline in a gas can to use in anything.

And I do just the opposite, use a 5 gallon can of E10 to fill everything. If I have some machines that sit idle during the Winter, I put fuel stabilizer in the tank.

Not applicable to the OP, but in my two Honda EU2000 portable generators, I only use ethanol free gasoline and drain the carburetors if they will sit for a while. I never put ethanol blended gasoline in a gas can to use in anything.

Because of the issues already noted with propane (limited availability, power density, limited tank capacity)....I would never want a propane fired generator.

If gasoline gumming up the carburetor is such a concern, why not go with a gas generator that has fuel injection instead of a carburetor? Wouldn't that solve the problem with gumming up? I know generators like that are more expensive and not very many made that way, but I think I'd do that before I'd get a propane generator.

Only propane fired generator I'd ever consider, is if it was a home back-up power generator for the house that could run off natural gas. Since we have a gas line already that fuels the heat, water heater...Availability, storage would not be an issue in that case.

Our Motorhome has an Onan 5500 watt gas generator. We use it pretty regularly to run the air conditioners when on the road. Had it 4 years now, generator has always started right up and ran flawless for us. I think part of that, though, is because we exercise it regularly - Once a month, it gets run, exercised for a while, even during the non-camping winter months. By continually using the genny, hopefully you don't have much stale fuel run through it that's been sitting a long time. That, IMO, is what leads to a lot of the gumming issues.

DarkSkySeeker wrote:
I have not purchased my RV yet, but this propane versus gas question is part of the decision process.
Given what's been written already, is the energy density issue my main concern?

For me it is. You will get about 30% less hours out of a propane compared to gasoline. Propane has +'s and -'s. It just depends on what you're doing or want to do.

patchelect wrote:
I owned a 36' boat for about 14 years. It had gasoline for power and the genny was used intermittently. I never had a problem and never did any magical treatments to the fuel not special machinations for winterizing. The generator ran and produced the needed power for my applications when I called upon it. I also own a propane powered fork lift. It's a 50's era unit that I have had for about 10 years. I bought it as a running vehicle and have done nothing to it but replaced the ga tank as needed. It may get used daily or it my sit for weeks on end. It always starts and performs flawlessly. If I were at a crossroads of purchasing a genny I really doubt that I'd bother considering propane simply because it didn't make sense in my experiences.

However YMMV

Did you run ethanol or pure gas in your boat? Often times, marinas only sell pure gas, which would partly explain the reliability you experienced.

I owned a 36' boat for about 14 years. It had gasoline for power and the genny was used intermittently. I never had a problem and never did any magical treatments to the fuel not special machinations for winterizing. The generator ran and produced the needed power for my applications when I called upon it. I also own a propane powered fork lift. It's a 50's era unit that I have had for about 10 years. I bought it as a running vehicle and have done nothing to it but replaced the ga tank as needed. It may get used daily or it my sit for weeks on end. It always starts and performs flawlessly. If I were at a crossroads of purchasing a genny I really doubt that I'd bother considering propane simply because it didn't make sense in my experiences.

However YMMV

captnjack wrote:

CampbellDaycruiser wrote:

SCVJeff wrote:
iMO- Propane should only be used where gas doesn't make sense. For long term storage you can't beat LP. It lasts forever and there's nothing to gum up or go stale. Perfect for a standby residential gen set. There are also laws about commercial gas storage that got us in a pickle at the office. We store an emergency generator at a microwave shack located on top of a large commercial building. The landlord would not allow a flammable liquid up there, but had no issues with a 20lb tank that we store on the roof. Lasts forever, and if it leaks it just vents to the atmosphere. The generator is always ready to go with no fears of contamination.

I thought that propane was heavier than air? If so, than if there was a bottle leak in a confined space it would pool on the floor and then fill the room until it found an air duct or cracks in the floor, where it would flow down to the lower floors. This is why marine propane lockers are vented overboard from the bottom, not the top!

If your "microwave shack" is just an added on shed on the roof with an air space between its floor and the roof, you should be all right, unless it's a still and windless night when it springs a leak......

Propane is heavier than air and can "pool" when leaked.

Natural gas is lighter than air and will vent to atmosphere if not leaking in an enclosed space.

Gasoline vapors are heavier than air and can "pool".

its a 16 story building. There's no place to "pool" vapor, and there is never not a breeze. But there are plenty of places to pool liquid. Either way, this isn't the discussion

We had 2 portable Hondas and elected to go with a built in propane generator. We have a diesel truck and have no need for gasoline. Gasoline can be incredibly had to find in a power outage. We know because we experienced it once. We had to drive around for several hours in an unfamiliar area trying to find a station open that was dispensing fuel in a wide spread power outage. With propane tanks, one could just get an "exchange" tank if the need arose. You can even find tanks exchanges at drug stores. We now carry a couple of spare propane tanks but we have never needed them.

CampbellDaycruiser wrote:

SCVJeff wrote:
iMO- Propane should only be used where gas doesn't make sense. For long term storage you can't beat LP. It lasts forever and there's nothing to gum up or go stale. Perfect for a standby residential gen set. There are also laws about commercial gas storage that got us in a pickle at the office. We store an emergency generator at a microwave shack located on top of a large commercial building. The landlord would not allow a flammable liquid up there, but had no issues with a 20lb tank that we store on the roof. Lasts forever, and if it leaks it just vents to the atmosphere. The generator is always ready to go with no fears of contamination.

I thought that propane was heavier than air? If so, than if there was a bottle leak in a confined space it would pool on the floor and then fill the room until it found an air duct or cracks in the floor, where it would flow down to the lower floors. This is why marine propane lockers are vented overboard from the bottom, not the top!

If your "microwave shack" is just an added on shed on the roof with an air space between its floor and the roof, you should be all right, unless it's a still and windless night when it springs a leak......

Propane is heavier than air and can "pool" when leaked.

Natural gas is lighter than air and will vent to atmosphere if not leaking in an enclosed space.

Gasoline vapors are heavier than air and can "pool".

I have an onan lp generator in the MH.

Pros - seems to run quieter, longer service intervals, and no concerns with fuel treatment that you have with gasoline.

Cons - not easily refilled while camping. I have no problem finding lp while traveling but not good to run out while boondocked.

I have never checked run time per gallon of lp but last trip the generator ran around 14 hours on 6 gallons of lp. I would guess about one gallon of lp for two hours run time.