got propane

[Pa PITT]

Well being an old farmer ..I still have one farm tractor on propane ..And I like it. I fill out of a 500 gallon tank here at the shop. I can also fill my BBQ bottles for free. Back in the 80's everyone here ran propane on their farm trucks for a decade but then price pushed everyone back to gas. My buddy had it on this truck got just a little less mileage but fuel cost was much less so it evened out.
..Turck will run at any angle but if you don't swap over an run on gas once a day the carb will dry out and not work on gas.
..So all that said I think a truck on dual fuel is a pain in the butt.
...But I'd like my smallest tractor on propane for ease here at the house.

 

[Crazybroncoman]

I didn't see much loss down in the lower RPM's and my motor is much more drivable. My old carb was 930 cfm and the propane is only 450 so I am working on building a duel carb set up for the sand ware I could use the higher RPM's. O when we were in Moab I could run for more then 9hrs on one 10gal tank.

 

[73stallion]

not to dig up a dead subject, but propane here is about 65 cents a gallon cheaper than regular unleaded.....

 

[chuck489]

I have thought about this some. Would there be any way to make a transfer pump to fill your vehicle tank from the 20# tanks like they sell at nearly every gas station? That way is a little more expensive, but if possible, it would make a road trip with no fill stations near by survivable. Just curious.

 

[surveyor5]

Question with propane. What do you do for a fuel gauge?
Mike

 

[OX1]

Question with propane. What do you do for a fuel gauge?
Mike

There is a guage on the tank or, you can get "see thru" tanks (only in 8 gallon though) that you can actually see the level (assuming you can see tank from drivers seat)

 

[ponyracer]

Love to do it but how can you guys that run it stand the smell? Reminds me of an old forklift I ran for awhile. Does the exhaust still stink in an auto application?

 

[73stallion]

Love to do it but how can you guys that run it stand the smell? Reminds me of an old forklift I ran for awhile. Does the exhaust still stink in an auto application?

i worked at a KOA campground in arkansas once, the yard truck had propane on it, yes, it stunk like propane. but diesel stinks like diesel and sometimes gas stinks like rich gas too. six of one, half dozen of another....

 

[Rustytruck]

Most interstate highway tunnels do not allow propane. So beware when driving these rigs on the highway.

 

[ford man]

propane

I got propane on big red I like it my only problem is ran out 10 oclock Sunday night no propane stores open lucky me I had a friend with a propane forklift.It's a big improvement over carb on the trail and its simple so far any way.I can run all day on a 7 gallon tank .

 

[Wyflyer]

I have thought about this some. Would there be any way to make a transfer pump to fill your vehicle tank from the 20# tanks like they sell at nearly every gas station? That way is a little more expensive, but if possible, it would make a road trip with no fill stations near by survivable. Just curious.

Chuck a pump can be obtained but very expensive. It would have to be a positive displacement pump rated for propane viscosity and pressure.
The common way of moving high RVP liquids like propane is to use blanket pressure to move from the full tank to the empty one by bleeding vapor from the empty one.

I used to run propane onpickups back in the 80s, it worked great especially when it was cheap. I used to roughly calculate that if propane were under 80% the cost of gasoline it was economical, since it only made approx 80% of the power of gasoline.
Haven't thought about it for years.

 

[broncosbybart]

my trail rig runs propane. i did it on the cheap, using a bone stock 351w. it is the got propane kit and works great. i really like it. if the truck stalls, it is because i did something wrong...

IIRC, here in NC propane is not legal on a street vehicle. not 100% sure on that though. I usually get 1 day of riding on a 10 gal tank. the only downside that I see is the exhaust smell is very potent. Almost an ammonia type smell. I don't like that at all. Filling up here in the south is tough. Up north, propane is everywhere- not so much down here...

 

[OX1]

Filling up here in the south is tough. Up north, propane is everywhere- not so much down here...

Last time I got pane, it was $4.89 a gallon in central NJ ($47 for 9.6 gallons). And that was before the latest big run up in "fuel" prices. I'd hate to even ask what it is right now.

I'm going back to EFI due to ability to get fuel easily, price of fuel, need to lug 100lb (full) 10 gallon pane tanks in and out of the rig all the time, and I don't think my pane system will feed my new motor when it is done.

It does run super clean, has never stalled, and runs upside down (tested ;D). In my case, it does suck down quite bit more fuel and is down a bit on power, but stock 400's compr ratio is dismal (low 8's), so it is probably one of the worst motors to convert to pane that there is.