Generator Fuel Types; Your opinions?

[Hiltonizer]

Diesel gennie that takes k1 kerosene. No cold/storage issues but all the benefits of regular diesel. A bit pricier per gall

 

[Colt Delta Elite]

Anyone using one of the Yanmar single cylinder diesel generators? They seem to be in pretty wide use for commercial and military/industrial use, I take it from that they are expensive, but what about fuel consumption compared to a gas generator of the same size?

I have a yanmar china copy 6000w for emergencies. Love it, It uses no fuel compared to a gas job. Since I have oil heat fuel at home is already there.

 

[Dess]

I have a house wide 14kw generac on an autoswitching panel. It's fueled by two 120 gal propane tanks. Kept me and my family comfortable for a week last October during that huge outage. Couldn't be easier.

 

[Wolf46]

I have a gasoline portable generator with a tri-fuel adapter on it (http://www.propane-generators.com). It can run on gasoline, propane or natural gas. Keep in mind that propane and natural gas do not have the same BTU's as gasoline. So when you run propane or natural gas, your power drop will be about 10% and 20% respectively. In addition to the natural gas hook-up, I keep at least 15 gallons of gasoline on-hand stabilized with Pri-G, and a couple of extra 20# propane cylinders. I have all Briggs and Stratton engines (lawn mowers, generator, snow blower) so I keep extra parts on hand....like a carb rebuild kit, air filters, etc.

I built my own generator transfer switch. I was bored one day in the winter. Worked like a charm in the ice storm and Snowtober storm.

 

[n1oty]

My 1800 RPM military surplus diesel generator sips fuel for the amount of power produced. Yes, 1800 RPM diesel genny's are big beasts, but the economy and longevity are phenomenal.

If you are on city gas (NG) you can get a dual-fuel generator, readily convertible to propane. If I could get town gas where I am, this is what I would choose.

All but the cheapest portable diesel generators include 12V motorcycle battery with pre-heat, and you could always use a mini block heater to keep it toasty. Even without a block heater, my little Aurora "Silent Diesel" only ever has trouble starting when I have battery problems.


My Aurora is a clone of a Yanmar, like the one linked above it runs at 3600RPM; I am now looking at 1800RPM models, less portable (more mass) but also more efficient and the engine and alternator have a longer lifespan.

Compared to gasoline, a diesel running at half load (or higher) is much more efficient than a similar output gasoline generator at the same load; vendors claim "up to 40% less fuel consumption".

 

[coastie]

My 1800 RPM military surplus diesel generator sips fuel for the amount of power produced. Yes, 1800 RPM diesel genny's are big beasts, but the economy and longevity are phenomenal.

This is where I want to be for a genny by next year. With all the HHO in my basement I can run one for a couple of years on my LT fuel plan.

 

[kman]

I have a portable Briggs and Straton 6000 watt portable gasoline generator but I bought this tri-fuel conversion kit for it which took 1 hour to install. I plan on using propane as my main fuel for it now and gasoline as a backup. I replaced my electric cooktop with propane so I can still cook with that when the power goes out (that works without the generator.) This way, I can share my propane between the two if needed as well.

http://www.propane-generators.com/tri-fuel_kits.htm

My thinking here is for long term outage, I can use my generator to keep my freezer going a few hours a day and then eat what's in there before moving to my canned things

 

[garandman]

Anyone using one of the Yanmar single cylinder diesel generators? They seem to be in pretty wide use for commercial and military/industrial use, I take it from that they are expensive, but what about fuel consumption compared to a gas generator of the same size?

Found out the prices.

YDG3700 is around $3,300. Weight 181 lbs. Avg fuel consumption 0.27 gal / hour. 82 dB @ 7 meters. 3.4 gal fuel tank.

YDG5500 about $4,200 Avg fuel consumption 0.4 gph. 85 dB(A) @ 7m. holds