CNG Cooking Gas

Dec 21, 2015
1
S2 S2 9.2A Saugatuck, Michigan
I live and sail in Saugatuck, Michigan, which is only 2-1/2 hours from Chicago. Lake Welding, the welding supply company, where I got my CNG gas tank exchanges, was recently sold and the new owners dropped the CNG exchange business (the previous owner was a sailor and handled CNG gas as a service to us Michigan sailors). It seems that all the marinas in Michigan got their CNG gas from Lake Welding in the past. Now, I can't find CNG gas anywhere. Any other S2 sailors with this problem? And, how have you solved it? I travel to Chicago often and could get the gas there if there isn't a place in Michigan.
 
Jun 6, 2006
6,990
currently boatless wishing Harrington Harbor North, MD
Nutered the CNG tanks using one of the regulators, all the old tubing and existing CNG stove. Had to buy a propane tank hand nut to attach the regulator to a propane tank. a few turns on the regulator to adjust the pressure so the stove "runs blue" and make a mounting on the stirn rail and no more CNG to deal with. You don't need an airtight locker if you store the tank outside the boat. Don't need the solenoid either but you do make more trips to the tank to turn it on and off. All the fittings are National pipe thread (NPT) so parts are easy to find. The CNG has two regulators back to back. A small one to take the pressure from 3000ish psi to 200 psi and a second larger gray one to take the 200 psi to 2-3 psi used in the stove. Like most regulators the "center post" is a screw that adjusts the pressure. The stove worked fine with the old regulator at its original CNG setting. A couple of yellow flames so adjusted the regulator pressure down (screw out the center post) and nice blue flame all the time. No rejetting of the stove is needed.
 
Feb 26, 2004
22,759
Catalina 34 224 Maple Bay, BC, Canada
No rejetting of the stove is needed.
Bill, that's way cool, however, the first I'd heard of it. Always thought the burners had to be adjusted. Got any more details.???

For the OP: posted many times:

http://www.c34.org/wiki/index.php?title=CNG_Refill_Adapter

And, for you disbelievers, read the link which has been updated to the latest details for the 3500 or 3600# tanks.

The reality is so many of these CNG guys are NOT swapping tanks is the cost of re certifying each of them. Do some research & homework, been discussed here and elsewhere on other boating forums a LOT recently.
 
Mar 11, 2009
199
Hunter 40 Saint John
I live on the east Coast, on the Bay of Fundy, in New Brunswick. My boat has CNG as well, and we have to travel to Southwest Harbour in Maine to get tanks. For a small tank it costs about 65 US, and lasts about a month for what we use it. I have always wanted to stick to CNG, but the prices and availability are REALLY tempting me to go to Propane.. I can fill up a 20 Ib cylinder for about 7 bucks... Canadain... Way cheaper.. Does anybody have a rough estimate of how much the conversion is.....
 
Jan 22, 2008
8,050
Beneteau 323 Annapolis MD
On the road approached to Baltimore's BWI airport there is a sign that says CNG filling station, left. I think some of those little golf-cart buggies run on CNG? Might try a local airport for CNG?
 
Feb 26, 2004
22,759
Catalina 34 224 Maple Bay, BC, Canada
Does anybody have a rough estimate of how much the conversion is.....
In reply #11 in one of the links in my last post (in the wiki itself, link therein) had some discussion about pricing and suggests you look to Jamestown Distributors once you get the list of parts, which is already right there in the link.

So, if that link was written in 2006, one would expect that the prices have risen somewhat, right?

So make up your own shopping list and figure out the prices in today's coinage. Not that hard.
*************************************************************************************
It also had this:

This is another chance:

I want a new emoticon:

:pLEASE read the blinkin' links:

Please, please, please.:doh::doh::doh:


The link I provided has a website and phone numbers. For fittings and pipe/threads, Jamestown Distributors is often cited by skippers here, or McMaster Carr.

If the link provides incorrect or out of date info, I haven't heard of that recently in posting this recurringly.
 
Feb 8, 2014
1,300
Columbia 36 Muskegon
If you convert don't forget a propane alarm. Most come with a solenoid valve that shuts off the gas if a leak is detected. Not needed with CNG but essential with propane.
 
May 24, 2004
7,129
CC 30 South Florida
Another casualty of converting a CNG stove to propane is the lack of thermocouple valves. These switches will sense if the burner flame goes off and will shut down the gas supply. They are used in propane systems as most stoves are installed inside the cabin. Having said that, years ago before trying to idiot proof the boats, a propane system just consisted of the basics, a tank, a regulator, a supply hose and the stove. Yes it was inconvenient to turn the tank valve On and Off every time the stove was used and it was also inconvenient to have to stand and watch the flames when the stove was on but it was considered normal. Now they want to leave the tank valve open all the time and be able to start cooking and walk away to do other things. These safety items are all about convenience and not having to be responsible for teaching safety. The aesthetics of having a 20 lbs tank on deck or over the rail were not the best but as long as we could have hot food we did not care. At one early point we had a supply line made of copper tubing but I guess using our nose as a sniffer and keeping the tank valve closed mitigated the risks. Yes CNG as a fuel for portable tanks will disappear shortly (not the fuel, but the filling stations, the filling equipment, the tanks, all as a result of dwindling demand) so start planning your move to propane. The transition could be done all at once or piecemeal.
 
Oct 2, 2008
3,807
Pearson/ 530 Strafford, NH
We're still using CNG and found another place in Fla that will fill the bottles. Too bad so many sailors gave in.

All U Get
 
Mar 11, 2009
199
Hunter 40 Saint John
Thanks for the info, I do love CNG, but the cost and 6 hours of travel are deffinetly being a deterent.. Though if I plan right I can spend a couple days down on Mount Desert Island, That place is deffinetly worth the trip... Merry Christmas
 
Jul 1, 2014
252
Hunter 34 Seattle
Interesting read, I didn't realize CNG was so widely used on boats. When I bought my boat one of the items in the plus column was the fact that she had already been converted from alcohol to propane. It's relatively cheap, easy to use and readily available. I have a Force 10 two burner with broiler and a Force 10 cabin heater which serves us very well. I check the alarm system fairly often by simply holding a bic lighter (no flame) next to the sensor.
 
Feb 26, 2004
22,759
Catalina 34 224 Maple Bay, BC, Canada
Benny, good points.

Only question: in our neck of the woods, there are many, many CNG fueled road vehicles. This includes personal automobiles as well as untilty company trucks and vans and also City buses. They all have knowledge of where the CNG refueling stations are located.

Do they not have CNG vehicles where you folks live?


Yes CNG as a fuel for portable tanks will disappear shortly (not the fuel, but the filling stations, the filling equipment, the tanks, all as a result of dwindling demand) so start planning your move to propane. The transition could be done all at once or piecemeal.
 
Jun 6, 2006
6,990
currently boatless wishing Harrington Harbor North, MD
Here are some pictures
The regulator you want to re-use is the larger gray one. The rubber hose is the gas over pressure vent. The supply hose to the stove goes in the hole below the vent hose.
2015-12-23_22-16-42.jpg
2015-12-23_22-16-58.jpg
2015-12-23_22-20-42.jpg
2015-12-23_22-23-38.jpg
Just add a propane hand nut to attach it to the bottle. Avalable at Home Depot. The steel rod with copper end caps is the valve handle extender so you don't have to lean way over the stern rail to turn the gas on and off. And the tank cover to keep things dry.
 
Jan 19, 2010
1,169
Catalina 34 Casco Bay
At our boat club we converted in the other direction. All of the propane fired gas grills were converted to natural gas. That's CNG without the compression. What was needed was to drill out the orifice. Since propane delivers more BTUs that CNG/natural gas, more gas had to be delivered to the burners. Hence the drill out.
To go the way you want, replace the orifice with one with a smaller hole.