CNG replacement

[Sam]

The stove on my 1992 37.5 Hunter Ledgend burns CNG. This fuel is almost impossible to obtain. Have any of you changed the CNG over to propane? If so, what did you have to do? Sam

 

[Sam Morris]

CNG

Sam:CNG is the safest fuel although it's stored at higher pressures. The related link under "Galley" has a link Corp Brothers. For Louisiana, Corp Brothers has only one supplier listed: New Orleans - Sea Chest Marine. (504) 288-8431 You want a supplier who will not only provide the fuel but will also do the bottle testing and inspection. That also applies to LPG. The suppliers listed for Clearwater and St. Petersburg, Florida did not do bottle testing. I found several suppliers here in St. Petersburg through the yellow pages. I chose Motorfuelers, Inc. in Clearwater.I have a neighbor with an Antigua-54 who made the switch to LPG, but advised me to stay with CNG.I hope that I've been some help.Sam

 

[Steve]

CNG

Sam,I just converted my Hunter from CNG to propane. Not very hard, but somewhat expensive.First, you need a propane locker. I bought one that holds an 11 lb bottle and it also has room for one of those small camping type propane bottles to get you by if you run out. The locker and hoses were about $600 and installation isn't tough, but I was very careful to follow all of the directions.Next, I contacted SeaWard stoves in California as they made the CNG stoves (under the stove name GSI). They were helpful and have a conversion kit for about $100. The kit took about 1 hour to install. They have a web site, but you need to call them for the part--have your serial # and model # ready.SeaWard also recommended I replace the CNG hose between the cylinder and the stove as it is made for CNG and will degrade when used with propane. I also insatlled a propane snifer with alarm in the bilge.Again, the job insn't bad if you're handy with tools, but by the time I was done I had about 6 to 8 hours into it and about $700.Hope this helps!