How to convert a riding lawn mower to Propane. The Simple and Easy Way! 

Thanks for you inginuity Jungle

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Thank you for commenting @Skook-gk5re. I am very happy to hear that you enjoyed the video.

My pleasure. Glad to be of service.

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Thank you for commenting John Howard! I am so glad the video was helpful.

Thank you for this great information 3beltwesty. I appreciate it very much when viewers contribute useful information as you have here.

It burns efficient and clean

Thank you for commenting Bull Euston. I am very happy to hear that you enjoyed the video.

Would you say propane is More powerful than gasoline?

Thank you for this great information jonathan. I appreciate it very much when viewers contribute useful information as you have here.

My pleasure. Glad you enjoyed it.

Thank you for commenting Ian laconia nh the small engine guy. I am very happy to hear that you enjoyed the video.

Thank you for commenting Vasken Satamian. I am very happy to hear that you enjoyed the video.

GREAT, GREAT VIDEO. I will try this, regulator was stand barbeque grill? Thanks again for sharing 😊

Works perfectly, even after four hard years of running it this mowing my five acre lawn multiple times a year. This year because of all the rain, I had to mow twice a months. No problems at all. I run two generators and a 5HP trash pump the same way. No problems what-so-ever. Here are some more setups like this. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-8UI7Xaz7kOo.html ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-9Sa9M8Kn8Ik.html

what ever works works, it seems like it is only as complicated as you make it.

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Thank you for this great information Ob Fuscated. I appreciate it very much when viewers contribute useful information as you have here.

+jhitt79 - You are right and it's a good idea for sure. Especially when you start the Engine. Use it to " Prime " it, then you can start regularly by leaving it open/on.

Actually, it not only requires that but an on-demand low pressure regulator. By adding that, you would be able to use the throttle control throughout the entire range. But it would be more expensive and I think this guys leans on cheap...

Why complicate it? Simplicity is best ,spend your time using the tool, not building it keep it simple stupid.

Thank you for this great information jhitt79. I appreciate it very much when viewers contribute useful information as you have here.

@@rjmittleider5011 it doesn’t get much simpler. Unless you are stupid.

My pleasure. Glad it helped

I have a simplicity regent and my carb sat since 1997 and after some cleaning runs great

Thanks. Glad it helped

+New Generation Thanks. It's been over two years and it still run like new. I upgraded the blades to commercial heavy duty 3/16" thick blades so I could tackle heavy stuff, and it has no problems. This year with all the spring rains, I had the thickest growth ever. Mowed it all with this mower.

please post a link... i only see conversion kits for $150.00

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Thanks.

Does not work that way

The flapper valve, controls air flow. If the gas were injected before it, it may have some effect on controlling gas volume, but I doubt it would be very reliable as a throttle control.

As the title says, this is the "Simple and Easy" method. It is definitely not the "Best" method. I once hired a truck to haul me to a remote location down in the Amazon. The guy was running his truck out of 2-liter Coca-Cola bottles because he had no gas tank. It got us to where we needed to go, but it was not pretty. LOL!

Well, my lawn is not a normal 1/8th acre lawn like most homes. I have about a five-acre lawn that I only mow a couple times a year and the grass is 12 to 20 inches tall. And while it may cost you $20 to fill a tank, it cost me less than $10 because I fill my own. Here is how I do it. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-8UI7Xaz7kOo.html

No. The function of a choke is to draw more gasoline out of the carburetor. Since the carburetor has been bypassed in this setup, the only effect a choke would have is to shutoff the air.

No. You don't have to do anything with the choke. Just leave it wide open.

@@thejungleexplorer Cool, thanks. I am tempted to try this myself after such a good video and parts list. Nice job.

An lpg fuelled engine dose not need to use a choke.. There is an adjustable thumb screw valve that sets the flow of gas to suit an all round mixture to air ratio. Basically his tap on the gas line is as in the early years of lpg fuelled cars.he can run engine at any rpm by adjusting normal hand throttle and the inline tap. At least cheaper than petrol. I'm meaning engines of around 1980's Modern engine eg 2007 ford falcon can meter the gas flow to get best fuel air mix.

I can mow about 15 acres on a tank.

@@thejungleexplorer , about $20.00 that's cool.

I should have used one of the adjustable regulators like the ones that come with turkey fryers, but I could not find one one the day I did the conversion and elected to go with the ball valve. It works fine the way it is, so there is no need to do anything else to it. But just for information sake, I found out that you can buy the adjustable regulators at Tractor Supply.

+Matt Nelson Small low pressure grill regulators are rated 1/2 psi, high pressure regulators are 3-4 psi I thank, high pressure is whats used on fryers.

No, that is not me.

Thank you for commenting Logan Elmore!

Hahahah!

No, I made no modification to the rear fender

Thanks, do you still have the unit?

Yes. Still runs.

Thank you for commenting Justin Mortensen! I am sorry, I do not know how to answer this question.

I just did the swap on my opposed twin and put the feed in the air filter and it fires both cylinders with the throttle working aswell

@@idiotredneck8798 Cool. That is the engine I have. How did you attach it to the air filter area?

If you do it the way I did, then all the throttle controls is the airflow and it does not affect the governer.

It can't be difficult to start on propane, especially if it is cold. Spray a little start fluid in the carb to get it started and see if you can get it to run.

Thank you for this great information tylerp2600. I appreciate it very much when viewers contribute useful information as you have here.

Sounds like you're not injecting enough propane into carb. Make sure throttle butterfly vakve is open all the way

Adding a 12 volt solenoid valve may add piece of mind if someone leaving the valve open. Wire this to the ignition switch also you may want to add a gas pressure regulator so you don't have to mess with the valve all that can we some for less than 60 dollars

+subestimado10 I understand your concern. All I can say is that I have been using it for years this way with zero problems. But it does require that person to be aware and take responsibility for their safety instead of relying on mechanical devices to protect them. I grew up in countries where things like OSHA and Safety Guidelines did not existing, so this is a natural state of being for me.

+subestimado10 - A simple $8.00 Solenoid would help to " Prime " the Engine to start. That would be a big plus and also as a safety feature as well.

Thank you for commenting xxcribsxx! I am so glad the video was helpful.

@@thejungleexplorer wow 5 years ago I commented this

On this setup I was just using a standard regulator like would go to a propane grill. I was controlling the flow rate with the ball valve. I just had these items on hand when I made the conversion, so that it is what I used. A better system would be to use an adjustable regulator like this one, amzn.to/2UrfgZ0. This regulator would give you more precise flow control.

Here is another video that might also help you. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-8UI7Xaz7kOo.html

@@thejungleexplorer I used a regulator from an old fish cooker. It was not adjustable, but it did have a needle valve located just after the regulator. I have to keep adjusting the valve as the grass gets thicker. I converted an old Snapper Comet that hadn't been started in almost 10 years. I was having problems with the regulator freezing up, but after I got the tank mounted level the freezing up stopped. I'm working on converting 2 Troy-Bilt tillers , another Snapper Comet and a Craftsman mower. I have seen people using a demand regulator that works good to help control engine speed when the load increases and I like this idea I just don't want to spend $50+ for that type of regulator. Maybe later. I am going to make a video showing my setup which is almost the same as your. Thanks

@@joshuawoodard1155 Ah! I see. You were getting pure liquid propane in your regulator. That is why it was freezing up. On my setup, because I was not using the adjustable regulator and just controlling the flow with the ball valve, I just adjusted everything to run at max power constantly, so I never had an issue with needing to increase the flow. This made it difficult to start though and I would have to reduce the flow using the tank valve by just cracking open a tiny bit to get it started, before opening it all the way up. I never mess with the ball valve. I actually took the handle off of it so it would not move from position. It still runs this way today.

My pleasure. Glad it helped

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Gasoline engines are literally designed for pump gas,because that's where 99% of the world gets it. Just use the correct fuel, and the engine will last for years. Use the wrong fuel, and you could end up burning up the engine,blowing it up,get a ton of carbon deposits, or it just won't start at all. I've got a 1953 Briggs and stratton engine, and it's been running on pump fuel since before I was born.

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Thank you for this great information Robert Pierce. I appreciate it very much when viewers contribute useful information as you have here.

In my case, it saves me a 50 mile round trip to the gas station to get gas because I can fill my own propane cylinders from my 250 gallon nurse tank. But under normal circumstances, there may not be a lot of cost per gallon benefit, especially if a person is doing cylinder exchange. But you must also consider that, even though a carburetor can be replaced for $50, it will eventually (maybe within a year) go out for the same reason the first one went out; ethanol laden gas. So you are just kicking the can down the road. This video was published in 2014, two years after I originally converted it. This mower has been used for over six year to mow my five acre lawn on propane and is still functioning fine engine wise. Sure, I have had to replace some blades and belts and that kind of stuff, but I have not had a single problem with the motor. So cost wise, when it comes to fuel cost per gallon at the pump, there may be no benefit (depending on how much you pay for propane), but in terms in frustration, maintenance, storage and repair, there is a huge benefit. Here are some factors to consider Propane Benefits: 1. Never goes bad 2. Can be stored on site in large quantities. 3. Containers last for decades. 4. Cost less to buy (in large quantities) then gasoline. 5. Does not destroy carburetors. Cons of Ethanol Laden Gasoline: 1. Goes bad quickly ( Has a very short storage life). 2. Cannot be stored on site in large quantities (because it goes bad so fast). 3. Plastic containers are expensive and and do not last. 4. Modern gas can dispensing nozzles are, expensive, overly complicated, a pain in the butt to use and routinely break. 5. Storing gasoline for a few months in a gas can requires that you purchase additional costly fuel stabilizer to keep ethanol gas from separating, and even then, gasoline as a limit shelf life. 6. Gasoline cost more to buy per gallon. 7. Since you cannot keep a large supply of gasoline on hand, you must make frequent trip to the gas station to buy more, thus increasing you cost per gallon. 8. Ethanol laden gasoline destroys carburetors requiring you to perform frequent maintenance on your equipment to keep the gas in the carb from gelling and clogging it up.

I certainly can understand your situation, I use Sta-Bil in my gas all year round and anything I know is going to sit for any length of time I run it dry. Before I started doing this I started having a problem with all of my small motors, since I started I haven't had any problems. I certainly can see your benefit, more so because you are buying in bulk. I only mow an acre which takes me about a little more than a half hour with a 7 foot pro mower. I don't think I would use enough of it to justify it. But thanks for getting back to me.

You can't really idle that down though, can you?

Gasoline washes off the lubricating crankcase oil every time the piston moves, less metal to metal contact... Propane is a vapor, it burns extremely clean for the environment compared to gas.. gasoline could foul sparkplugs quicker.... spilled propane will evaporate quickly and not leave a puddle of flammable liquid for hours.... Propane spilled on a person will quickly evaporate, gasoline spilled on a person is a fire risk for extremely longer time...etc,etc,etc as listed by JungleExplorer

Thank you for commenting ROB 9mm! I am so glad the video was helpful.

Thank you for commenting Brad Taylor!

It cost me about $5 to refill. It is hard to measure exactly because I refill my tank out of my own nurse tank. I actually pull up to it like a gas station and fill up (I'll make a video of my setup one day). I figure I get around 2 to 2.5 gallons of propane per refill depending on the ambient temperature (tank temperature effects how much you can get in the tank). You can get more in the tank if you use the bleeder valve, but I don't because it just waste propane and I can always come back and refill again, so I don't try to get as complete fill each time. I pay from $2.00 to $2.25 a gallon depending on the season, so I figure about $5.00 per fill would be my maximum.

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If you want regulated throttle control, I suggest a proper conversion kit like this one here: amzn.to/2MJnJVW

Gasoline is around 14,7 to 1 Propane is around 15,5 to 1 (less Propane to air than gasoline to air)

Use a conversion kit

Works fine. Riding lawnmowers run at a constant speed.

@@thejungleexplorer yes they do. This is because of the governor. As work load lowers the engine RPM, the governor increases throttle to recover the lost RPM. As that lost RPM is recovered, the governor then relaxes the increased throttle to maintain the aforementioned constant speed. Without the governor, when you increase the load (such as with a hill or a patch of greener, denser grass) the mower would lose a lot of power as it cannot recover from load induced RPM loss

Thank you for commenting rawimpact!

That may be, but I have run it for years this way, the mower is still going strong, and my yard is 10 acres.

And you would have missed the point: It's not actually about doing something easier and boring; it's about exploring new ways of doing things, and making an engine run cleaner.

Hwat?

Thank you for commenting Slidin SideWayz Production SSP!

I bet he would.

17.5 HP

Thank you for commenting breno highland!

Thank you for commenting Eric St. I am very happy to hear that you enjoyed the video.

National Average fuel cost on gasoline is $2.80 x 5 gallons = $14.00 I don't see how this is that much cheaper to use BUT I do see that the MAJOR benefit is that this system runs cleaner. Less carbon emissions. Carb WON'T need to be cleaned every year. Extended oil life. Extended spark plug life. Extended Engine life.

@@scottnevil if all you have is half acre you can mow it all year with one tank

The only trouble is Lpg burns hotter than petrol. Me being from Poland and gas being very popular fuel know if you don't tune up gas.air ratio properly you making it running hot. Even when set properly still runs hotter. People in my country using Lpg replace plugs and wires more often. Oil too. Best use synthetic cause it takes temp better. Wanna stay on top with valve adjustment cause not enough clearance will burn seats. Still love the idea and will consider converting my new solo t15 93 hd a. In my country Lpg is about 50 percent cheaper so I'm tempted. Like your idea cause it is very simple comparing to conversions done on carburetted cars. Would be a good idea to measure engine temp. Txt me when visiting Poland. I'll buy you a beer

@@mariuszsurmacki3156 I suspected this as well. I wondered if the propane didn't have a cooling effect as it left the compressed state in the tank. Apparently not.

Thank you for commenting jim davidson! I am so glad the video was helpful.

There is always a chance of explosion when you are dealing with a flamable liquid, whether it be Gasoline, Propane, Methane, etc. Gasoline is probably one of the most flamable fuels that we use and bares a significant risk if explosion.

I did the same thing riding my mower on the LPG, somethimes you hear the engine explode treu the amount of gas its given. and its scares me maby its could backfire in the LPG cilinder...

You'd have to have oxygen present in the lines and the LPG bottle -- Which just isn't present in normal situations. Anything in the gas plumbing would contain just Propane as long as there's pressure in the cylinder, regulator, etc.

What about a high quality flash back arrestor one that is made for this type of fuel. I would use 2 or 3 just in case... I don't have a death wish. Is this a safe way?

They do make a One-Way Valve for Gas and you can add a cheap 12V DC Solenoid to add some Safety Features :). Also the Solenoid would help to " Prime " the Engine before the " real " start/run.

Lol. It's a solar mask. 😅

+Randy Kuhns - Right.... Maybe use a Solenoid and make it act like a " Primer ", that way it's safe and easy to start!

Yep. The propane is under a slight pressure at first, and no air has been allowed to be pulled forward by suction yet. The fuel/air ratio is probably too high at that point.

@@netdoctor1 I solved this problem of hard starting on my push mower by adding a low pressure regulator after the barbecue regulator now its very easy to start well worth the $75 I spent.

Thank you for commenting Randy Kuhns!

+In Cognito - You sniffing the wrong Gas... LMFAO !!!!

Thank you for commenting In Cognito. I am very happy to hear that you enjoyed the video.

Hwat?

Thank you for commenting In Cognito. I am very happy to hear that you enjoyed the video.

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Well, I fill my own tanks, so it does not cost me nearly as much as people who do the exchange thing. Here is a video that shows the process. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-3XOzopMfjU8.html BTW, take note of the date of this video: Oct 8, 2014 . The mower was already several years old when this video was made. I am still using this mower today and it still runs like new. Here is a video I made this summer on this mower. It just needed a little routine valve adjustment. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-t_h-_jg23ro.html

Thank you for commenting Ian laconia nh the small engine guy!

Thanks for the support. Could you please remove the language though. I try to keep my channel clean and family friendly so RU-vid does not restrict my videos. Thanks.

+Eddieallen Huh.... What are you talking about? Jason wore a white hockey mask. I am wearing a camo solar shield in my profile pic. Skin cancer runs in my family and I cover up when I am outside. Plus, it just looks cool!

jungleexplorer Ya your right, I don't know why I said "ski". I just thought it was odd to wear a mask on a day like that but I understand why you do now.

Why? What does that have to do with converting a motor? Besides, It is a solar mask. I have a lot of sun damage and my dermatologist says I have to wear one when outside.