Archive through May 31, 2006

[csanderson]

John Jones;Downloading free Kohler file. instead of trying to do it direct, try downloading to a file, first. That's how I got past the half download problem. An expert on hand is very helpful.(16 yr old school kid) I know this is kindergarten stuff, but after 4 yrs, I don't seem to be able to make first grade, and this is the way I got past the problem. Think it had something to do with dial up. Curt

 

[mfisher]

Bruce M - With the temps approaching 90 degrees this past weekend, the density altitude here in northern IL was approaching 3000 ft. So in a way, we were all flying our Cub Cadets this past weekend.

 

[digger]

Well the 147 LP made it home just fine.
Good thing I took a spare set of front tires and wheels.
It's quite the setup and the LP tank is about half full.
All in all it's in pretty good shape.

 

[tcbusch]

Whats the aluminum colored, hockey puck shaped, round thing, under the battery? It looks like some sort of turbo like fuel pump or something with the pipe coming from the muffler.

I know nothing about propane burning.

 

[digger]

Terry,
It's the Converter/Regulator/Vaporizer that converts the LP from liquid to gas.

 

[dtiernan]

Charlie,

Is that exhaust going through the vaporizer?

 

[mfisher]

Charlie - It kinda resembles the gas meter outside the house. Does a meter-reader stop by every so often?

 

[sblunier]

Rapid vaporization of LP requires heat to aid in the "boiling" of the liquid.

Your house furnace does not require a vaporizer because the consumption rate of LP by the furnace is less than that of the evaporation rate inside the large tank outside....in short you always get "dry gas" due to the low usage/big tank. Industrial loads require forced vaporization.
For this reason, Industrial LP vaporizers are not as efficient to operate when compared to natural gas since they burn part of the fuel in the vaporization burner.

The heat also prevents regulator freeze-ups initiated by the rapid expansion of LP at the regulator. When a fluid is rapidly expanded over an orifice the laws of physics dictate that it will get colder (the opposite happens when your air compressor runs...the air gets hotter). This temperature drop at the regulator can cause the hydrates present in LP to "freeze" the reguator orifice.

 

[digger]

Dennis T,
Actually there's a safety bypass on the vaporiser that vents through the end of the muffler!
I can imagine the flame that sucker would throw if things cut loose inside that thing, LOL

 

[dtiernan]

I thought that maybe that is how they kept the vaporizer from freezing up. The fuel must come out of the tank on the vapor side then and they used that as the regulator. On forklifts they run water from the engine through there to keep it from freezing.

 

[dtiernan]

Well Charlie,

Put a valve on it to"leak" some by and.....

NIGHT TIME PLOWING!!!!!!!

 

[kmcconaughey]

Charlie, ya gotta paint those front rims!

Mike F.

 

[bmoore]

Steve,
So what happens when it gets really cold outside? Will it start? Do you need some kind of auxiliary heater? Not that Charlie needs to worry about it where he lives....
Charlie,
With the tank where it is, is there any way to use a 3-point?
Mike,
At what temp should I worry about mowing into the O'Hare or Palwaukee flight paths over my house?
Dennis,
How about an adjustable nozzle on it to take care of weeds growing through concrete cracks and gravel, or incinerate clippings coming out of the deck chute?

 

[digger]

Dennis,
From what Impco told me, it's a dual purpose release valve/heater and they said I need not worry about freeze ups.
Beats me, This will be a first for me on a small gas engine. Look for a bright light in your NW sky one of these days real soon!!!!!

Kraig,
You got that right, grin
They are great for rolling stuff around though.

 

[sblunier]

By my calculations a 12hp Kohler should use about the same volume of fuel per hour as a large gas grill or a small (50,000 BTU) furnace. (Roughly figuring 60-70% efficiency at rated load, 12hp).

I'm sure Dave Kirk has much better data on these sorts of things (being "in the small engine biz" and all), I just slapped together some #'s from a conversion chart.

 

[digger]

Well there's a thought, slap a grill under hood and I'll be set for summer BBQ's.

 

[htews]

Long time reader first time to post. I have a 782 that has the orginal KT17 in with 600+ hours. Not sure of exact hours for I am the 2nd owner. The engine has decided to push oil by the PTO seal. About 1.5 qts during mowing of 3 acres of grass. I have a chance to get a Honda GX620 engine. I have seen several swaps to the newer v-twin kohlers. Has any one tried a Honda swap? If so could you please share your experiences. If nobody has I will document my experiences and share with the group.
Thanks for all information you have share.

 

[pdorow]

Steve,

I did a startup of a 75,000,000 BTU LPG mixing station and ceramic kiln this week in Atlanta this past week---- very interesting.

 

[fbainbridge]

Does anybody know the weight of a 1650

 

[digger]

Fred B,
About 695 pounds

(Message edited by Cproctor on June 03, 2006)