Change electric stove, install gas stove

Lots of good info in these posts... Here is all I can add:

We purchased a 2000 Mainship 390 in July. After looking at several boats of this make/model for over a year, it was the only one we looked at with Propane. For a number of reasons we made our move and we are thrilled with it including the propane stove ... as the generator is loud. Our surveyor really liked the idea of it too.

Tank is 20# fiberglass on upper sun deck, has electric solenoid shut off under cover just inside canvased fly bridge. Obviously, the tank's valve needs to be open, 12 VDC power to the solenoid circuit needs to be on at the panel, and the solenoid switch at the galley needs to be "on". Each of the 3 burners and the oven has a thermocouple that needs to be "hot" or else fuel flow stops. The brand is Princess, which I don't think is available any longer, but there are others. Everything including the stove was in great condition.

The admiral really likes me NOT having to start the generator for my early up coffee every morning! All meals on the hook are great. Oven temp is amazingly accurate for a 20 year old stove. (Frozen Pizza is a fav.)

In our previous boat, we pulled out the alcohol stove and put in a counter top that housed a portable single burner S/S butane stove. If we had landed a boat with electric range, a single burner S/S butane stove would probably what we would use 99% of the time (when not on shore power.)

When putting in a propane appliance, I agree a certified professional install is peace of mind. I'm sure the USCG has regs as well as the boating safety orgs.

Our water heater does get hot off the main engine (180F), or shore power. (The high temp makes up for the small capacity.)

Note... several of our local propane refill stations were wigged out by the fiberglass propane tank. The local West Marine store who stocks them, pointed us to a couple of propane vendors who were perfectly OK with refilling it for us. (When we push off for the loop, we'll likely need ANY nearby propane vendor to fill without question. So a steel or aluminum tank may be in our future before we push off.)

The teak wood to the immediate left of the stove seems to not like the heat. We have refinished that wood... but we are watching to see how long it lasts. There are a lot of decorative S/S backsplash type finishes that might work out better. We'll see.

How well do those "as seen on TV" infomercials work on a boat?
LOL You folks with a 50 amp boat and a generator to support it, are lucky.
Folks with a 30amp boat learn all about timing and load shedding.
I put an amp meter in the galley area to give me guidance.

Related:
Santa is delivering a "T-fal Clipso" stove top pressure cooker to the admiral, as requested on her wish list... as seen on SV-Basik's YouTube channel.
(Pressure cookers save on fuel and cooking time.)

All our investments are to avoid 120VAC appliance and "stuff" as much as possible.

Simi 60 said:

^^^ But its $1200 for 2 burners
And no oven
Where's the logic behind ripping out perfectly good gas and replacing it with a lesser product at a higher price?
What do they bake bread in, pizzas, roast etc?

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I shopped around and found one of these two burners on sale for $124. It works great and can be flush mounted. I could build some kind of railing to keep pots on the stove, but I have found that this actually works better. It is a very thin silicon mat. It grips the glass surface and the pot and hold things tight in any sea conditions that you would contemplate cooking in. It even holds for the inconsiderate jerk that makes a big wake in the anchorage. It can be left on to protect the glass top (from what?) or rolled up and stored. It is thin enough to not effect the heat and can handle heat up to frying.

Getting rid of the traditional oven is another one of the benefits. When I had a diesel stove for heat and cooking, I baked bread every day because I just had to turn up the stove to get it hot enough. But most people don't use the oven that much.

For baking on an induction stove top, it just takes a little ingenuity. A $50 Coleman folding oven can sit on the silicon mat. I've put a piece of hardware cloth between the oven and the silicon mat and that seems to heat things quicker and more evenly. Check the YouTube videos for how well these work on Coleman propane stoves. Fortunately, they also work with induction.

I can roll up the mat and fold up the oven and save all that wasted space (which can now be used for food, pots and pans, etc.) No need to wonder how much propane is in the tank. No condensation from using propane. Total cost of $200 for the oven/stove. That's about what a fiberglass propane tank costs (one that you get to lug up and down the dock if you find somewhere to fill it when you run out). I don't know what an actual propane stove/oven costs. Hopefully a lot so I can sell mine to cover the conversion.

Induction seems to be the better product. Lesser price. I still get to bake bread, pizza, roasts. But I don't get the explosions for which propane is famous.

Capt Ray -- You will love the induction pressure cooker (assuming it is induction). I have one and use it for lots of things. One of my favorites is boiling a crab (our pressure cooker is probably 6 quart so one large crab). When the pressure is built up enough to start leaking steam, the temperature is about 230 degrees. Turn off the heat (which is instant). Let the cooker cool down and lose pressure (10 to 15 minutes). The crab is cooked perfect without a single bit of steam condensing on the windows. Same works for white rice.

My house has been under construction for 9 months including kitchen. Have been living in out in-law suite in back along with an outdoor kitchen (Florida). Bought an induction hot plate and love it. Very efficient with no excess heat. I thought about replacing propane range on my boat but really want an oven. My sense is a modest LiFePo4 battery bank and solar would easily suffice

Peter

Do a Google image search for "Yacht propane explosion" Look at the pictures.....slowly. I have had propane on boats. Odds of mishap with a proper installation are small. But not zero, and the "effects" are pretty impressive. Nope.

Two burner induction cooktop for me..... I actually think it cooks better than gas. (I am the chef in the family.)

OldDan1943 said:

I put an amp meter in the galley area to give me guidance.

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Even with 50A (times 2 of course) I have to watch it. 4 AC/Heat pumps, induction cooker, micro/convection, electric water heater. I laminated a picture of my AC distribution panel and have it in the galley and at the helm, so I can decide what to run on which leg. I can confirm with the ammeters but knowing what is hooked up where is usually enough.

Peter's idea of an induction hot plate is a low risk way to try it out. We have one with our propane stove because the propane couldn't keep a big pot of water boiling hard enough to keep pasta from sticking together. The little hot plate heats like a gas home stove.

But I hadn't expected to find that they also have far more smarts built in than a regular stove. You can set it to a particular temperature to keep a soup just at simmer. And unlike a regular electric stove the heat changes instantly when you adjust it.

They are so efficient with electricity, that I expect many will find that the hot plate runs fine off their batteries. Many meals don't require more than one burner.

We don't have any trouble with pots sliding at anchor. Underway we use a silicone mat that takes care of moderate waves like a wake.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0045QEPYM/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

You all may be interested in this : https://www.cheboygannews.com/news/20180625/explosion-on-boat-sends-two-to-hospital

I am told he died

Yachting Monthly replaced an electric stove with propane. Soup's on!

Saying gas is dangerous because a few got blown up is as silly as me saying electricity is dangerous because many more get electrocuted.

So a first time skydiver jumps out of a plane only to find his primary chute doesn't open. No problem, pulls rip cord on auxiliary just as trained. It goes up in tatters and he's free falling at an alarming speed.

Suddenly he sees a guy going up as quickly as he's going down. The skydiver shouts "Hey - buddy! Do you know anything about parachutes?"

To which the guy going up responds "No. Do you know anything about propane stoves?"

rsn48 said:

Electric is good if you only do marina boating, or boating on the hook with a generator. If you enjoy the sounds of silence on the hook, gas is best. PNW boaters including coastal BC boaters who enjoy being on the hook a lot, tend to rely on gas. Anchoring and stern tying in Desolation Sound can often be tight so using a generator in God's country when silence is golden is the devil's work.

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Perhaps this is a good time to think new. The combination of a 20 KW- Hour Li Ion battery bank with a 240 amp 24volt Balmar alternator from the main engine and a 3Kw inverter allows a boater to operate a whole day without a geny and without a shore power connection. Ther is no noise and even an air conditioner may be operated.
Probably it is the way to go given that from today on people will run away from any kind of fossil fuel as if it were the pest.

I like the idea of the induction range.

rolomart3 said:

Perhaps this is a good time to think new. The combination of a 20 KW- Hour Li Ion battery bank with a 240 amp 24volt Balmar alternator from the main engine and a 3Kw inverter allows a boater to operate a whole day without a geny and without a shore power connection. Ther is no noise and even an air conditioner may be operated.
Probably it is the way to go given that from today on people will run away from any kind of fossil fuel as if it were the pest.

I like the idea of the induction range.

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So do I but the battery bank alone probably cost about $20,000 here

And when you aren't running the engine, what charges the battery then?
Magic?

Stove and gas grille work perfect

Newtrawlerowner said:

2003 MS 400 has an electric stove and grille in summer kitchen. Thinking of changing to gas. I know some 400s came with gas. Anybody done this conversion? I know I'll have to run a gas line. I'll find a certified marine mechanic to either advise or do that part.

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We got our 400 2005 w gas stove w oven and grille installed by Mainship. The fact is that it’s the most common way here in Scandinavia. Electric’s are very rare here. We have the same in our motor home plus a heater.

The gas is kept in two boxes outside flybridge on each side.
It’s not more mantinance than electric’s.
Good to have solenoid on gasbottles w switch in kitchen, sensor for both lpg-gas and other gases.
A leakage controller is cheap and easy to use.
With gas and some solarpanel we dont need a diesel generator.

Reconsider Gas Stove

When I bought my last boat one of the first things on my list of things to do was to convert the stove to gas. I bought the boat in the Panhandle of Florida and by the time I got home (Morehead City) with the boat I realized that I needed to run the generator some each day to keep the batteries up. We used the time around supper and breakfast to charge the batteries. Never converted to gas. We did add a large battery bank and 660 watts of solar and was able to use the microwave running off our Magnum 2800 inverter.

I would still consider converting the outside grill to gas.

If you haven't had the boat for very long, I recommend you live in it for a while before making big changes.

Shay Glass

Gas is dangerous. Ive even met guys who saidcthey wouldnt be able to sleep soundly on a boat using gas. Electric induction is best...safest.

David Ess said:

Gas is dangerous. Ive even met guys who saidcthey wouldnt be able to sleep soundly on a boat using gas. Electric induction is best...safest.

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With induction cooking, you need a generator to support it and if you try to run it off an inverter, need a good size inverter and the batteries to supply the inverter while on the hook.
The above is only something to think about, not reasons to discourage you from changing to induction cooking.

OldDan1943 said:

With induction cooking, you need a generator to support it and if you try to run it off an inverter, need a good size inverter and the batteries to supply the inverter while on the hook.
The above is only something to think about, not reasons to discourage you from changing to induction cooking.

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You might be surprised - the induction single-hob hot plate I've been using at home for the better part of a year has a digital display. You can either run it showing temperature or watts. I'd guess the vast majority of my cooking averages around 300-350 watts, or around 25-30 amps. That's a workable amount of AH for battery source. Many sailors are migrating to induction cooking with only moderate sized battery banks. Really depends on your appetite for consuming watts. Powerboaters tend to be a bit more voracious

Peter

I'm all electric and I have a $10,000 generator in a sound enclosure. Why would I ever consider solar and batteries and inverters or propane and all the extra crap that goes with them. Generator humming is sort of peaceful to me.

OldDan1943 said:

With induction cooking, you need a generator to support it and if you try to run it off an inverter, need a good size inverter and the batteries to supply the inverter while on the hook.
The above is only something to think about, not reasons to discourage you from changing to induction cooking.

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I know all that, and about solar, and large battery banks too, and that its way safer than gas.

obthomas said:

I'm all electric and I have a $10,000 generator in a sound enclosure. Why would I ever consider solar and batteries and inverters or propane and all the extra crap that goes with them. Generator humming is sort of peaceful to me.

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Generator run-time is a bit of a holy war I suppose. East/Gulf Coast it's common to see boats with more generator hours than the mains. That's rare on the West Coast. Folks in that camp would say "When you add-up all the costs of ownership, maintenance, and operation, a generator is at least $10/hour. Why would I consider that when I can have solar and the accompanying quietness?"

Different strokes.....

Peter

That doesn't work if you spend more than 1 day on the hook. Or you must run your great big main propulsion engine with almost no load which is very hard on it. If you are running main engine just to recharge batteries, same issue. And you won't heat much water with solar electricity. I cook with propane and heat with diesel forced air. My 3.5KW NextGen is quiet (even without a sound shield), and very economical to operate. Lots of hot water and recharges batteries in about an hour. [emoji924][emoji924][emoji4][emoji4]

OldDan1943 said:

Generator to make HW? Why not install a loop to the hot water tank and let the main engine make the hot water?

Converting to gas, get it done professional. Much safer.

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David Ess said:

Gas is dangerous. Ive even met guys who saidcthey wouldnt be able to sleep soundly on a boat using gas. Electric induction is best...safest.

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Hogwash. Lightening is dangerous, and you are more likely to be struck by lightening than die in a propane explosion. If you like electric, go electric. But if risk aversion is keeping you from propane, then don't ever get out of bed again. It is dangerous to do so.

David Ess said:

Gas is dangerous. Ive even met guys who saidcthey wouldnt be able to sleep soundly on a boat using gas. Electric induction is best...safest.

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That actual facts disagree

Propane Explosion Facts

There are an estimated 60 million propane-fueled devices in the United States, according to the National Fire Protection Association.
<snip>

Overall, propane is one of the safest fuels available. Data for the Occupational Safety and Health Administration found just one propane-related death in 2018 among 13 incidents. That did represent a sharp decline from 2017, when there were 5 propane explosion deaths from 22 incidents, one of which involved an employee who was hit and killed by a propane delivery truck. One of the injuries occurred while a worker was moving propane tanks and did not involve fire or explosion.

https://www.shefflaw.com/how-common-are-propane-explosions/

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Vs

According to the CDC’s NIOSH, the construction industry comprises approximately 8% of the U.S. workforce, yet it accounts for 44% of job-related fatalities. Consider the statistics:

Electrical hazards cause more than 300 deaths and 4,000 injuries each year among the U.S. workforce.

https://www.electrocuted.com/safety/statistics/

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Just maybe The Answer begins with AC, not the galley.

If you know you need AC, its pretty clear you will want a generator.

If you already know you will have a generator, why not simplify life and go electric in the galley? Eliminate a system, eliminate sourcing an additional fuel, eliminate whatever degree (high or low) of risk comes with propane.

So long as an electric galley is acceptable to the chef to work in, of course.

FWT said:

Just maybe The Answer begins with AC, not the galley.

If you know you need AC, its pretty clear you will want a generator.

If you already know you will have a generator, why not simplify life and go electric in the galley? Eliminate a system, eliminate sourcing an additional fuel, eliminate whatever degree (high or low) of risk comes with propane.

So long as an electric galley is acceptable to the chef to work in, of course.

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Or look at gas as redundancy
If my genset or electrical system has issues I can still cook a meal with gas.

As for simplicity do you really think generator, inverters, batteries and wiring is more simple than a gas bottle and hose? (A little bit more complicated if inside)

Simi 60....bogus comparison. Our topic is boats, where a heavier than air gas can sink to the bottom of it and blow up. This cannot happen with electrical induction stoves on boats. Do we know the stats on comparing those two things, on boats? I dont, but ill bet my comment is accurate that the electric stoves are safer, and that a boat with NO gas is safer.

obthomas said:

I'm all electric and I have a $10,000 generator in a sound enclosure. Why would I ever consider solar and batteries and inverters or propane and all the extra crap that goes with them. Generator humming is sort of peaceful to me.

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I have 3X4D AGM batteries, 2X130 solar panels, 1800 watt inverter and a 6Kw generator in a sound shield. No more room for additional batteries unless I duct tape them to the swim platform.
With all that, I still have to be careful when using the electric stove anything else.

DDW said:

Hogwash. Lightening is dangerous, and you are more likely to be struck by lightening than die in a propane explosion. If you like electric, go electric. But if risk aversion is keeping you from propane, then don't ever get out of bed again. It is dangerous to do so.

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Another bogus comparison. The one we are talking about is gas stoves compared to electric induction ones. Has that heavier than air gas ever leaked to the bottom of a boat and blew it up? Yes. An electric one? Ive never heard of such. In fact, do boat insurers consider whether there is gas on board?