those of you with propane...a question [Archive] - AmityMama.com

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ilfan96
03-21-2008, 10:45 AM
We will be moving to the country at the end of May/beginning of June. Right now, the cooktop and oven are electric, but within the next year I would like to upgrade them and switch to gas, if possible. My question is do you have to get appliances specifically for running on propane or do you just get a "regular" gas appliance?

It is probably a silly question, but I much prefer gas cooking to electric and want to know what I should be looking for, so that I can budget accordingly. :)

ThirtySomething
03-21-2008, 10:51 AM
My dryer had propane conversion kid for around $60. Dh did it the first time, but we had a professional do it the next time. You do need to tell the people who you are buying from that you will run it on propane. They'll advise from there.

ilfan96
03-21-2008, 11:09 AM
Great! Thank you!

Katie
03-21-2008, 11:20 AM
I think we had to get an lp kit for everything....stove, water heater. It's been so long now that I'm not sure now. My mind, it's slipping. lol.

ThirtySomething
03-21-2008, 12:04 PM
Yes, every appliance will need a conversion kit. Propane burns hotter than natural gas, so it will melt whatever the natural gas goes through to make a flame. I'm so technical. :lol:

Katie
03-21-2008, 12:12 PM
Yes, every appliance will need a conversion kit. Propane burns hotter than natural gas, so it will melt whatever the natural gas goes through to make a flame. I'm so technical. :lol:

thank you. lol.

mamabear
03-21-2008, 01:01 PM
I think it's more than that...it's more that the hole the liquid goes through is a different size for optimum burning based on the fact that one burns hotter than the other. So you could get incomplete burning and basically ruin the appliance plus risk unburned propane getting through the system and potentially causing a fire. Both nozzles (I'm not terribly technical either but we had to get into it w/our dryer conversion kit because dh did it and we got 2 options, one for butane and one for propane, and had to figure out which one we needed) were metal so I can't imagine the propane actually melting it.

Basic answer: Yes you need an LP conversion kit for any appliance you buy. It is probably best (and in many states the only legal way is this) to have a technician install the conversion kit and the appliance(s). You can sometimes negotiate with the propane company - you open an account, they hook up the tanks for free, or get a discount on the whole setup. It can cost a chunk of $ to set up propane tanks, lines, and connections to all your propane appliances. Just one tank and hooking up a stove would run you around $200 in this part of the country (tank cost, labor, parts).

mrk's mom
03-21-2008, 06:02 PM
We just bought a new stove and it came with a LP conversion kit. I would ask when you purchase your appliances if they come with an LP kit. I did have to pay about 100.00 to have our company hook us up. I agree with the PP to call propane companies and see what kind of deals they will give you. Our company gave us 1/2 off our first fill (which was the ENTIRE tank) and hooked us up the first time for free.

Good luck!