08-30-2008, 05:51 PM
I think it should be out of the question to power an electric water heater or dryer off of a generator. Those are huge loads. I can see that a condo apartment on the 30th floor might have a problem using propane appliances, but if you have fuel on site, you should burn it directly to supply your heating needs. To make heat with electricity you first need to make the electricity, which involves making heat and then throwing about 3/4 of it away, so if you burn the fuel in a water heater you will get about 4 times as much hot water as if you burn the fuel in a generator to run an electric water heater.
Storing fuel for an emergency is a problem. Gasoline isn't convenient to store in large quantities or for very long. Propane on the other hand can be stored hundreds of gallons at a time, lasts a long time, and requires no special precautions. If you were willing to make the initial investment, and could get propane delivered, I think a large 100 plus gallon propane tank, propane water heater, stove, and dryer, and finally a dedicated propane fired generator would be the ultimate back-up system. I have seen this topic discussed before and the question of the relative efficiency of propane vs gasoline in a generator is debated. I think this is not important because you won't be running the generator all that much if it is an emergency back-up system. The important thing is that when you need it it really has to work smoothly. A propane system with a large dedicated tank would work seamlessly. Even for more continuous use, propane burns more cleanly than gasoline, resulting in less maintenance and some cost savings there. Also, I have used a generator while fishing. It needs to be fed every few hours and someone usually forgets in the middle of the night. Maybe I am clumsy but I always spilled while filling the tank. Thats fuel on me, fuel in the air, and fuel on the ground, every day. A propane spill just evaporates. Propane is just much nicer to work with all around.
Storing fuel for an emergency is a problem. Gasoline isn't convenient to store in large quantities or for very long. Propane on the other hand can be stored hundreds of gallons at a time, lasts a long time, and requires no special precautions. If you were willing to make the initial investment, and could get propane delivered, I think a large 100 plus gallon propane tank, propane water heater, stove, and dryer, and finally a dedicated propane fired generator would be the ultimate back-up system. I have seen this topic discussed before and the question of the relative efficiency of propane vs gasoline in a generator is debated. I think this is not important because you won't be running the generator all that much if it is an emergency back-up system. The important thing is that when you need it it really has to work smoothly. A propane system with a large dedicated tank would work seamlessly. Even for more continuous use, propane burns more cleanly than gasoline, resulting in less maintenance and some cost savings there. Also, I have used a generator while fishing. It needs to be fed every few hours and someone usually forgets in the middle of the night. Maybe I am clumsy but I always spilled while filling the tank. Thats fuel on me, fuel in the air, and fuel on the ground, every day. A propane spill just evaporates. Propane is just much nicer to work with all around.