You have a portable natural gas generator? That's an odd type.

And you want to hook it up at the meter? Doesn't seem like the place to hook up a new gas line branch.

Anyway, the type of connection you'd need depends on what your generator has to connect to.

 

Portable generators can be purchased with the Tri-fuel option.

Will run on gasoline, propane, or natural gas.

 

You can get a basic barbecue gas line quick connect which looks like a air compressor quick connect ( but is not ) or a nice box with one in it. The box protects it from the elements. I am pretty sure the gas code will want you to stay at least 10 feet away in case the meter regulator has a leak or is venting itself.

You may want to consult your gas company and ask them the code. Fail to do so or have it inspected and you have a fire your house insurance may be void and if you damage your neighbors you know where you are heading ( lawsuit ).

How can I connect my grill's quick-connect hose to my exterior gas port?

I was wondering if someone could tell what I would need to convert my receptacle to accept my Weber's 3/8 quick connect hose. Short story being that I purchased an used Weber genesis NG grill since...

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Good idea to include a Tee or drip line to allow crud in the gas line to fall into the Tee and not go into the generator. Required by code for a standby generator installation and you may be able to find more on the Generac website.

 

I converted my Coleman 6000 watt unit to run on natural gas and used large 1 inch JIC fitting. The 1 inch hose has the female fittings, the generator's regular and the house's gas line have the male sides. I also purchased caps for the males and plugs for the females to protect them when not in use.

 

Thanks for the great information everyone! I really like the idea of running natural gas or propane instead of gasoline.

 

They run MUCH better on natural gas or propane.. smoother operation, easier starts, no fuel problems from storage. And cheaper, way WAY cheaper.

For the cost of running a gasoline generator for a day, you could run it for about 4 days on natural gas..

 

Thanks MIShopDude

That encourages me even more.

I was thinking of not having gummed up carbs and not running out of fuel. I never even thought of the cost advantage!

 

My 4 to 1 ratio might be off.. Lets do some math..

In Michigan, residential natural gas is at $17.70 per thousand cubic feet.
A 7.5kW generator running at half load will use about 73 cubic feet per hour.. so 24hrs x 73 = 1752 cubic feet.. ($17.70 x 1.75 = ~$31). That is $31 to run 3.75 kW for 24 hours. that's a lot of power by the way. I have 3 fridges and 3 deep freezers, 3 desktops, and a 6th grader who leaves all the lights on and I average about 1 to 1.2 kWh per hour. The average central air conditioner unit runs at around 3.5 kW when it is actively cooling.

Now lets look at gasoline. These numbers vary depending on which source is referenced but this should give us an idea.. Gas varies across the country, but lets use $3/gallon and you can adjust up or down based on your local prices.
A similar generator, also running at half load, will burn about 0.84 gallons of gasoline per hour.. x24hrs = 20.16 gallons. x$3 per gallon = $60.
We're not including the transportation costs to go get it.

So its more like 2 to 1 right now.. Also, price fluctuations of natural gas are seasonal and they swing about 40% from high to low. .. oddly enough, they start going up from the bottom around January, top out in August, then fall down again. The $17.70 for natural gas I used above is at the high for this year. Whereas gasoline prices seem to be all over the board..

Right now is a bad time to need the generator for natural gas.. its about 2 to 1 cost ratio.. But if the power goes out in February, then it's more like 3 to 1 or 4 to 1.

Natural gas costs more to set up but it's worth it in just not needing to mess with carburetors.. Can't tell you how sick I am of rebuilding carbs.. Even the dentist is more appealing.

 

Important to install a drip Tee between the generator and the gas line. Generac recommends this as does the code in some area. Trivial cost to do when you are doing the rest of the plumbing.

We put in a 16 kW generator and needed to have the local utility company put in a higher capacity gas meter (which they did at no cost to us).

 

Important to install a drip Tee between the generator and the gas line. Generac recommends this as does the code in some area. Trivial cost to do when you are doing the rest of the plumbing.

We put in a 16 kW generator and needed to have the local utility company put in a higher capacity gas meter (which they did at no cost to us).

All the newer Generacs have drip legs built inside the generator but again check code compliance.

 

You need to pipe the connection for the Natural Gas at least 25 feet from any structure other than one used only to house the generator. That is Required by the National Fire Prevention Code which is enforced as law in many jurisdictions. Another reason to do that is that operating a generator any closer to a dwelling subjects the occupants to a high risk of Carbon Monoxide (CO) poisoning. Make sure that you have working Battery or Dual Powered CO detectors in your home prior to running the generator unless it is 50 feet from the dwelling. A common lawn tractor storage shed, that you add an intake vent grill and air exhaust fan to, makes a pretty good generator shelter. If you build a concrete pad for the shed, and place an eye bolt in the form before you pour, then a stout piece of chain makes it harder to steal your generator.

Tom Horne