Galvanized pipe is perfect approved for above ground piping. Underground the preferred choice is PE, or coated black schedule 40 steel pipe with cathodic protection installed. Go check every natural gas meter setup and you will see galvanized piping. (A retired natural gas corrosion specialist/ district engineer/ operations manager).
Natural Gas Generators
- Thread starter IReallyLikePizza2
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biggen
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- May 6, 2018
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Yup. I also have galvanized pipe outside on my generator. Paint will protect it from rust
Paint galvanized can prolong the life of the zinc coating, which by the way is a sacrificial metal that protects the underlying steel by generating a negative voltage (cathodic) to prevent corrosion.
biggen
Known around here
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Zinc rich paint (cold galvanizing) sticks well, seems to last longer and blends over time. I'd use at least 93% zinc.
It works best directly on galvanized steel, then next on bare steel; can be applied over existing paint or coating if it is adhered well and shows no signs of peeling or flaking BUT not the best choice.
Inorganic zinc-rich paint seems more durable than organic in most applications. More here:
Coating Characteristics of Zinc-Rich Paint
Organic or inorganic zinc-rich paints are applied to a dry film thickness of 2.5 to 3.5 mils (64 to 90 µm). Adhesion bond strengths of zinc-rich paints…
Zinc-Rich Paint Coatings - Cold Galvanizing
Zinc-rich paint contains high levels of zinc dust or powder that works to combat corrosion. It is commonly referred to by the misnomer "cold galvanizing."
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You can spray it on paint, but you won't get any benefit from its protective zinc coating. The paint must be in contact with the steel to provide cathodic protection, otherwise you are wasting money.
Hey — curious how the Grasten quote ended up looking. Once you had the actual proposal, what part was hardest to judge: the generator size itself, what was included in the installation, or whether the total price was justified?
I am very happy with the work Grasten did. Price was in line with others in my area. I had already decided on the features and size needed. They did their calcs and said the size that I had asked about was good. We discussed the issue of having UPS's and how that can impact the size needed. I ended up seriously decreasing the amount of UPS capacity.
Everything was included in the installation. I did not have to do anything else. They did the digging, mounting, gas and electrical connections. They even swept up the sheetrock dust in the garage.
Air. Less hassle. Is this an all in cost? There is considerable electrical work to be done....
Less hassle may be very wrong. We had a 7 day outage in Beryl and my liquid cooled unit burned next to zero oil
My neighbors air cooled unit was almost off the dipstick. And the air will require oil changes more frequently DURING outages. IMO that is more work than changing coolant every 5 or so years (Which is not exactly hard anyway)
Also confirm the valves. Often the air cooled units won't have hydraulic lifters and will need valve adjustments (This may be less true nowadays), where the liquid will not
I'm biased because I have the 27kw liquid cooled, but if you're gonna do it, do it right IMO
My neighbors air cooled unit was almost off the dipstick. And the air will require oil changes more frequently DURING outages. IMO that is more work than changing coolant every 5 or so years (Which is not exactly hard anyway)
Also confirm the valves. Often the air cooled units won't have hydraulic lifters and will need valve adjustments (This may be less true nowadays), where the liquid will not
I'm biased because I have the 27kw liquid cooled, but if you're gonna do it, do it right IMO