Motorhome runs on LPG what about cooker??

[swifty999]

I understand from previous posts that LPG tanks cannot be used for both vehicle power and cooker/fridge/heater in motorhome? not sure why but I am looking at using seperate refillable bottles, this is not a cheap option (£400 ish) but because of the different types of bottle used on the continent where I hope to tour a bit now ~I am retiring, seems the only way to go unless anyone can suggest a way of using existing set up

Thanks
Swifty

[Gilbertd]

I have no idea about the bottles used for heating and cooking but the only difference between automotive LPG is the actual filler. Adapters are used when in different countries if their pumps aren't the same as your filler. There are three types of filler, the bayonet used in the UK, Holland and Eire, the Acme thread used in Belgium and the US and the Italian cup, used virtually everywhere else in Europe (and beyond). As a UK car obviously I have the bayonet filler but in my door pocket I have adapters to convert it to Acme screw and Italian Cup. You can buy these in the UK at around £15 each or you can buy them at any motorway services on the continent for less than half that. Most continental filling stations will have an adapter they will lend you if your filler is different to their pump too.

[Active_Lad]

Slightly OT, but do UK stations generally keep adaptors for our European neighbours? I've never had a reason to ask, but just wondered....

[Gilbertd]

Nope. The BP near me actually told a German motorist that adapters were illegal and they would refuse to switch the pump on if they saw anyone try to use one. The labels on a BP pump actually say you should not use an adapter



I commented to the guy on the till that this seemed strange as filling stations in Europe will loan you an adapter if you need one and he told me that he had been told the use of adapters was illegal. A bit different to my experience in Poland and Belarus where they refused to use my adapter and fitted their own.....

[prisspringle]

its not just bp theres a shell station near me that has the same on there pumps, i've never had a problem with using the adapter when buying gas from them, i don't think most employees know how the system works anyway.

chris

[Gilbertd]

Most Shell stations have a slightly different label that says that adapters are not recomended, rather than the BP ones that say you cannot use them.

[rossko]

I understand from previous posts that LPG tanks cannot be used for both vehicle power and cooker/fridge/heater in motorhome?

The technical issue is that automotive tanks/valvegear provide a liquid takeoff. The domestic stuff needs a vapour takeoff.
It is possible to get tanks that will take dual valvegear but they are rare; I rather suspect that it is difficult/impossible to meet various national regulations with a dual approach.

Then there are legal issues ; fuel sold for automotive or domestic use attracts different duty rates. In the UK that means filling the 'cooking' tank could be done from cheap boatyard pumps legally, but a combined tank could only be filled from 'autogas' pumps by law.

The usual approach is seperate tankage, and refillable bottles is the simplest DIY approach, although fixed tankage could be fitted underneath at a cost if you want the bottle locker for something else.

'Autogas' is propane, so all this assumes the domestic gas is arranged for propane too, not butane.

[junkcatcher]

Tinley sell combined liquid & vapour outlet tanks ---

http://www.tinleytech.co.uk/acatalog/Ca ... ories.html


One thing to be very aware of when filling lpg tanks or cylinders in motorhomes, caravans and boats is the danger of ignition from pilot lights.

[swifty999]

Bit confused about the refillable bottles such as Gaslow, I have read that loose bottles cannot be filled, some means is required to have a fixed fill point presumably on the van which is connected to the bottle/s, beggining to sound expensive?

[rossko]

The fixed fill point can be on a bracket inside the bottle locker, simple enough.

[Active_Lad]

Of just next to the "normal" LPG filler. Saw a guy the other week filling both "propulsion" and "heating" tanks with fillers next to each other on his yank house on wheels. Conveniently on the side away from the cashier...

[SimonHobson]

The dual outlet tanks seem a bit steep - but then it's a low volume market. One or two of the refillable cylinders might be a better bet - and would allow you to use a standard cylinder if you weren't able to refill for some reason.

If you don't mind paying the tax, then there's no real reason not to tee the fill line so it fills all the tanks/cylinders at the same time - and there's less evidence for 'misinformed' cashiers to moan about. I suspect the saving over bottled gas will offset the extra tax.

Standard cylinders should NOT be refilled. They have no fill check valve and so will happily keep filling until 100% full - any slight temperature rise will cause huge pressure increases followed by venting through the relief valve. Also, there is a risk of liquid carry-over that gets through the regulator - this will cause serious over-pressure to the low pressure pipework in the installation with fairly obvious consequences
Another minor detail is that the cylinders normally belong to the gas supplier and keeping them to refill would technically be theft.

The refillable cylinders are specifically designed to be safe to refill - they have the same sort of fill shutoff valve as we have in the autogas tanks. However, I've read several accounts of cashiers sticking to the simplistic rule they've been told that "no cylinder is refillable" and showing them the "refillable" markings on the side will not dissuade them of their "facts". Don't forget that being a forecourt cashier is not normally a "high pay, high status" job requiring superior intellect - you are likely to meet cashiers of all intellectual levels and ability (or otherwise) to understand simple concepts like "refillable cylinder"

In a previous thread, someone pointed out that some of this may well be covered by the sites petroleum licence - and if that says "no refilling of cylinders" then that's what they'd have to be abiding by.

[lebesset]

swifty probably means you have a swift motorhome ; presuming you can get in a sensible sized bottle , don't bother !
in france you can get most bottles free , just pay for the gas , so leave the uk with just one bottle and space for another when you get there

just make sure to have equipment [ a regulator or high pressure tail ], that fits a calor 4.5 Kg butane dumpy , it is more or less a european standard thread, and both butane and propane work happily on 28/30/37Mb regulators ...all new vehicles now have 30Mb for both gasses
in france intermarche is a good place to start , they will sell you their own brand gas in a 10Kgbutane/9Kg propane bottle for €16.50 at the moment , have which you want ; if you are going into iberia you can get a free repsol 12.5Kg/11Kg bottle from them in southern france, with free adaptor to the same thread ; this can then be swopped in spain and portugal ...the spanish bottle has a different handle to the french /portuguese one , but I have alsways got them swopped ...they all go back to the same factories in spain to get filled anyway !