removing front end solenoid

[James23]

Hi guys, I'm trying to remove the front end solenoid on my brc sequent multipoint lpg (was installed in 04/05) because i think it is caked in crud. I've done a bit of reading on here as to how to do it and i've read to remove the feed pipe from the valve... but when i do this gas comes out for ages and never seems to stop - how long should it take?

Thanks

[redzed]

You should only be losing the gas left in the pipe from your tank solenoid valve to the front end solenoid valve which should empty in seconds.

You need to check your tank solenoid valve to see if it's still energised, which it shouldn't be with the engine switched off and not running on gas. Hopefully you have got a tank solenoid valve.

[billynoband]

Have you changed the filter on the solenoid? Do you have reason to think the solenoid is seized?

[James23]

It seemed to be coming out for a while, i didnt undo it all the way but gas was coming out.
How do I check if it is still energised? Yes it does have a tank solenoid I've changed it before.

I haven't changed the filter yet, I have got one and was planning to do both at the same time - I thought i'd have to take the solenoid off to do it.
Yes the reason I think it is seized is because it will not switch over to gas - sometimes it tries but no fuel gets through and the revs just die - if i'm idling it will stall and if im driving along it'll just switch back to petrol.

[Gilbertd]

A few seconds can seem like an awfully long time when there is highly flammable gas squirting around the place. If you have a manual shut-off on the tank, close that off too.

[James23]

That is exactly my point - it was making me nervous lol. How much gas should come out then? much more than the release at the petrol station? vapour was coming out and it was dripping too - it was going all over pipes and cables and stuff and I was unsure if it was going to cause any damage to any of them?
Not sure if there is a manual shut off on the tank - I take it these are like a twisty knob or similar? I dont remeber seeing one when I replaced the rear solenoid - where abouts is it likely to be?

Thanks

[Speedy999]

So you've replaced the rear solenoid already ? So how did you do that without first using the manual shut off on the tank ?

[James23]

The rear solenoid was like a cube thing with a hole in it that just slid off? didn't need to shut any gas off.

[Gilbertd]

Ah, so you replaced the coil not the solenoid valve itself. You will get far more escape than when you fill up. When you fill up all that escapes is the content of the filler nozzle. When you undo the pipe at the front you have the entire contents of the pipe from tank to front. Think about it, that's 3 meters or so of 6 or 8mm diameter pipe. Even at 6mm, a 3 meter length of pipe will hold just over a quarter of a litre of liquid gas. As it expands something like 250 times when it vaporises, you've got around 50 litres of gas vapour to drain off.

[James23]

Ah yes sorry my mistake!
Ok so basically I need to stop being a wimp about it then! I just didnt like that it was squirting all over pipes and cables etc and seemed to be going on for a while. Will give it another go tomorrow and report back. Thanks for your help

[James23]

Just had another go. I loosened it off further than I did yesterday and let the gas come out but after 10 mins it was still coming out with no sign of slowing down.

I had a look on the tank for a shut off and couldnt find one.

Does anyone know someone in Nottingham that could do it for me?

Thanks

[Gilbertd]

If you've got no manual shut off on the tank it sounds like the solenoid valve has stuck open. Then only thing you can do is run the car until the tank is empty and do it then. You could also sort out the non shutting off shut off too.

[rossko]

... it sounds like the solenoid valve has stuck open.

I would agree - and if James has some cause to think there's a solenoid not opening properly in order to go poking at these anyway, maybe it is stuck halfway.

[James23]

Unfortunately I cant run the car until the tank is empty because it wont switch over to gas, orange light stays on forever and on the rare occasion that it tries to go on gas no fuel gets delivered and it switches back to petrol.

Rossko yes that does sound feasible. Would chaning that require a new valve on the tank? As i think all the screws are rusty because the original installer didnt waxoyl anything up.

May have to bite the bullet and take it to my local lpg garage :/ I hate taking it there the guy knows he can charge what he wants lol!

[Gilbertd]

Any idea how much gas is in the tank? It may take a while and you may have to find an open space on a windy day, but that's about all you can do.

[mat_fenwick]

It IS possible to replace the solenoid whilst a stream of LPG is coming out (depending on access) but it is difficult and you need thick gloves to prevent frost burns (which makes it very fiddly). Not recommended and I wouldn't want to do it again, but I've had to do that when the electrical tank solenoid was stuck open, and there was no manual cut off. Tank was 10 miles short of full, and lost about half its contents during the process.

If you can get the thread to bite without cross threading, that's the difficult bit!

[James23]

it keeps fluctuating between 1 and 2 dots, so around 20l i guess.

[redzed]

Park up in the middle of a field and vent the tank.

[James23]

To follow up on this (cos i hate it when threads dont have a solution!):
The not changing over was caused by a faulty relay - replaced this and hey presto it was switching over nicely.
I then drove around and when lpg had ran out tried again to swap the filter in the front solenoid. This time no gas came out at all (not sure whether this was cos the relay was now working properly or cos the tank was empty - or both!) and replaced the filter - easy peasy. Wasn't even dirty and to my knowledge it had been fitted for at least 30k!

Thanks for your help guys