Gas-Lo System

[Guest pelmetman]

Dave Newell - 2012-12-06 9:14 PM

 

Mel, in the interests of safety and personal longevity pleasee remove that clutter from your gas locker. Gas lockers are for storing gas cylinders and SMALL associated equipment not rucksacks and general clutter that can and often do block the gas drop vents in the floor of said locker. I see sights like this all too often and even had a couple of vans in where the floor of the locker had been lined with rubber mat which completely blanked out the drop vents. If you get a leaky cylinder or union the gas needs an unrestricted escape route in the downwards direction, bags of stuff and levelling ramps etc all create restrictions to this escape route. I know you've had an unpleasant experience with gas in the past so I trust you will take my comment in the way it is intended and not just come back with " ah yes but what you can't see is.........................." as so many do. I really do have only your best interests at heart.

 

D.

 

You tell her Dave ;-)..................I'd never let my gas locker get like that :$

[Iain Strachan]

Chris, I didn't try to see if I can get 11kgs in and the 2x6 should be fitted by now. As I instructed my dealer, to do it, while the van is in getting the floor covering replaced under warranty. On the subject of BBQs we use disposables, so don't need a gas hook up for that.

Cheers

[Guest JudgeMental]

Iain Strachan - 2012-12-07 12:33 PM

 

Chris, I didn't try to see if I can get 11kgs in and the 2x6 should be fitted by now. As I instructed my dealer, to do it, while the van is in getting the floor covering replaced under warranty. On the subject of BBQs we use disposables, so don't need a gas hook up for that.

Cheers

 

easy job to T into gas line and fit a remote gas point for BBQ

[Mel B]

Dave Newell - 2012-12-06 9:14 PM

 

Mel, in the interests of safety and personal longevity pleasee remove that clutter from your gas locker. Gas lockers are for storing gas cylinders and SMALL associated equipment not rucksacks and general clutter that can and often do block the gas drop vents in the floor of said locker. I see sights like this all too often and even had a couple of vans in where the floor of the locker had been lined with rubber mat which completely blanked out the drop vents. If you get a leaky cylinder or union the gas needs an unrestricted escape route in the downwards direction, bags of stuff and levelling ramps etc all create restrictions to this escape route. I know you've had an unpleasant experience with gas in the past so I trust you will take my comment in the way it is intended and not just come back with " ah yes but what you can't see is.........................." as so many do. I really do have only your best interests at heart.

 

D.

 

Dave, thanks for your comments regarding safety which I appreciate and are a warning for everyone to check their gas locker for what you have indicated. I very much value your input on these matters as I'm sure others do.

 

However please allow me to explain the set-up I actually have in my gas locker and then give me your views once you have the full picture. :-)

 

What you can see are not rucksacks but are 2 small bags which hold our water hoses and another smaller cream one which you can see the top of in the background in which we keep our our gas connectors. The reason you can see so much of the bags is that I have fitted a mesh upside down basket at the base of that side of the locker below them to ensure that the gas drop out vent is kept totally clear from anything being able to drop over it, or move in transit and block it. At the rear of the cylinder and the bags there is 'gas' gap to allow any escaped gas from the pipes or bottle to be able to drop down and exit as it should. The white plastic bag in the front next to the cylinder had some bolts in as I'd used some when fitting the additional securing strap at the top just below the upper door hinge (which makes it more secure than you would find in a normal gas locker as they often only have one strap), I just hadn't removed it before taking the photo.

 

I do take gas safety very seriously as you know.:-S

[bolero boy]

Iain Strachan - 2012-12-07 12:33 PM

 

Chris, I didn't try to see if I can get 11kgs in and the 2x6 should be fitted by now. As I instructed my dealer, to do it, while the van is in getting the floor covering replaced under warranty. On the subject of BBQs we use disposables, so don't need a gas hook up for that.

Cheers

Iain, the alternate hose and fitting was not for a BBQ but for connection to a Spanish repsol or cepsa gas bottle. This might be required as LPG is not yet widely available in Spain.

Our 11kg was topped up as we left France and have been here in Spain for 6 weeks and still have plenty of gas. However, long termers might fnd themselves running low with the nearest LPG station many miles away. If required we could have used a local bottle (or two) and saved our gaslow for the return trip.

If touring, you can easily ensure you pass through gpl listed places for a top up.

Just trying to ensure we have contingency - the nights are getting quite cold here at the mo tho not as cold as the place we are heading for on Sunday : Home!!!

[Dave Newell]

Ruck sacks, plastic bags or shopping bags, it doesn't really matter what they are but they do cause a hinderance to easy gas escape and should not therefore be in the gas locker at all. There may well be an upside down wire basket beneath them to keep the floor vents clear but any gas that leaks will come from the upper parts of the locker, i.e. top of cyliner, gas reg and associated pipework etc. During travel all that clutter in the locker settles and it can very easily block the free flow of gas downwards so it simply shouldn't be there.

 

As an aside I've seen several Gaslow cylinders leak from the filling point or the take off valve where they screw into the cylinder so I recomend anyone who has a Gaslow cylinder to check it periodically with leak detector liquid, its not expensive. Don't use washing up liquid solution as most washing up liquids contain salt which can corrode the brasss fittings.

 

D.

[Derek Uzzell]

JudgeMental - 2012-12-07 7:01 PM

 

Iain Strachan - 2012-12-07 12:33 PM

 

Chris, I didn't try to see if I can get 11kgs in and the 2x6 should be fitted by now. As I instructed my dealer, to do it, while the van is in getting the floor covering replaced under warranty. On the subject of BBQs we use disposables, so don't need a gas hook up for that.

Cheers

 

easy job to T into gas line and fit a remote gas point for BBQ

 

I'm not sure about "easy" being an appropriate word for installing a BBQ-point on a motorhome. It should be straightforward enough, but includes plenty of potential for catastrophe if it's done incompetently. It would be wise for anyone who chooses not to DIY their own refillable-bottle system to steer well clear of attempting to DIY a BBQ-point.

 

However, one thing that (I think) has not been mentioned is that, if a motorhome has an external BBQ-point, rather than run a BBQ from that outlet it should be possible to connect a gas-bottle (with an on-bottle regulator) to the BBQ-point and thus feed gas to the motorhome's internal gas appliances. My understanding is that this has been a common ploy for long-stay motorhomers in Spain who wish to use Spanish gas cylinders, though the practice is frowned upon by UK caravan clubs.

 

[Iain Strachan]

Chris, safe journey back home, it was only, -4C last night, so maybe be better staying if you can! Advice on LPG noted and we will make sure were topped up when we leave France.

Cheers

[bolero boy]

Iain Strachan - 2012-12-08 5:00 PM

 

Chris, safe journey back home, it was only, -4C last night, so maybe be better staying if you can! Advice on LPG noted and we will make sure were topped up when we leave France.

Cheers

Iain, would love to stay but committed to Xmas with elderly parents.......will be fully overwintering soon tho.

This was a recce trip and we have learnt a lot.

Safe,trip to you and the pussy cat!

[BGD]

Derek Uzzell - 2012-12-08 11:03 AM

 

JudgeMental - 2012-12-07 7:01 PM

 

Iain Strachan - 2012-12-07 12:33 PM

 

Chris, I didn't try to see if I can get 11kgs in and the 2x6 should be fitted by now. As I instructed my dealer, to do it, while the van is in getting the floor covering replaced under warranty. On the subject of BBQs we use disposables, so don't need a gas hook up for that.

Cheers

 

easy job to T into gas line and fit a remote gas point for BBQ

 

I'm not sure about "easy" being an appropriate word for installing a BBQ-point on a motorhome. It should be straightforward enough, but includes plenty of potential for catastrophe if it's done incompetently. It would be wise for anyone who chooses not to DIY their own refillable-bottle system to steer well clear of attempting to DIY a BBQ-point.

 

However, one thing that (I think) has not been mentioned is that, if a motorhome has an external BBQ-point, rather than run a BBQ from that outlet it should be possible to connect a gas-bottle (with an on-bottle regulator) to the BBQ-point and thus feed gas to the motorhome's internal gas appliances. My understanding is that this has been a common ploy for long-stay motorhomers in Spain who wish to use Spanish gas cylinders, though the practice is frowned upon by UK caravan clubs.

 

 

 

Agreed - as I understand it, a lot of UK people "feed" their MH gas system this way from a loaclly sourced gas bottle when in Spain/Portugal.

 

But there's an awful lot of voodoo-speak about gas fittings.

Frankly I see no realistic possibility of "catastrophe" - if you really cannot fit a Spanish bottle-top regulator and push-on rubber flexi hose with a jubilee clip to your external BBQ gas point, then really you shouldn't be out without your carer.

[derek pringle]

Mel B - 2012-12-06 7:58 PM

 

derek pringle - 2012-12-06 10:11 AM

 

Hi Iain,

You must remember that you can only fill Gaslow cylinders up to the 80% rule. therefore you can never get

the full quantity that may be theoretically possible in the cylinder.

cheers

derek

Yes, but you are not paying for any gas that you don't use, only what you do.

 

edit,

this year we had 2 hols abroad, one through to Italy and the other staying solely in France lasting about 12 weeks total, plus a couple of breaks in this country. We have a 2 cyl. 11kg set up with auto changeover valve. I make sur the cyls are topped up at the start of each year. This year when we filled up on our return home the cost was approx. £4.50.

As for the initial expense, this is one of those things but at least with gaslow you can refit it to your next van should you change.

d.

I've kept records of how many litres we've put into our Gaslow 11kg bottle since we bought it in July 2009. Taking out of the equation the odd small top up, we usually get in around 15 litres as we tend to run it down lowish before filling it up. So far we have put in 118.64 litres at a cost of £83.76, an average cost of per litre of 70p.

 

As for payback, as our last motorhome had diesel heating we didn't use as much gas as we would have had it had gas heating however our new one has gas heating so I expect the gas usage to increase and therefore our 'payback' period to reduce. Regardless though of the payback period, we certainly would not go back to an exchange cylinder system. :D

 

couldnt agree with you more Mel,as far as I am concerned it is just part of the price of owning a motorhome like lots of the other extras a lot of us get, as I say when you mention motorhome parts or extras the suppliers seem to just hike the price but I would not change.

cheers

derek

[Derek Uzzell]

BGD - 2012-12-08 9:53 PM

 

Derek Uzzell - 2012-12-08 11:03 AM

 

JudgeMental - 2012-12-07 7:01 PM

 

Iain Strachan - 2012-12-07 12:33 PM

 

Chris, I didn't try to see if I can get 11kgs in and the 2x6 should be fitted by now. As I instructed my dealer, to do it, while the van is in getting the floor covering replaced under warranty. On the subject of BBQs we use disposables, so don't need a gas hook up for that.

Cheers

 

easy job to T into gas line and fit a remote gas point for BBQ

 

I'm not sure about "easy" being an appropriate word for installing a BBQ-point on a motorhome. It should be straightforward enough, but includes plenty of potential for catastrophe if it's done incompetently. It would be wise for anyone who chooses not to DIY their own refillable-bottle system to steer well clear of attempting to DIY a BBQ-point.

 

However, one thing that (I think) has not been mentioned is that, if a motorhome has an external BBQ-point, rather than run a BBQ from that outlet it should be possible to connect a gas-bottle (with an on-bottle regulator) to the BBQ-point and thus feed gas to the motorhome's internal gas appliances. My understanding is that this has been a common ploy for long-stay motorhomers in Spain who wish to use Spanish gas cylinders, though the practice is frowned upon by UK caravan clubs.

 

 

 

Agreed - as I understand it, a lot of UK people "feed" their MH gas system this way from a loaclly sourced gas bottle when in Spain/Portugal.

 

But there's an awful lot of voodoo-speak about gas fittings.

Frankly I see no realistic possibility of "catastrophe" - if you really cannot fit a Spanish bottle-top regulator and push-on rubber flexi hose with a jubilee clip to your external BBQ gas point, then really you shouldn't be out without your carer.

 

Anyone who has trained adults will know that their ability to (as this forum's swearie-filter coyly puts it) "feck-up" even the simplest of tasks is unlimited.

 

I wasn't referring to connecting an external gas-bottle to an existing BBQ-point as having a catastrophe potential, but (as should have been evident from what I wrote) attempting to DIY-install the BBQ-point itself.

 

How to attach an external 'emergency' gas-bottle with an on-bottle regulator to a motorhome gas-system with a bulkhead-mounted 30mbar regulator has been discussed previously. There are ways to do it - some better/safer/tidier than others - but the T-piece ploy is certainly not "easy" to do. If you disagree with that assessment, perhaps you'd like to explain to bolero boy exactly (and I mean EXACTLY) how it should be carried out in his Swift Bolero.

[BGD]

Derek Uzzell - 2012-12-09 11:16 AM

 

BGD - 2012-12-08 9:53 PM

 

Derek Uzzell - 2012-12-08 11:03 AM

 

JudgeMental - 2012-12-07 7:01 PM

 

Iain Strachan - 2012-12-07 12:33 PM

 

Chris, I didn't try to see if I can get 11kgs in and the 2x6 should be fitted by now. As I instructed my dealer, to do it, while the van is in getting the floor covering replaced under warranty. On the subject of BBQs we use disposables, so don't need a gas hook up for that.

Cheers

 

easy job to T into gas line and fit a remote gas point for BBQ

 

I'm not sure about "easy" being an appropriate word for installing a BBQ-point on a motorhome. It should be straightforward enough, but includes plenty of potential for catastrophe if it's done incompetently. It would be wise for anyone who chooses not to DIY their own refillable-bottle system to steer well clear of attempting to DIY a BBQ-point.

 

However, one thing that (I think) has not been mentioned is that, if a motorhome has an external BBQ-point, rather than run a BBQ from that outlet it should be possible to connect a gas-bottle (with an on-bottle regulator) to the BBQ-point and thus feed gas to the motorhome's internal gas appliances. My understanding is that this has been a common ploy for long-stay motorhomers in Spain who wish to use Spanish gas cylinders, though the practice is frowned upon by UK caravan clubs.

 

 

 

Agreed - as I understand it, a lot of UK people "feed" their MH gas system this way from a loaclly sourced gas bottle when in Spain/Portugal.

 

But there's an awful lot of voodoo-speak about gas fittings.

Frankly I see no realistic possibility of "catastrophe" - if you really cannot fit a Spanish bottle-top regulator and push-on rubber flexi hose with a jubilee clip to your external BBQ gas point, then really you shouldn't be out without your carer.

 

Anyone who has trained adults will know that their ability to (as this forum's swearie-filter coyly puts it) "feck-up" even the simplest of tasks is unlimited.

 

I wasn't referring to connecting an external gas-bottle to an existing BBQ-point as having a catastrophe potential, but (as should have been evident from what I wrote) attempting to DIY-install the BBQ-point itself.

 

How to attach an external 'emergency' gas-bottle with an on-bottle regulator to a motorhome gas-system with a bulkhead-mounted 30mbar regulator has been discussed previously. There are ways to do it - some better/safer/tidier than others - but the T-piece ploy is certainly not "easy" to do. If you disagree with that assessment, perhaps you'd like to explain to bolero boy exactly (and I mean EXACTLY) how it should be carried out in his Swift Bolero.

 

 

Sorry Derek; I'm not trying to take the Micky here, but I really don't understand what is not easy.

 

It's simply about turning off existing gas bottles, then about adding a "T" into an existing copper pipe inboard of your existing regulator, and then an additional gas valve into that new "leg" using a little more copper pipe, then push-fitting and jubilee-clip clamping onto that additional isolating valve a length of rubber hose with an on-bottle regulator attached. Then secure the new pipe runs and valve to bulkhead, switch on gas again and test all joints with leak-test liquid.

 

It's the most basic type of "plumbing", using standard "micro-bore" copper pipe and compression fittings.

 

I totally accept that many people are not DIYers and thus cannot/will not attempt anything on their motorhome themselves, but on a scale of 0 to 100 in terms of "Fettling your Motorhome degrees of difficulty", doing such a simple, 10 minute job has really gotta be near the bottom of the scale for anyone who has ever done even basic compression-fit plumbing.

 

Others may of course have very different views, but I don't see that job, amongst all the other jobs that could be carried out to modify your MH, as not easy.

[Guest JudgeMental]

BGD - 2012-12-09 12:16 PM

 

Derek Uzzell - 2012-12-09 11:16 AM

 

BGD - 2012-12-08 9:53 PM

 

Derek Uzzell - 2012-12-08 11:03 AM

 

JudgeMental - 2012-12-07 7:01 PM

 

Iain Strachan - 2012-12-07 12:33 PM

 

Chris, I didn't try to see if I can get 11kgs in and the 2x6 should be fitted by now. As I instructed my dealer, to do it, while the van is in getting the floor covering replaced under warranty. On the subject of BBQs we use disposables, so don't need a gas hook up for that.

Cheers

 

easy job to T into gas line and fit a remote gas point for BBQ

 

I'm not sure about "easy" being an appropriate word for installing a BBQ-point on a motorhome. It should be straightforward enough, but includes plenty of potential for catastrophe if it's done incompetently. It would be wise for anyone who chooses not to DIY their own refillable-bottle system to steer well clear of attempting to DIY a BBQ-point.

 

However, one thing that (I think) has not been mentioned is that, if a motorhome has an external BBQ-point, rather than run a BBQ from that outlet it should be possible to connect a gas-bottle (with an on-bottle regulator) to the BBQ-point and thus feed gas to the motorhome's internal gas appliances. My understanding is that this has been a common ploy for long-stay motorhomers in Spain who wish to use Spanish gas cylinders, though the practice is frowned upon by UK caravan clubs.

 

 

 

Agreed - as I understand it, a lot of UK people "feed" their MH gas system this way from a loaclly sourced gas bottle when in Spain/Portugal.

 

But there's an awful lot of voodoo-speak about gas fittings.

Frankly I see no realistic possibility of "catastrophe" - if you really cannot fit a Spanish bottle-top regulator and push-on rubber flexi hose with a jubilee clip to your external BBQ gas point, then really you shouldn't be out without your carer.

 

Anyone who has trained adults will know that their ability to (as this forum's swearie-filter coyly puts it) "feck-up" even the simplest of tasks is unlimited.

 

I wasn't referring to connecting an external gas-bottle to an existing BBQ-point as having a catastrophe potential, but (as should have been evident from what I wrote) attempting to DIY-install the BBQ-point itself.

 

How to attach an external 'emergency' gas-bottle with an on-bottle regulator to a motorhome gas-system with a bulkhead-mounted 30mbar regulator has been discussed previously. There are ways to do it - some better/safer/tidier than others - but the T-piece ploy is certainly not "easy" to do. If you disagree with that assessment, perhaps you'd like to explain to bolero boy exactly (and I mean EXACTLY) how it should be carried out in his Swift Bolero.

 

 

Sorry Derek; I'm not trying to take the Micky here, but I really don't understand what is not easy.

 

It's simply about turning off existing gas bottles, then about adding a "T" into an existing copper pipe inboard of your existing regulator, and then an additional gas valve into that new "leg" using a little more copper pipe, then push-fitting and jubilee-clip clamping onto that additional isolating valve a length of rubber hose with an on-bottle regulator attached. Then secure the new pipe runs and valve to bulkhead, switch on gas again and test all joints with leak-test liquid.

 

It's the most basic type of "plumbing", using standard "micro-bore" copper pipe and compression fittings.

 

I totally accept that many people are not DIYers and thus cannot/will not attempt anything on their motorhome themselves, but on a scale of 0 to 100 in terms of "Fettling your Motorhome degrees of difficulty", doing such a simple, 10 minute job has really gotta be near the bottom of the scale for anyone who has ever done even basic compression-fit plumbing.

 

Others may of course have very different views, but I don't see that job, amongst all the other jobs that could be carried out to modify your MH, as not easy.

 

Agreed. All you need is a pipe cutter, basic tools and a test spray.....IF not competent really best left to a competent person. its not so much the task but access that can become the problem as you age *-)

 

wach a video on you tube first.....monkey see monkey do! :-D

[pepe63xnotuse]

I fitted one of these,fixed to the roof of the gas locker and just "Teed"("T"d? :-S ) into the pipework,just inboard of the bulkheard reg' ...

 

http://www.gasit.co.uk/index.php?act=viewProd&productId=126

 

Although as I don't envisage needing to fill through it(via an freestanding bottle & reg'),I didn't fit a valve to isolated the existing reg'....

[Noodles]

I don't know if anyone has asked this question but is it worth having a Gas-Lo System fitted. We were told it would cost £500. My brother reckons it s not worth it cos you can buy a lot of refills for £500, although he's taking his MH to the Alpens end of December. Wonder if he'll run out of gas and then wished he'd had the system fitted :D

 

 

[pepe63xnotuse]

What's with all this,"on topic" malarky?.... 8-)

 

(lol)

[lennyhb]

Noodles - 2012-12-09 6:05 PM

 

I don't know if anyone has asked this question but is it worth having a Gas-Lo System fitted. We were told it would cost £500. My brother reckons it s not worth it cos you can buy a lot of refills for £500, although he's taking his MH to the Alpens end of December. Wonder if he'll run out of gas and then wished he'd had the system fitted :D

 

 

It's not about cost more about convenience, being able to get gas easily in any country & not having to do your back in wrestling with heavy cylinders .

Ours has paid for it's self as we are heavy gas users & when we first had refillable cylinders it was only around 40p/lt. We usually fill up 3 - 4 times a year a 11kg/20Lt bottle lasts us 2 -3 weeks in summer, use more than twice that in winter.

[bolero boy]

Noodles - 2012-12-09 6:05 PM

 

.........although he's taking his MH to the Alpens end of December...............

 

Is this a long running Swiss 'serial'?................ouch, sorry...........

[Noodles]

bolero boy - 2012-12-09 6:51 PM

 

Noodles - 2012-12-09 6:05 PM

 

.........although he's taking his MH to the Alpens end of December...............

 

Is this a long running Swiss 'serial'?................ouch, sorry...........

 

DOH !! *-) ?.....no probs?....Frosties, best bet especially if he runs out of gas ;-)

[Mel B]

Noodles - 2012-12-09 6:05 PM

 

I don't know if anyone has asked this question but is it worth having a Gas-Lo System fitted. We were told it would cost £500. My brother reckons it s not worth it cos you can buy a lot of refills for £500, although he's taking his MH to the Alpens end of December. Wonder if he'll run out of gas and then wished he'd had the system fitted :D

 

 

The cost depends on what you actually want:

 

1. A single refillable bottle system.

2. A twin refillable bottle system (2 of same size, or one large and one small).

3. A single bottle and a non-refillable back-up bottle system (2 of same size, or one large and one small).

4. If you go for 2 bottles as in 2. or 3. above, you then need to decide if you want a manual or an automatic changeover system.

5. What length of fill hose you need (although I don't think there's a massive amount of difference between them cost wise).

6. Whether you want the filler fitting inside the gas locker, or fitting externally (ie though the skirt/bumper/wall).

7. Then there are the filler adaptors for different countries.

8. Whether you are competent (confident?) enough to fit it yourself - it's not difficult ... honest!

 

The cheapest system to buy at the moment appears to be by Gas-it which is very similar to the Gaslow one.

 

Not sure what your £500 figure includes but you can certainly do it for a lot less than that if you DIY it.

[Noodles]

Hi Mel,

 

Thank you many factors to be considered. Will see what hubby thinks when we're perhaps ready to take the plunge and will pass your considerations on to my brother.

 

Hope you're keeping well

:-D

[cerro]

Hope this might help some one fitting it them selfs, I fitted one No 1 bottle on my IH van as I already had a full red calor bottle on board so I have the best of both systems and the No1 bottle was in case I replaced the calor bottle later with a No2 bottle. I decided to fit the fitting kit inside the rear locker when members told me there was no problem filling up abroad. very simple to fit it, I bought all my gear from Hamiltons in Bangor Irland and it was deliverd two days later with all instructions.

6kg Cylinder £88.00

Filler kit with 600m hose £54.00

French adapter £12.7

Propane to Gaslow adapter £4.50

Blanking cap £3.10

L bracket £15.28

All plus Vat Delivery was free, The blanking cap is probably not nessesary but I fitted one just to be safe its where the hose fits to connect to the No 2 bottle at a future date I have just been to a garage (15 miles) and filled up the bottle arrived home and checked all the pipes with soapy water then switched on and works fine I used plummers tape on all threads Hope this is usefull to anyone thinking of DIY. For any IH owners the garage nozzle wont fit in the locker to fill up but if you turn the fitting kit 90 degrees clock wise you can then get the nozzle in side ways to fill up with no problems.