Guest 1footinthegrave Posted July 14, 2013 Share Posted July 14, 2013 Well I've finally had it with lugging and paying high prices for gas bottle exchanges, plus the need to spend more time away from the UK dictates a change to a refillable bottle. Here's the problem though, my gas locker will only accommodate one 11Kg bottle, most have guages, but how accurate are they, and does anyone envisage a problem just using one bottle only, all advice welcomed as to brand supplier, or any other info that could be useful to both myself or others, thanks, Mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest JudgeMental Posted July 14, 2013 Share Posted July 14, 2013 Gas-It Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Newell Posted July 14, 2013 Share Posted July 14, 2013 I have a single 11KG Stako cylinder and its not been a problem, the gauge reads the full contents and seemsto be pretty accurate although if we're going away and I check the contents and there's less than half a cylinder full I just call at my local bulk gas supplier and fill it up. Nowadays I'd recomend the Alugas cylinders as they're lighter and have the full contents gauge just like my Stako cylinder. Unless you use a lot of gas one cylinder should suffice. D. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Newell Posted July 14, 2013 Share Posted July 14, 2013 I have a single 11KG Stako cylinder and its not been a problem, the gauge reads the full contents and seemsto be pretty accurate although if we're going away and I check the contents and there's less than half a cylinder full I just call at my local bulk gas supplier and fill it up. Nowadays I'd recomend the Alugas cylinders as they're lighter and have the full contents gauge just like my Stako cylinder. Unless you use a lot of gas one cylinder should suffice. D. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lazarus Posted July 14, 2013 Share Posted July 14, 2013 hi i have a 13kg calor bottle and bought a connector off the internet for £30 which was actually two one for uk and one for europe just lift the bottle now and then when its feels light fill up simples Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rupert123 Posted July 14, 2013 Share Posted July 14, 2013 1footinthegrave - 2013-07-14 6:46 PM Well I've finally had it with lugging and paying high prices for gas bottle exchanges, plus the need to spend more time away from the UK dictates a change to a refillable bottle. Here's the problem though, my gas locker will only accommodate one 11Kg bottle, most have guages, but how accurate are they, and does anyone envisage a problem just using one bottle only, all advice welcomed as to brand supplier, or any other info that could be useful to both myself or others, thanks, Mike I have had Gaslow but in my current van I have fitted a single 11kg bottle by Gasit. Their place is just up the road from me and not to far away from you Mike so was able to collect bottle and bits direct from them. They were very helpful with advice and although I have no experience or knowledge about gas fitting did the job myself in about an hour. The bottle has a gauge which seems ok but I have a rough idea anyway how long it will last so just fill when I guess it is about half empty, no problem. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vindiboy Posted July 14, 2013 Share Posted July 14, 2013 Gasit are a great company to buy from, the good thing about refillables is that you don't have to wait till your bottles are empty before you refill, you could refill daily if you wanted too, so a gauge is not such a big deal, just top up your bottles as often as you like, my Gasit bottles came with gauges but I don't trust them 100% you will son get to know your useage and top up accordingly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Uzzell Posted July 15, 2013 Share Posted July 15, 2013 lazarus - 2013-07-14 9:42 PM hi i have a 13kg calor bottle and bought a connector off the internet for £30 which was actually two one for uk and one for europe just lift the bottle now and then when its feels light fill up simples Hardly "simples"... 1. Calor specifically forbids user-refilling of their exchange-only gas bottles. These canisters are hired from Calor and never become the property of the user. 2. LPG supplying outlets (in this country and outside the UK) commonly forbid refilling of 'removable' gas-bottles. Supplying outlets may be uncomfortable allowing 'removable' bottles that are sold for refilling and have safety features (eg. the "Safefill" container), but they really won't like refilling of canisters with no safety features at all. 3. Unless you've got some means of identifying accurately how much LPG remains in the bottle, refilling becomes a lottery with the ever-present risk of over-filling. The options are either to weigh the bottle before refilling it or use a device (eg Truma's "LevelCheck") to detect the LPG level. When you say "...when its feels light fill up", do you actually mean fill up until the LPG pump cuts off - when the bottle will be 100% full - or what? Filling a bottle much over 80% of its ultimate capacity is very inadvisable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pepe63xnotuse Posted July 15, 2013 Share Posted July 15, 2013 lazarus - 2013-07-14 9:42 PM hi i have a 13kg calor bottle and bought a connector off the internet for £30 which was actually two one for uk and one for europe just lift the bottle now and then when its feels light fill up simples Laz' I hope you don't just "fill it up" !? 8-) ..as being a Calor cylinder, it won't have the 80% overfill shut off that the refillables have... :-S And if someone does insist on filling their "exchange" bottles(which they shouldn't), then at the very least they should be carefully weighting them in order to calculate how many litres of gas it will take to get it to it's 80% full point.... ...and not just giving it a bit of a splosh about, before stuffing in as much gas as it'll take.... 8-) Oops! sorry Derek..I jumped in and posted before I got as far down as your post... :$ ;-) ) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crinklystarfish Posted July 15, 2013 Share Posted July 15, 2013 Can't tell you how chuffed I am that someone asked about a 'refillable' instead of a 'g**low'. I personally use Stako bottles too but got mine from Autogas 2000 http://www.autogas.co.uk/ who are, like GAS IT, super helpful and knowledgeable. 1 x 11Kg in summer should last for weeks but one of the major advantages, of course, is that in most euro countries (certainly France) lpg is readily available on forecourts. An underslung tank would liberate a great deal of space in your locker and 'boot' if you prefer. Whichever way you go, if you want to have an idea of contents look for FLOAT gauges rather than PRESSURE gauges - the latter are pants when it comes to quantifying reserves. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest 1footinthegrave Posted July 15, 2013 Share Posted July 15, 2013 Thanks for all the replies so far, I'm tempted to go with the "adapter" off Ebay, but don't fancy finding myself in a major burns unit, plus my back is too knackered to swish it about. Or I could take up bungee jumping with underpants elastics tied together, makes about as much sense. :-S Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lennyhb Posted July 15, 2013 Share Posted July 15, 2013 lazarus - 2013-07-14 9:42 PM hi i have a 13kg calor bottle and bought a connector off the internet for £30 which was actually two one for uk and one for europe just lift the bottle now and then when its feels light fill up simples Bl**dy dangerous, especially if you overfill in cool conditions then then the weather gets hot not only is there the danger of an over pressurised cylinder, also if a cylinder is completely full and the temperature increases it can force liquid gas through the regulator and when you light a burner you get a nice 3 foot high fireball, yes it can happen I have seen it. Please do not fill up or camp anywhere near me or any other person. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lennyhb Posted July 15, 2013 Share Posted July 15, 2013 Mike we have 2 x 11kg Stako's and agree with others the gauges appear to be accurate. Like you we camp a lot of grid so our gas usage tends to be high we do like our hot showers in the morning and if it's a bit chilly don't think twice about putting the heating on. An 11kg bottle normally lasts us 3 weeks in Summer, worst we have had was 2 weeks (had a chilly 3 weeks in France didn't get above 25 deg). So providing you remember to check the gauge a single 11kg should be OK, Gaslow gauges don't start to work until the cylinder is ½ empty not much help it you want to make sure you have a full cylinder before a trip, where as Stako's work over the full range of the cylinder. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bulletguy Posted July 15, 2013 Share Posted July 15, 2013 1footinthegrave - 2013-07-14 6:46 PM Well I've finally had it with lugging and paying high prices for gas bottle exchanges, plus the need to spend more time away from the UK dictates a change to a refillable bottle. Mike Depending on where you are "spending more time away from UK...", I visit Poland almost every year and last year made a wise choice in purchasing three of their bottles which fit perfectly in the Duetto locker. Refills work out at just five quid, which makes the price of Camping Gaz or even Calor a total rip off. The regulator is different and a new one cost me £8. Bottles can be purchased at most Petrol Stations. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest pelmetman Posted July 15, 2013 Share Posted July 15, 2013 1footinthegrave - 2013-07-14 6:46 PM Well I've finally had it with lugging and paying high prices for gas bottle exchanges, plus the need to spend more time away from the UK dictates a change to a refillable bottle. Here's the problem though, my gas locker will only accommodate one 11Kg bottle, most have guages, but how accurate are they, and does anyone envisage a problem just using one bottle only, all advice welcomed as to brand supplier, or any other info that could be useful to both myself or others, thanks, Mike Accuracy is probably not the best word for the gauges, maybe guide is better ;-)................We find the gauge doesn't move for ages..............then all of a sudden your halfway in the red.................but even when fully in the red I've never managed to put much more than 15 litres back in at refill, which suggests I still had another 6+ litres in the bottle ;-) .................overall a much better system than the 2 Calor we had before, and we've doubled our capacity B-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest 1footinthegrave Posted July 15, 2013 Share Posted July 15, 2013 Another question folks, has anyone had any issues from refilling from an internal filling point, or do I have to have another hole in the van ? and I'm not too good with a hole saw and metal, and it looks as though a mighty big hole has to be cut for an external filler point. :-S Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest pelmetman Posted July 15, 2013 Share Posted July 15, 2013 1footinthegrave - 2013-07-15 1:21 PM Another question folks, has anyone had any issues from refilling from an internal filling point, or do I have to have another hole in the van ? and I'm not too good with a hole saw and metal, and it looks as though a mighty big hole has to be cut for an external filler point. :-S Don't be such a tightwad :D.................get a man who can in ;-).......... But I have read that some garages abroad don't like people filling up with gas for habitation *-)...........so I have an external point in the hope that they think my diesel runs on lpg >:-)..........not had a problem myself.......yet :-S Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lennyhb Posted July 15, 2013 Share Posted July 15, 2013 pelmetman - 2013-07-15 1:02 PM Accuracy is probably not the best word for the gauges, maybe guide is better ;-)................We find the gauge doesn't move for ages..............then all of a sudden your halfway in the red.................but even when fully in the red I've never managed to put much more than 15 litres back in at refill, which suggests I still had another 6+ litres in the bottle ;-) .................overall a much better system than the 2 Calor we had before, and we've doubled our capacity B-) Sounds like you have one of the gas pressure gauges rather than a float gauge which is mounted directly in the top of the bottle. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lennyhb Posted July 15, 2013 Share Posted July 15, 2013 1footinthegrave - 2013-07-15 1:21 PM Another question folks, has anyone had any issues from refilling from an internal filling point, or do I have to have another hole in the van ? and I'm not too good with a hole saw and metal, and it looks as though a mighty big hole has to be cut for an external filler point. :-S Depends on the external filling point, ours is only 50mm square and is fitted via a single 25mm dia hole. Available from Autogas2000, don't appear to be listed on Gas-it's site. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest pelmetman Posted July 15, 2013 Share Posted July 15, 2013 lennyhb - 2013-07-15 2:19 PM pelmetman - 2013-07-15 1:02 PM Accuracy is probably not the best word for the gauges, maybe guide is better ;-)................We find the gauge doesn't move for ages..............then all of a sudden your halfway in the red.................but even when fully in the red I've never managed to put much more than 15 litres back in at refill, which suggests I still had another 6+ litres in the bottle ;-) .................overall a much better system than the 2 Calor we had before, and we've doubled our capacity B-) Sounds like you have one of the gas pressure gauges rather than a float gauge which is mounted directly in the top of the bottle. Its one of these ;-).............perhaps I should of said halfway down the gauge...........rather than halfway in the red :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest 1footinthegrave Posted July 15, 2013 Share Posted July 15, 2013 Thanks guys, the gauge looks the same as on Calor Lites, which I understand is a float valve. And thanks for the heads up about the filler point Lennyhb Dave I see you also have what looks like a further pressure gauge like the gaslow one I have, I would like you make use of it as it serves a very useful purpose for leak detection, and would also allow me to continue to use an on bottle regulator rather than a bulkhead mounted one so many of which I've heard going belly up due to whatever, far easier to carry a spare on bottle one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rupert123 Posted July 15, 2013 Share Posted July 15, 2013 1footinthegrave - 2013-07-15 1:21 PM Another question folks, has anyone had any issues from refilling from an internal filling point, or do I have to have another hole in the van ? and I'm not too good with a hole saw and metal, and it looks as though a mighty big hole has to be cut for an external filler point. :-S I have had both, put the current one inside the locker because I could not be bothered to cut a hole. It would seem to not matter much, I have never been questioned about either. In France and Germany I have never yet come across a gas filling pump that is within sight of the office anyway, so how would they know? I keep my adaptors in the gas locker anyway so always have to open it. I still use my bulkhead mounted regulator and the Gasit bottle comes with a gauge fitted, it does start to indicate straight away as you use the gas. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest 1footinthegrave Posted July 15, 2013 Share Posted July 15, 2013 rupert123 - 2013-07-15 3:46 PM 1footinthegrave - 2013-07-15 1:21 PM Another question folks, has anyone had any issues from refilling from an internal filling point, or do I have to have another hole in the van ? and I'm not too good with a hole saw and metal, and it looks as though a mighty big hole has to be cut for an external filler point. :-S I have had both, put the current one inside the locker because I could not be bothered to cut a hole. It would seem to not matter much, I have never been questioned about either. In France and Germany I have never yet come across a gas filling pump that is within sight of the office anyway, so how would they know? I keep my adaptors in the gas locker anyway so always have to open it. Good point, don't really fancy the hole bit at all to be honest, mmmmmmm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lennyhb Posted July 15, 2013 Share Posted July 15, 2013 I don't think you can get 30mb bottle top regulators in the UK they are no problem to get in Germany or Belgium. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest 1footinthegrave Posted July 15, 2013 Share Posted July 15, 2013 lennyhb - 2013-07-15 4:06 PM I don't think you can get 30mb bottle top regulators in the UK they are no problem to get in Germany or Belgium. Oh no, so much to learn, so little time.....so does that mean I cannot use a standard Pol connector 37mb propane regulator, and/ or retain my gaslow pressure gauge that I rely on to ensure I have no system leaks ??? all this pressure malarky is so confusing, and yet I've been doing this lark in excess of 40 years. :$ it used to be so simple a butane reg for one, or a propane one for the other...........help ;-) P.S anyone want to buy two empty and two full 6Kg Calor Lites. :D cheap Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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