kevandali Posted August 11, 2014 Share Posted August 11, 2014 Hi everyone, thought I would try here before leaving Lake Annesey. I have 2 questions.1... We are heading North/ North East and have 5 days, just wondered if anyone knew of a nice place(s) to visit on the way back, prefer lakes, rivers and forest, not big towns.Second question...... We have run out of calor gas (red propane) can I get an adapter and buy some French gas or are we living on sandwiches, crisps, biscuits and anything else uncooked on the way back? Thanks in advance for any help, will check back here before we leave. Kevandali Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tracker Posted August 11, 2014 Share Posted August 11, 2014 Might be cheaper and/or easier to buy a small camping gas type single burner stove with a few spare cartridges, which will also come in handy next time you run out or the regulator blocks or you want to cook al fresco? Unless you have plenty of storage to keep a spare cylinder which you may or may not ever use again. Unless you need heating, hot water, showers and all those softy things that we just can't seem to live without these days!! I don't know because I've never needed to, but you might need to buy a suitable pigtail to connect a new bottle to your existing regulator? Safe travels. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StuartO Posted August 11, 2014 Share Posted August 11, 2014 I can't think of an economical way out of your problem of running out of calor gas unless you can find another Brit on a campsite who is also heading home with plenty of gas and so could swap a bottle with some left in it for one of your empty ones. To avoid suffering te problem again treat yourslef to one refillable gas bottle and a French filling adaptor, then you are bullet proof. You can now buy stand alone refillable bottles (eg from Gaslow) for about £150, then you use this as yur primary souirce, topping up as necessary (in UK or France etc) and only use your other bottle as a back up - or even leave it behind. By keeping an eye on your primary (refillable) bottle you really only need one; there are plenty of palces in France to top up anytime you need to. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robinhood Posted August 11, 2014 Share Posted August 11, 2014 if you have a bulkhead regulator (which I think you should have), you can buy a pigtail to fit it with a French cylinder connection at the other end. As the bulkhead system is now standard EU practice, just about any French Caravan or Motorhome dealer should be able to supply these. The pigtail ought to be in the region of €20, and you will need the appropriate sized spanner to remove the UK fitments and replace with the new ones. At the cylinder end, you will need a cylinder connection, and this is where it gets a bit messy, since the various suppliers and cylinders are not necessarily compatible. It would appear that the cheapest connectors are for either Butagaz "le cube" cylinders (6kg and very handleable), or Primagaz/Totalgaz/ Antargaz or Elf 6kg "clip on" bottles, and either of these should be in the region of €20. It looks like the connectors for 13kg bottles are rather more expensive. All of this from a quick web review, and a French dealer may be able to advise better. Then, of course, you'll have to purchase a bottle. The bigger 13kg bottles (with, it would seem, the more expensive connector) are cheapest to "rent" and refill, the smaller 6kg ones outlined above should cost between €40-50 to buy (full), and €20 to refill (and they're widely available at supermarkets, etc.. Of course, if you spend time in France in the future, this may be a good investment, since you will be able to store it at home, and fit it for future continental travels, giving an easily exchangeable gas source in France. On the off-chance you have a bottle regulator, it is somewhat more simple, simply buy the local bottle regulator and switch it onto the end of your gas feed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kevandali Posted August 12, 2014 Author Share Posted August 12, 2014 Cheers all, I only ran out of gas because our pitch wasn't far away from where the campsite stored all their bottles and we kept getting a small smell of gas now and again, my better half did say' "are you sure it isn't our van leaking, after you changed over the bottles?" Turns out there was a small leak where the pipe attached to the wall regulator............... It has been mentioned to me on a couple of occasions in a light hearted way. Words such as "ooh, how silly you were! " .... or very similar!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tracker Posted August 12, 2014 Share Posted August 12, 2014 I always carry a small plastic squeezy spray bottle with a mix of washing up liquid and water in it and the least suspicion of a gas aroma and I'm out spraying all the joints and hoses looking for a stream or a cluster of bubbles! The purists will say not to use wul as it contains salt and can corrode fittings, but if you are concerned by that you can either dry it off with a paper towel or use something salt free? If you don't have a spray bottle a cup and a small paint brush is just as effective, just not quite as convenient! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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