No LPG from Morrisons

[StuartO]

Let's not forget that Calor do not allow MHs to refuel at their autogas pumps, citing safety concerns but in reality probably for purely commercial reasons - their main business is the supply of filled-by-them rental bottles so they don't want refillable bottles to flourish.  Their no-MHs policy at autogas pumps is based on a false and exaggerated interpretation of industry guidelines, not on any legal reason to refuse MHs; it's an excuse rather than a valid safety reason.

 

And Calor may well be the suppliers of the propane pumped at places like Morrisons forecourts, so it will be in their interests to discourage allowing MHs to refuel with LPG there too.  Perhaps they are trying to influence retailers behind the scenes.

 

747 has a point about there being risk in making a fuss with firms like Morrisons, lest  it spreads the bad habit of turning MHs away.  Morrisons only have autogas pumps at a few of their forecourts anyway.

 

But I suspect that this habit, of banning LPG refueling on petrol forecourts will spread anyway, in this increasing safety conscious world for public companies.  And concerted campaigning effort by motorhomers, if that were practicable, to name and shame the practice of banning MHs could give a better result.  For example it would only take a small number of MHs to clog up a Morrisons (or BP or Shell) forecourt and cause a conspicuous problem.  Three or four MHs arrive together to put the plan into effect: one MH parks up to fill with LPG and others park (one in each row) at diesel pumps and refuse to refill until the LPG refill is allowed.  Doing this sort of thing would soon attract attention (and perhaps even broadcast media coverage) and therefore cause enough commercial loss to the forecourt operator to revaluate the true safety issue rather than ban MHs as the easy way out.

 

But can motorhomers, a bunch of individualists if ever there was one, hunt as a pack to achieve this sort of effect?

 

[Derek Uzzell]

I’m amused to see this ‘Morrisons ban’ issue continuing to roll on.

 

The ban was a reaction to a motorhome LPG-system refilling accident in 2014, mentioned in this 2016 forum thread

 

http://forums.outandaboutlive.co.uk/forums/Motorhomes/Motorhome-Matters/Filling-L-P-G-at-Morrisons/41481/31/

 

and I’ve attached a photo showing the gas installation involved.

 

As far as I’m concerned Morrisons are fully entitled to ban motorcaravanners from refilling their motorhomes’ LPG systems if they so choose. That the ‘ban’ seems to be haphazard and not necessarily logical is academic - Morrisons is a private company and there’s nothing preventing them from treating motorhomes differently from other vehicles.

 

I’m perfectly happy for forum members to argue with Morrisons about their policy and, if they so wish, try to change it by obstructing Morrisons’s forecourts, but as there are (apparently) few Morrisons outlets with LPG pumps, the whole issue seems pretty trivial to me.

 

Surely, if a motorcaravanner has a user-refillable LPG system, it can’t be that difficult to get it refilled in the UK without trekking to Morrisons. This link

 

http://www.gaslowdirect.com/Where-to-Fill

 

provides information on where Gaslow Direct Fill bottles can be refilled. These are canisters that are intended to be refilled by taking them to the LPG pump not leaving them installed in a vehicle. So if you have a user-refillable bottle in a gas-locker (or have a fixed LPG tank) any of the filling stations on the link should be prepared to allow you to fill it.

[StuartO]

Looking at the coverage using the link Derek has provided, I note there is nowhere at all in the triangle drawn between Oxford, Leicester and Cambridge, which is quite a big hole and there are many other fairly big holes around the Country, so I don't think motorhomers are well served with LPG sources where they know they will be able to fill up.

 

And a lot of these places which will allow you to refill Gaslow Direct bottles are only open during daytime working hours and not at all at weekends, so motorhomers have to plan ahead and probably make quite a diversion to be able to use them.

 

While I don't object to forecourt operators refusing to serve particular groups of customers for genuine safety reasons, eg filling illegal containers with petrol or LPG, I do not accept that they can ban groups of people for spurious safety reasons (like Calor are now doing) or because they have not provided their staff with relevant safety training, which they jolly well ought to be providing.

 

The couple who experienced the gas escape which Derek reminds us of in his post seemed to me to have a cowboy installation of some sort and they clearly should have been refused service but if a motorhomer has a properly installed refillable bottle installation service should not be refused.  Service station staff at forecourts where autogas is sold should be trained to spot dodgy installations - in cars as well as motorhomes.

 

[keninpalamos]

shortcircuit - 2017-06-26 4:06 PM

 

Filled up at a local Morisons last week with absolutely no problems. Created most consternation as I had to drive out of station and back in to fill up with diesel. Fortunately OH was at pay desk and explained

I'd press the "like" button but I don't think we have one. :-) In what town, location ?

[keninpalamos]

pepe63 - 2017-07-04 8:35 AM

 

...and of cause, policies such as this will have no way been influenced by those ham fisted., fumble-thumbed cheapskate MHers & caravanners who, after being inspired by online forums, thought they were being smart arses by cobbling together DIY or ebay-bought adapters to refill exchange cylinders...? *-)

 

Don't blame the policy, blame those that probably caused it..

 

Besides, I wouldn't trust some folk to put air in their tyres, let alone a high pressure delivered, and highly flammable, gas!.... :-S

I know this is a serious post by you but it does paint a vivid picture and did make me laugh. I can remember reading a piece by the "health and Safety executive" on the filling of petrol can capacities and it states ¦ have a nominal capacity:

¦ no greater than 10 litres if made of plastic;

¦ no greater than 20 litres if made of metal;

¦ have a total capacity between 10% and 15% more than the nominal capacity;

On the gas side of things, I have a safefill 9.5 litre refillable. Reason being is the capacity of the bottle and its physical size. It fits the vans internal locker which is only accessible from inside the van. and have enough room to carry a reserve camping gaz 907 which I was given about 75% full. Not sure what I will do if it ever runs out as the exchange rate is a lot higher than the pound

;-) (sorry about that)

[Arthur Brown]

I have never had a problem at my local Morrisons. However, I used to have Gaslow cylinders which were filled via a proper connection. I now have an underslung tank, the same as those used for propulsion in petrol vehicles which obviously has a similar proper connection. I cant help but feel that the objection lies in the terminology. Fixed units are in my opinion, no problem. Trying to refill individual cylinders I can see as a potential threat to any forecourt. They have no way of knowing whether or not they have the 80% cut off and that is very important. I would not want to be filling with petrol next to someone who is going to guess when they have reached 80%. So perhaps the Morrisons argument is not out of order, given some, indeed, many motorhomers do refill portable cylinders. What we need is confirmation of fixed systems still being allowed to refill. If that cannot be achieved then Morrisons may as well remove the LPG pumps as nothing can be refilled from their pumps. Just my opinion.