webbocj Posted March 15, 2008 Share Posted March 15, 2008 I have 2x6k Propane fitted, can I take a further 1x15k Butane loose, for the BBQ, on Brittany ferries or any ferry for that matter. Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Randonneur Posted March 16, 2008 Share Posted March 16, 2008 Why would you want to take such a large bottle for the BBQ, that would take over 6 months to use. You would be better off buying a CampingGaz cylinder for the BBQ as they are wideley available to exchange in Europe. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clive Posted March 16, 2008 Share Posted March 16, 2008 Just get an external BBQ point fitted and you don,t need an extra bottle at all? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trooper Posted March 16, 2008 Share Posted March 16, 2008 had external gas point on last 2 caravans and 3 M/Hs less wieght, job done. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mel B Posted March 16, 2008 Share Posted March 16, 2008 Just don't let Brownhills do the BBQ point installation ... not unless you want it to come apart and give you nice big blow torch in your van! 8-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Kirby Posted March 16, 2008 Share Posted March 16, 2008 webbocj - 2008-03-15 9:14 PM I have 2x6k Propane fitted, can I take a further 1x15k Butane loose, for the BBQ, on Brittany ferries or any ferry for that matter. Thanks As to your actual question, the authoritative answer can only come from Brittany Ferries (or any other ferry company with whom you book). Each will set its own rules, though they may all end up saying much the same, so it would be unwise to make assumptions. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Uzzell Posted March 18, 2008 Share Posted March 18, 2008 webbocj: As Brian advises, if there's nothing about Brittany Ferries's rules on LPG carriage on their website or in their printed terms and conditions, then you'll need to contact the ferry company direct to seek guidance. A definitive answer may not be so easy to obtain however, as I discoverd with Norfolkline (see below). http://www.outandaboutlive.co.uk/forums/forums/thread-view.asp?tid=5765&posts=28 http://www.outandaboutlive.co.uk/forums/forums/thread-view.asp?tid=7605&posts=3 Personally, I can't see any particular 'while at sea' safety risk being presented by your plan to have 2 x 6kg LPG bottles in your motorhome's gas locker, plus 1 x 15kg canister stored within the vehicle's interior, as long as all the gas containers are turned off for the duration of the ferry crossing. It's also very unlikely that any sort of check will be made prior to embarkation. On the other hand, storing a large, heavy gas-bottle inside the motorhome's living-area while the vehicle is being driven isn't such a great idea as it's likely to be a damned nuisance and you'll really need to ensure the thing is very firmly secured. POSTSCRIPT: I've now consulted the Brittany Ferries website and this matter is covered in the 'Questions' section. The guidance provided is... "CAN I TRANSPORT GAS CYLINDERS? When travelling in a vehicle, a maximum of three 15kg gas cylinders may be carried. All cylinders should be adequately secured against the movement of the ship and the cylinders must be switched off during the crossing." So, if you can tie down your 15kg bottle securely (which I expect you intended to do), where it's actually stored in the motorhome doesn't seem to be critical as far as Brittany Ferries is concerned. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
webbocj Posted March 18, 2008 Author Share Posted March 18, 2008 Derek. Thanks, the best bit of m/h info. i've had since I bought it June 2007. The reason I want such a "large" one is because I do ALL cooking outdoors, breakfast,BBQ's - yes in all weathers and we plan 6-8weeks in France this summer and this time round don't want to go for the alternative Not sure if this is th done thing! X threads, (can't miss the chance to talk to the right man) Yesterday I took the m/h back to the dealers(pop it back sir) Sheffield/Nottingham no less. It had been stored on the drive for 4mnths. batteries kept charged,engine run once a month,engine sheeted under bonnett - yes it's a FIAT. Having REVERSED out onto the road I had about 1 mile of downhill "cruising"- got the breaks bedded in ok BUT when I came to the traffic lights on the 1st bit of flat(outside Wednesday football ground) I was engulfed in a mass of steam, pulled up 100yds later, with engine running everything seemed ok, no loss of water from header just ok! started off again and 45mls. later at Lowdhams ok. Temp. gauge spot on centre all way. The boiler had been drained for winter as had all water. The only thing I can think is, it had been kept nose-up on sleepers to stop roof water running down the sides over the window and fridge grills. Surely this amount of water was not trapped in the underside of the m/h. Any ideas, i'm baffled AND concerned Chris Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Uzzell Posted March 19, 2008 Share Posted March 19, 2008 Chris: I suspect your 'steaming' experience was just due to rain-water collecting within the engine-bay while the motorhome was parked nose-up and then finding its way on to hot motor components (turbo, exhaust system?) when the vehicle first began to be driven. You wouldn't have noticed it going along, but it would become apparent when you braked to a halt. My own motorhome (Transit Mk 6-based) is also parked nose-high to minimise rainwater pooling on the roof. There is a plastic duct beneath the Transit's scuttle designed to collect rainwater running down the windscreen and divert it sideways away from the motor. It's very noticeable that, when the motorhome has been standing idle for some time during wet weather and is then brought level, a considerable quantity of water that has collected in the duct pours out on to the ground. I expect something similar is happening with your Fiat-based vehicle, except that the rainwater isn't being completely expelled from the under-bonnet area and is being boiled off when the motor gets hot. (I'm sure you are aware that rainwater entering the engine-compartment is a known 'characteristic' with the latest Ducatos.) As there were no other untoward symptoms and you managed an otherwise incident-free 90 minute round-trip to Lowdhams, then I shouldn't worry about it. Returning to the gas-bottle subject, rather than cart a massive UK cylinder with you to France for your barbecuing, you might instead wish to consider obtaining a 'native' bottle when you arrive over there. There are a couple of lightweight composite bottles now being marketed in France. These contain 10kg of butane and would be far easier to handle and store within the motorhome if you intend to travel around and, of course, would be exchangeable in France if you ran out of gas. Butagaz markets the "Viseo" container, but I believe Antargaz's "Calypso" is cheaper deposit-wise. Details of Calypso are on http://www.antargaz.fr/part_bouteille_butane_calypso.html# and it's widely available at supermarket service-stations. The deposit for a Calypso bottle is currently 10 Euros (including free clip-on regulator) and a 'charge' of gas is 14.95 Euros. Alternatively, you could opt for a smaller - around 6kg capacity - French butane bottle like Le Cube, Elfi, Twiny, Malice, etc. that would be even easier to store within the motorhome. (If you didn't want to bring a French bottle back to the UK, then I believe it's possible to get a full refund of the deposit by presenting the hire-contract documentation.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
webbocj Posted March 19, 2008 Author Share Posted March 19, 2008 Derek Yes I feel your diagnosis re. water is near the mark, will keep my eyes open just in case. Looked at the French gas site-picked out the rates and it seems ideal if the container can be returned, mind you if the trip is a success then we would use it again. Perhaps I should have said that our m/h has a rear garage so hauling the cylinder was never a massive problem. Thanks again Chris Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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