Urgent under-slung lpg tank straps

[Deleted member 967]

URGENT

Check the straps of your under-slung LPG tanks.

A poster on FACTS has reported the following.

I have a 55 litre Stako LPG Tank fitted to my 2008 Motorhome this tank was fitted Jan 2008 It fell off yesterday whilst driving on examination the two Securing straps had both corroded underneath the plastic covering where the corrosion could not be seen. Luckily the pipes from the fill held as the tank was dragged along the road it it had broken it could have been much worse as it was full!! so please check your straps.

This is a serious situation as tanks fitted by some suppliers are just hung in the straps and not fitted into a frame. My tank was fitted by MTH at Lydney in the Forest of Dean as was the tank above.

Chris Wise of Autogas2000 wrote:
LPG tanks under the vans should be checked on a yearly interval to make sure that the tank, frame, straps are all in good secure condition and the rust proofing is in place.

If anyone out there is concerned about the security of their gas tank no matter who fitted it or when it was installed then please PM me and I am happy to offer a free inspection here at our Thirsk workshops to make sure that the tank is secure and safe for use.

Have a quick look at your tank fittings and contact Autogas2000 or another reputable firm if you have any rust on your tank or straps.

MTH ceased trading a few years back.

 

[Deleted member 967]

I was just at Thirsk yesterday for an inspection of a tank fitted in 2007 by MTH. Chris had offered a free inspection of any tank installed by any supplier, after a report that a tank straps had corroded and the tank fell off after just being filled.


My tank had been fitted outside under slung below the van and we were told it carried a 10 year guarantee by MTH in writing. I was shown the fitting information by Stako and these state tanks are only guaranteed for 18 months if fitted inside a compartment or 6 months if fitted outside.


The tank should sit on a carrier. Mine was fitted with the carrier on top and suspended on the fixing straps. MTH had fitted 4 straps instead of the normal 2 straps, so that was a plus. This is not a safe method as the straps rust and can allow the tank to fall off. They are only designed to keep the tank in place with the weight taken by the frame.


My tank straps had started to flake with rust, reducing their thickness and as a result strength but were secure.


I am going back to Autogas2000 to have the installation corrected.


How many other have tanks suspended on these retaining straps?


Autogas2000 also under seal the tanks they fit to prevent damage to the paint by chipping, allowing the tank to rust. The bottom of my tank has lost a lot of paint, so will have to be removed, cleaned, painted with zinc paint and then fitted into a new frame set up to support the tank, then undersealed.


Chris wise was very helpful and spared no detail in his explanation of the problems. Many thanks to Chris and his colleague.

 

[Dezi]

A very good point well made John.

I too have an underslung tank & although only containing 24 litres this is easily sufficient to obliterate the motorhome & all who sail in her, if damaged.

I check my underside, once a year - just as Granny told me.

Dezi

 

[Tony F]

Tony F

Had dealings with Chris Wise of Autogas 2000 he's realy good guy sorted my gas problems out and patiently explained them to me
would reccomend him any time

 

[Deleted member 967]

Remedial work now done

We have just got back from two nights at Carlton Minniot near Thirsk. We have been getting our gas tank sorted out at Autogas 2000 Ltd. The tank was originally fitted by MTH in the Forest of Dean in March 2008. The lads at Autogas 2000 Ltd. have done a great job as you can see from the photos.

MTH had fitted the tank with the support bracket that it is supposed rest on above the tank and the tank was hanging from the metal straps which were only meant to be additional security. We got in touch with Chris Wise at Autogas 2000 Ltd. after reading a post on a forum from a guy who had had his fall off. He also had his fitted by MTH.

Before the work was done.

The lads at Autogas 2000 Ltd removed the tank and rubbed it down to take off the old flaking paint and rust, they then applied zinc paint, constructed brackets to hold the frame to the chassis and fixed tank into the cradle made by the frame. In doing so they managed to lift it higher than it was before, and finally sprayed with a rubberised paint to protect the tank and brackets from road chippings. They also found that the safety valve wasn't working and replaced that and replaced the filler point pipework.
The work took longer than they had expected, but as they had given us a pro-forma quote for the work there was no extra cost to us.

After the work was done

Tank is now sitting on it supporting frame

We stayed at the Dog and Gun pub just a couple of doors away. They have a little site at the back of the pub £10 a night with hook up. Excellent food and very friendly people. Steaks and ribs cooked to perfection and delicious desserts. Chris advised us not to drive to far to allow the stone chip to dry to a crust before going too far on the road

As we had the Smart car with us we made the most of it and had a tour around the area, Sutton Bank, North Yorks moors visitors centre for coffee and cake and a pleasant drive around the National Park.

We are just so relieved to have it sorted and made safe. Many thanks once again to all at Autogas 2000.

Joan and John.

 

[Byronic]

Can understand the brackets being made of painted steel, but the straps should be stainless steel. A bit cheapskatish IMHO.

 

[Deleted member 967]

Can understand the brackets being made of painted steel, but the straps should be stainless steel. A bit cheapskitish IMHO.

Hi Byronic

The straps that STAKO supply are mild steel covered in plastic. They are very thin. MTH to their credit, did put 4 stronger straps on our tank rather than the STAKO ones. In the incident where the tank fell off the original STAKO plastic covered straps had been used and they had rusted away under the plastic coating unnoticed.

Autogas 2000 Ltd do not use the STAKO straps as supplied with the frame, but make up there own of much thicker material. They then spray everything with Stoneguard.

There is absolutly no chance of the tank dropping off now as it is sitting in a self supported frame that is bolted to the chassis. The straps are simply there to retain the tank and do not carry any weight. The fitter at Autogas told me yesterday they have had tanks hung from wood frames held on by self tappers in the past.

John

 

[Byronic]

Hi Byronic

There is absolutly no chance of the tank dropping off now as it is sitting in a self supported frame that is bolted to the chassis. The straps are simply there to retain the tank and do not carry any weight. The fitter at Autogas told me yesterday they have had tanks hung from wood frames held on by self tappers in the past.

John

The main thing is you're well aware of the problem now!!! And no doubt will give the straps a look at once in a while.
Although they are just restraints on your installation do they not prevent tank bounce over bumps,and tank rotation? If so they need to be fairly tight.
Wood frames, self tappers maybe ok.... so long as they used wood glue as well!!! They must fail the MOT or am I missing something?

 

[Deleted member 967]

The main thing is you're well aware of the problem now!!! And no doubt will give the straps a look at once in a while.
Although they are just restraints on your installation do they not prevent tank bounce over bumps,and tank rotation? If so they need to be fairly tight.
Wood frames, self tappers maybe ok.... so long as they used wood glue as well!!! They must fail the MOT or am I missing something?

As far as I am aware the gas tank installation has no part in the MOT. It is not a fuel tank for propulsion. They would no more check it than they would the satelite dish or solar pannels.

We will be having the tank and instalation checked every year from now on as we were unaware of the valve failure.

 

[Byronic]

I think a diligent MOT tester would fail a vehicle under Load Security..... "components secured with for example rope are not acceptable".