Butane or Propane

Lambert

Guest
Hi

Just after some advice, as we have had our new motorhome for approx 3 months now and it originally came with butane bottles, now we are a few trips planned for the back end of the year nov/dec and I am concerned the butane is just not going to work when it starts getting cold.
What would I need to do to change over to propane, is it as simple as just changing the connector that connects to the bottle.
Any tips on what type of connector etc I need to get would be appreciated because if I'm honest I have n't a clue

Many thanks
 
To change over you will need a propane regulator,nothing required to do to your appliances.propane gives off a better heat and does not freeze as butane would ,it can still freeze but very much lower temps,I use prop in my Hymer .last year in glencoe in December it was very very coooold and I never had any hassle.hope this is of use to you.happy motorhoming
 
You say new motorhome if it's new it most likely has the correct regulator and you'll only need to change the high pressure hose between the bottle and regulator. Can you put up a picture of bottle connection
 
The laird said:
propane gives off a better heat
Click to expand...

"But you should know that butane is more efficient than propane when used as fuel. If same volume of butane and propane is burned at temperature above freezing, butane will end up providing 12% more energy than propane."
Read more

Our motorhome is relatively small so we don't have room for a refillable bottle and as we use less than one Campingaz 907 per year (typically 40 to 50 nights) it would take several years to recoup the cost of an underslung tank. As the bottle is kept in an internal locker there is no problem with low temperature - we often use it when it's sub zero outside. I've also made an adaptor so we can use the Coleman disposable propane cylinders.
 
Butane dose not freeze but will not gas off at lower temp whar as propane will gas off below freezing point.
depending where your bottle is situated in your van can help with the lower temps.
I had a van with butane and never had a problem at lower temp.
I also had a van and had problem's in the winter months so I just diverted sum heat to the locker from the blown are system
I now have the gas low and it is so much better than any thing I have ever had
Till you have ryed your system at lower temps I would not worry to much as many new vans have well insulated lockers if it shares a bulk head with a warmer part of the van and the locker stays above Freezing it should be ok
bill
 
IMG_0596.jpg

Its a new van, would it just be the hose and the conector that fastens to the bottle i would need to change ?
 
Does the propane bottle connector screw in as the butane one that it fitted is like some quick release affair ?
 
its not rocket sience ,and in no way being derogtary. I would advise you get competent help from a gas reg. plumber ,safety is paramount when it comes to gas , more so with lpg. to coin a pun, boom boom :rolleyes2:
 
Lambert said:
View attachment 32482

Its a new van, would it just be the hose and the conector that fastens to the bottle i would need to change ?
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just the hose which is high pressure and often called a pigtail

any motorhome or caravan dealer will supply one when you tell him what bottle you want to change to...the propane bottle won't need an adaptor , the hose screws in as is

i understand that calor will swop bottles without charge [ except for the gas of course ] so run out what you have then change over , fitting the new hose is child's play if you have a spanner or two
 
Butane does burn hotter than Propane , however for all intents and purposes is merely of academic interest. max flame temperature for butane is 1996 c for Propane 1980c ....that is at sea level 15 c ....the difference of 16 c hardly worth the worry .....However propane uses less oxygen to burn which makes it useful in mountainous areas.

I would be confident in saying you will struggle with butane in the winter months.

Someone mentioned modern vans being well insulated, that tbh is a red herring and doesn't help at all. Both gases turn from liquid to vapour by drawing heat through the skin of the bottle so insualtion has a negative effect in this respect.

One member here who i shan't name insulated a butane bottle with a boiler type lagging , and couldn't understand why it wouldn't gas ! when those around were still working fine. th ereason i have explained in the previous paragraph.

I personally run propane all year round, I don't honestly think it costs me more money.

You have a 30 mbar reg so just a case of changing the pigtail which it straightforward undoing of a nut

channa
 
swiftcamper said:
Agree with you Channa now confuse them a bit more with draw off rates of different cylinder sizes ?
Even in Spain propane will stop gassing if the draw off rate is high we used to have to keep warming or swapping cylinders when using a 12 kW water heater .
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Hopefully not confused anyone charlie.........take off rates ? eh ? you mean on propane .79 kgs/hr on a 6kg propane or 1.37 kgs/hr on a 19 kg bottle ? .....Give over its a Sunday and besides the regulator plays a part too lol

Channa
 
channa said:
Butane does burn hotter than Propane , however for all intents and purposes is merely of academic interest. max flame temperature for butane is 1996 c for Propane 1980c ....that is at sea level 15 c ....the difference of 16 c hardly worth the worry .....However propane uses less oxygen to burn which makes it useful in mountainous areas.

I would be confident in saying you will struggle with butane in the winter months.

Someone mentioned modern vans being well insulated, that tbh is a red herring and doesn't help at all. Both gases turn from liquid to vapour by drawing heat through the skin of the bottle so insualtion has a negative effect in this respect.

One member here who i shan't name insulated a butane bottle with a boiler type lagging , and couldn't understand why it wouldn't gas ! when those around were still working fine. th ereason i have explained in the previous paragraph.

I personally run propane all year round, I don't honestly think it costs me more money.

You have a 30 mbar reg so just a case of changing the pigtail which it straightforward undoing of a nut

channa
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I agree 16° is insignificant, but the 12% extra energy from butane is useful.

I doubt if many people drive their van to a high enough altitude for oxygen to be a problem. The highest I've taken mine so far is the Alps and Atlas ranges.

As I and others have stated, using butane all year round, including sub zero temperatures, is no problem at all.

I think the point about modern vans being well insulated is that there is more heat inside the van which is conducted through the gas bottle to assist evaporation. It would have to be bitterly cold inside the van before butane evaporation became an issue. When it's getting cold in my van I turn on my 5kW Eberspacher diesel heater for a few minutes.
 
thanks all for your advice i think i will just run my present bottles down and than just change the pigtail over to fit propane bottles which will remove the uncertainty of will it or won't it work in really cold weather.
i have seen some on ebay that are just the hose and some which are the hose and a what appears a shut off valve which are quite a bit more expensive which would you advise to get as to me the additional shut of valve to me seems to be overkill as you can shut it off at the bottle any way?
your views on this would be appreciated.

many thanks
 
Steve121 said:
I agree 16° is insignificant, but the 12% extra energy from butane is useful.

I doubt if many people drive their van to a high enough altitude for oxygen to be a problem. The highest I've taken mine so far is the Alps and Atlas ranges.

As I and others have stated, using butane all year round, including sub zero temperatures, is no problem at all.

I think the point about modern vans being well insulated is that there is more heat inside the van which is conducted through the gas bottle to assist evaporation. It would have to be bitterly cold inside the van before butane evaporation became an issue. When it's getting cold in my van I turn on my 5kW Eberspacher diesel heater for a few minutes.
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If butane is so efficient at sub zero temps ( which it isn't...will fail to gas. around -1c although performance impaired at 4 -5 c) why are bulk containers to domestic properties exclusively propane ? furthermore the road lining lads , etc all use propane not butane .....has to be a reason ?

your theory too on insulation seriously flawed ..... and where is the benefit and how have you arrived at the 12 percent extra energy ? Butane produces 3200 btu/s per cubic ft Propane 2500 btu per cubic foot ......but then oxygen requirements lower explosion limits and upper differ ....I ask for two reasons the volume of gas produced per volume of liquid is .41m cubed with butane .54 with propane .......per kilo ....

I am curious as a qualified gas engineer

Channa
 
Lambert said:
thanks all for your advice i think i will just run my present bottles down and than just change the pigtail over to fit propane bottles which will remove the uncertainty of will it or won't it work in really cold weather.
i have seen some on ebay that are just the hose and some which are the hose and a what appears a shut off valve which are quite a bit more expensive which would you advise to get as to me the additional shut of valve to me seems to be overkill as you can shut it off at the bottle any way?
your views on this would be appreciated.

many thanks
Click to expand...

Steve 121 appears to be a driving instructor, I am a qualified Lpg gas engineer so I shall let you decide who has more experience and knowledge , btw I lived full time four and a half years so might just know summat occupations aside

propane is the answer for winter no doubt .....extra ECV's you dont need as you correctly state can switch the bottle off


Channa
 
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