more gas problems

Kris

Guest
Hi

The fridge and hotwater suddenly no longer work on ( butane ) gas.
The cooker doesn't work . I thought the bottle was almost empty and there was not enough pressure left to feed the fridge or boiler , but I changed to a new one and still the same problem.
I have got a 1993 mh with truma boiler and electrolux fridge.

Any suggestions what to do?

Many thanks

Kris
 
if nothing is working on the gas then i would think you may have a faulty regulator unless you have a saftey cutoff valve between the regulator and the appliances
 
mandrake said:
if nothing is working on the gas then i would think you may have a faulty regulator unless you have a saftey cutoff valve between the regulator and the appliances
Click to expand...

Sorry, the cooker does work. The fridge underneath and the boiler don't.
?????
 
Do some simple checks before taking the regulator off. Most appliances have an isolating valve - just check that it has not been turned off for the fridge and heater.

In some peculiar weather conditions the LPG can freeze solid just before the regulator. There is not a great deal you can do about that other than fitting a little 12V block heater on the pipe, a temporary fix can be to put some hot water on the pipe - very temporary as the pipe will freeze again sooner or later.

Next step is to check the filters in the appliances - stoves dont have filters because of the jet sizes. Fridges and heaters often have a small gauze filter/flame trap at the point where the piping joins the appliance - if you've had a bad batch of gas with a lot of muck in it then the filters can become blocked. They are DIY clean, BUT you need to feel confident about working with gas fittings inside a van, have the tools, sealing compound/tape.

If thats not the problem then its best to get a gas fitter to start doing operating checks and isolating the problems for you - it could be an electrical problem and not gas.
 
Roger said:
In some peculiar weather conditions the LPG can freeze solid just before the regulator.
Click to expand...
Butane freezes solid at -138.4°C and propane at -187.6°C so it would be very unusual weather conditions :confused:

AndyC
 
Ok my mistake, it recondenses to a liquid phase and will not pass through the regulator. Mainly because of the ice build up on the pipes, high humidity can cause the icing problem.

On gas tanker filling arms they have either a steam or electrical trace heater to stop the problem of icing when pressures drop rapidly and where high humidity can be expected.

Strange my German made gas system has the block heater, but you rarely, if ever see them on builds from other countries.
 
Roger said:
Ok my mistake, it recondenses to a liquid phase and will not pass through the regulator. Mainly because of the ice build up on the pipes, high humidity can cause the icing problem.

On gas tanker filling arms they have either a steam or electrical trace heater to stop the problem of icing when pressures drop rapidly and where high humidity can be expected.

Strange my German made gas system has the block heater, but you rarely, if ever see them on builds from other countries.
Click to expand...
Our old van had the Truma Duomatic auto-changeover system which was excellent. I think the 'Winter' setting, which activates the little heaters, is mainly to ensure that the regulators continue to work properly in the very low temperatures that can result when a lot of gas is being drawn off for heating purposes in the winter. Liquid propane needs to absorb heat from the surroundings in order to boil (i.e. produce gas). If it can't absorb heat quickly enough it will gradually get colder and colder, which is why you see the icing on the outside of the bottles and other external gas equipment.

AndyC
 
AndyC said:
Our old van had the Truma Duomatic auto-changeover system which was excellent. I think the 'Winter' setting, which activates the little heaters, is mainly to ensure that the regulators continue to work properly in the very low temperatures that can result when a lot of gas is being drawn off for heating purposes in the winter. Liquid propane needs to absorb heat from the surroundings in order to boil (i.e. produce gas). If it can't absorb heat quickly enough it will gradually get colder and colder, which is why you see the icing on the outside of the bottles and other external gas equipment.

AndyC
Click to expand...

I might get it wrong, but we are not talking about wintertemperatures when wehave outside temperatures of 28° C.
Also, the cooker does still work.
I might have to investigate a cut-off switch somewhere, if that exists.
Thanks and regards

Kris
 
Kris said:
I might get it wrong, but we are not talking about wintertemperatures when wehave outside temperatures of 28° C.
Also, the cooker does still work.
I might have to investigate a cut-off switch somewhere, if that exists.
Thanks and regards

Kris
Click to expand...
Yes, sorry, I wasn't intending to suggest that your problem was due to the cold :)

If there is just the two appliances that are not working there must be an obstruction in the supply to them. There might be an isolation valve that's been inadvertently turned off, or a section of pipe that been damaged causing a blockage.

AndyC
 
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my system albeit old has a seperate shut off valve for each appliance. i have accidently caught on of the valves and turned it off now and again .
 
there were never any problems with rubber hoses when we used on bottle regulators
equally I have never known problems with on board regulators fitted sufficently high , ie higher than the top of the bottle

in my view it is pretty clear that if the regulator is , in effect , at the bottom of a U bend any heavy ends that get that far will tend to stay there because , by definition , you are getting to the bottom of the bottle and the pressure will be somewhat reduced

so it accumulates ; anyone who is accustomed to stripping and cleaning lpg vapourisers [ like me ]will tell you exactly what it looks like

but buy a new one ? not me , just demount the old one and wash it out thoroughly with petrol ; I suggest a pair of rubber gloves because it ain't half mucky ; I am sure other solvents will work as well , but I work on the premise that ,as it is liquified petroleum gas ,
petrol can't do any harm
 
just an idea ,as the cooker is working then i cannot see any problem with the regulator .its a long odds guess that mabey the fail safe has failed on the other items. a bit odd for them both to go at the same time but anything is possible. think rogers idea of getting a pro in sounds best idea if all else fails
 
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