LP Gas Odor question
This might be dumb but... when we go into the RV it has a pretty strong propane gas odor. The tank has been on all winter. I forgot to turn it off. The tank looks like it's reading empty and the el...
Forum Discussion
A chemical odorant, ethyl mercaptan, is induced into liquid propane during the distilling process to insure that if a leak occurs, the user would indeed be made aware of it.
Liquid propane is inherently odorless and colorless and as potent as LP is, the odorant is added as a safety feature. Since the mercaptan is heavier than the liquid propane, it eventually settles to the bottom of the tank.
When a tank is near empty, the percentage of mercaptan relative to the remainder of the liquid fuel is far greater than normal. When LP is utilized in RV appliances as a vapor during this low level situation, some of the odorant can seep into the appliances and become evident to the user.
In furnaces, this phenomenon is usually kept to a minimum since the furnace is a completely sealed system and uses outside air to mix with the LP for combustion.
Liquid propane is inherently odorless and colorless and as potent as LP is, the odorant is added as a safety feature. Since the mercaptan is heavier than the liquid propane, it eventually settles to the bottom of the tank.
When a tank is near empty, the percentage of mercaptan relative to the remainder of the liquid fuel is far greater than normal. When LP is utilized in RV appliances as a vapor during this low level situation, some of the odorant can seep into the appliances and become evident to the user.
In furnaces, this phenomenon is usually kept to a minimum since the furnace is a completely sealed system and uses outside air to mix with the LP for combustion.
