Quick question about propane shut off

Travelin2 wrote:
I didn't realize that the newer RVs had that system for controlling the propane supply. It would seem that the parasitic drain on the battery to keep the solenoid activated would not be good for off the grid camping. There must be more to that system than I am imagining.

Nope, there is not more. I had a Winnebago View a couple of years ago and yes it did have a drain on the battery all the time it was on. Not a good option for boondocking. There were some owners that came up with a way to get around this but I have forgotten what it was. You know old timers CRS.

The CCI propane detector in our old Bounder had a on/off switch that turned on the detector and actuated a solenoid to allow propane to flow, IF the manual shut off valve was open. For storage I turned the detector off and shut the valve.

The problem with that set up is they "SHOULD" be replaced every 5 years at a cost close to $300.

I believe that Saf-T-Alert has replaced CCI and of course changed the solenoid so you cannot use their detector without changing the solenoid.

While I don't like "qualifiers", here is one, I feel that the five year rule is a CYA rule for the detector makers. I know that there is an element of validity to the suggestion but I have tested 20 year old detectors, both propane and smoke/fire with aerosol cans of gas used by home inspectors to test them. Yes I did that as part of a home inspection for RE buyers or sellers and of course we added the requisite disclaimer that "date of detector installation was unknown".

It's not so much new RVs as it is RVs where the propane tank is mounted somewhere that makes direct access difficult. If there's a remote fill, there's also a remote shutoff.

Some RVs did also have the solenoid hooked into the propane detector, such that the valve would shut if propane was detected. I don't think that's too common anymore.

I didn't realize that the newer RVs had that system for controlling the propane supply. It would seem that the parasitic drain on the battery to keep the solenoid activated would not be good for off the grid camping. There must be more to that system than I am imagining.

Thanks for the comments. Much appreciated!

Either one will shutoff propane...Close the solenoid
SO will battery disconnect switch to OFF....removes power to solenoid

Propane tank HAS a manual shutoff valve but it requires crawling up under RV to get to it....hence the solenoid and the on/off switches.

One inside cabin is for owners convenience and one at fill valve is for propane attendants convenience

More than likely the two switches are wired in series so that turning either one off will shut off the propane. In other words, they have entirely equivalent effects and it doesn't really make any difference whether one or the other is turned off, or both.

I personally do as pauldub does, and leave the propane valve open (a manual hand valve in my case) unless actually refilling the tank or working on or dangerously near the propane system.

HawkTX wrote:

MobileBasset wrote:
I don't challenge luck. For storage I turn mine off at the tank where I have a hand valve. A propane leak is too consequential to risk. And turning the valve is quick and easy.

That is how all my 5th wheel campers have been and that is exactly what I did, but this has an internal propane tank and there is no valve to turn. There is that switch in the cabin and that emergency shut off button in the picture in my original post.

For storage I would turn off both switches. I suspect it is labeled emergency so as not to confuse anyone about the switch heirarchy.

MobileBasset wrote:
I don't challenge luck. For storage I turn mine off at the tank where I have a hand valve. A propane leak is too consequential to risk. And turning the valve is quick and easy.

That is how all my 5th wheel campers have been and that is exactly what I did, but this has an internal propane tank and there is no valve to turn. There is that switch in the cabin and that emergency shut off button in the picture in my original post.

I don't challenge luck. For storage I turn mine off at the tank where I have a hand valve. A propane leak is too consequential to risk. And turning the valve is quick and easy.