Problem with low gas flow using extension hose for fire pit

dan-nickie wrote:
Do you have any way to check that 17' hose you had made?
I ask as I have had trouble with a couple of LP hoses the last couple months that drove me nuts. One was even a new hose.
I don't know what is in the hoses or how they are made, but I had 2 that would not flow propane.
I really suspect it was probably the connectors that were the issue.

What he said- use a small disposable cylinder to troubleshoot- hook it to the pit, then add the extension hose and try again.

Do you have any way to check that 17' hose you had made?
I ask as I have had trouble with a couple of LP hoses the last couple months that drove me nuts. One was even a new hose.
I don't know what is in the hoses or how they are made, but I had 2 that would not flow propane.
I really suspect it was probably the connectors that were the issue.

SDcampowneroperator wrote:
our firepit has a 150k btu regulator. What size is your rig regulator? Might be just too small.
If so, then place your tee between the tank and the rig reg, feed full pres. to the pit reg.

Thanks for the suggestion. Not the problem. When hooked directly to a tank it burns like heck.

our firepit has a 150k btu regulator. What size is your rig regulator? Might be just too small.
If so, then place your tee between the tank and the rig reg, feed full pres. to the pit reg.

Try a different regulator, they do go bad. I would also check and see what're gas flow requirements are for the fire pit and make sure you have the right regulator. I assume it works fine when not connected to the MH and connected to a separate tank as was designed?

naturist wrote:
Two details strike me here, one is the possibility that there are two regulators in the line between the large tank and the burner, the other is that the hose is too small for its length.

Two regulators would result it very little to no gas flow. Too small a hose for the length would also result in low pressure at the burner.

It is also possible, that the little campfire deals with the high-pressure/low-pressure issue by simply having a pinhole through which the high pressure propane has to squirt in order to restrict flow low enough for the burner, which is actually a low pressure device. If this is so, it must be connected to a high pressure line.

There is only one regulator. The Camco tee attaches directly to the tank before the MH regulator. The 17' line is high pressure until it gets to the campfire pit regulator.

About the time I hit the post button something came to mind. The throwayay appliance connector on the Camco has a small orifice. So, that might be restricting the flow. I could replace it with a quick disconnect which would give better flow. Does this idea have any credibility?

Two details strike me here, one is the possibility that there are two regulators in the line between the large tank and the burner, the other is that the hose is too small for its length.

Two regulators would result it very little to no gas flow. Too small a hose for the length would also result in low pressure at the burner.

It is also possible, that the little campfire deals with the high-pressure/low-pressure issue by simply having a pinhole through which the high pressure propane has to squirt in order to restrict flow low enough for the burner, which is actually a low pressure device. If this is so, it must be connected to a high pressure line.

If the firepit has a standard Acme screw on gas connection (tank end), those have an internal check valve that won't allow full flow until the pressure has equalized.

A crude sort of test as to whether it's working properly can be done by "ear". Here's how, now quoting from this link

wrote:
Inside the Acme nut, there is a ball bearing check valve that almost shuts off momentarily when full pressure is released by opening the cylinder valve. You should hear a click at that point. It doesn't shut down completely, as that would negate its ability to detect leaks and excess flow from a leak or major line break, and no gas could flow. It closes just enough to allow a bypass of gas that is very slight, about 10 cubic feet or less per hour (cf/hour) flow, as opposed to the max flow of 200 cf/hour. The bypass gas goes into the propane system, and if there are no leaks or broken pipes, it backs up and builds pressure in the gas lines in the RV. When it equalizes on both sides of the valve, the valve opens to allow full pressure up to about a max of 200 cf/hour at 100 psi. Then if you were standing there, you would hear a second click.

I use a 15 ft hose with a BarBq. It is tapped into the MH tank after the regulator and the regulator is removed from the Barbq.