Propane heater

The Big Buddy has a low pressure connection and also a high pressure connection, take your pick. Order the correct hose from Mr Heater.

I have the smaller Buddy heater which works on high pressure only. I removed the regulator from the heater and plumbed it into the low pressure line that feeds my cook-top. It works great.

There's your answers. I have both, but have yet to use the external supply feature big buddy.

I just got a Big Buddy with the adapter hose and it worked with a 5 lb. tank. I don't know why it wouldn't work if you had a T connection on your larger propane tank and connected the adapter hose. But, you will be limited by the length of the adapter hose...not sure if you can get one in longer lengths.

Yes you can plumb it to your RV l.p. line
The reason it's rated Not over 20# portable tank, is the larger the portable bottle, the more pressure developed
The buddy regulators are not rated for higher pressure bottles

MrWizard wrote:
...
The reason it's rated Not over 20# portable tank, is the larger the portable bottle, the more pressure developed
The buddy regulators are not rated for higher pressure bottles

MrWizard,

No disrespect, but your answer is not correct.

Pressure in a propane cylinder is a function of the temperature of the contents, not at all related to the cylinder or tank size. A larger cylinder will generally provide for a larger surface area of the liquid/gas interface and thus result in a higher flow rate or capacity capability with a larger bottle.

However, pressure is not related to tank/cylinder size.

I do enjoy your posts.

SaltiDawg wrote:
However, pressure is not related to tank/cylinder size.

I know very little about propane .... but that jives perfectly with what our stick house propane supplier told me about our newly installed home propane system.

They stated that the pressure of propane coming into our home was not related to the amount left in the tank supplying our home or to the base capacity of whatever tank they installed for our home.

I was relieved to hear that ... as that meant our kitchen stove burners and living room fireplace would burn the same ... right to the end of the propane in the tank!

(Discounting other factors, of course ... such as outside ambient temperature.)

Thank you all for your responses. I found out it can be done, now I need to know how. Their customer service rep. said they didn't mention #30 tanks because it is promoted as portable, and they couldn't see someone carrying a larger tank. Honest. That answered that question, now I need to know how.

Something about a high pressure propane tank only a few inches away from a flame has always puzzled me.

I have a Olympic Catalytic heater, it runs on low pressure propane from my RV's 15" water column propane system. So if a open line in a propane system is leaking into a glass of water 18" tall, it will bubble out slowly if less than 15" deep in the water, but over 15" deep, and the bubbles will stop. That is less than 1 pound per square inch of pressure, so barely any pressure at all.

The propane tank is designed to withstand about 400 PSI before the relief valve opens.

Normally at around 75F, the pressure will be around 100 PSI. Yet if warmed to 120F the pressure can double, and - again I don't understand the idea of having a 1 pound propane tank next to a heat source.

Fred.

I am as bewildered as you are Fred.