Bought a used 2003 Trail Lite Hybrid camper back in June, have done 1 week long trip in it so far, no problems have come up. I'm getting ready for about a 1400 mile round trip in it with mostly off grid camping, will likely encounter some cold weather. I've been testing things out over the past few weeks, running the fridge on propane etc. just to make sure everything is ready to go. A couple of times while walking past the side I thought I could smell gas (propane) but it was so faint I couldn't be sure. Yesterday I was remounting the wheels (just had new tires put on) and I keep noticing it. While trying to figure out where it was coming from I stuck my nose in the vent for the furnace and the smell seemed pretty strong, so my first thought was the gas valve must be leaking through a little. I ran the the furnace a few times turning it on and off, I thought perhaps the valve hasn't been used much, if ever ( I did test the furnace before I bought it), and it was just sticking a bit. Checked it again in a few hours, smell still there, so I ordered a new valve for the furnace and shut the gas off to the camper. Today I stuck my nose in there with the gas being off and pressure drained (I turned a burner on the stove on long enough to drain the pressure yesterday) and the smell is still there. Maybe not quite as strong but certainly still there. My question is, is that smell normal? I never noticed it before on our previous trip nor on the popup we used to have. I'm planning on replacing the valve either way as I don't want to risk a problem. Thanks for your input.

You shouldn't be smelling propane. Make a manometer out of clear tubing. About 3 feet will do. Fill it halfway with water and make a U, stick it over the spud on the cooktop burner, turn on the gas, turn on that burner. The water should go up in the tube about 11 inches. Tape the tube in place and mark where the water level is. Turn off the gas at the tank and watch the tube. If it goes down, you have a leak.clicky

I don't think you will get 11" from the burner tube It your stove top is like mine it has a additional regulator for the stove top that reduces the pressure less then 11". So take the reading from the tube that goes into this regulator. Also if you are going to be setting the regulator pressure some else running on gas should be on like the furnace. If just checking for a leak you can use the burner tube for a leak test it should hold pressure for a period of time like in minutes. Do some You Tube research on making and testing.

We smelled propane at the furnace and it was a leaking gas valve. Had the valve replaced and the smell went away.

Dick_B wrote:We smelled propane at the furnace and it was a leaking gas valve. Had the valve replaced and the smell went away.Were you smelling gas inside the camper or outside at the vent output?I'm planning on doing the pressure test, I don't know why I didn't think of that. Also a bit of an update, I had one of the propane tanks filled today, when I was reattaching the hose to the tank I turned on the valve and heard a hissing noise, sure enough the hose was leaking, so I'll be seeing about getting a new one of those tomorrow. I'm hoping maybe somehow the gas I was smelling was just this hose but I probably won't get that lucky.

11" WC...that is 0.4 psi Leak down test.....Hookup manometer to a stove top burnerOpen propane service valve Open burner that manometer is hooked up to...let pressure stabilizeCLOSE propane service valveOpen another burner knob slightly/slowly and drop manometer to 8" WC then close it3 minutes ....then check if manometer reading has droppedLow pressure system only needs 3 minutes to detect leak down

Gas Smell from Furnace Vent/Output | Good Sam Community

JoshuaH
Explorer
Oct 02, 2018
Valve came pretty quick, next day actually, was quite happy about that.

The previous owners of the camper added flooring in the camper, to get the furnace out I had to cut the cabinet above it about .5". Got the furnace out, old valve removed, went to install the new valve and discovered there is a flange that is about 1/8" larger than on the old valve and the bracket that holds the orifice would not thread all the way into the new valve, it was hitting that flange, ran out of time to work on it any farther.

Saturday evening started filing the orifice bracket until it would thread into the new valve, got it all back together and tested, furnace works great.

Checked Sunday morning, no gas smell, checked again Sunday evening no gas smell, turned off both LP tanks, as of now, Tuesday afternoon the system still has pressure, before it wouldn't hold pressure in 2 hours. I think I have this one fixed.

Thanks everyone for your help!

S
D_E_Bishop
Explorer
Sep 27, 2018
I think you've got a good plan. Let us know how it goes.
JoshuaH
Explorer
Sep 27, 2018
I did just replace the switchover valve, regulator and hoses this morning. Within 2 hours the little indicator on the top of the valve went to red indicating that I had lost pressure so I still do have a leak somewhere, which I'm going to do some more testing.

I still think it is the furnace valve but I'm not positive on that. I'm going to by the correct size flare plug so I can cap off the line to the furnace and then do another pressure test. It has been windy lately so it is hard to tell where it is coming from. If I still have a leak after I cap the line to the furnace then I'll probably get the soap bubbles out.
beemerphile1
Explorer
Sep 27, 2018
Here is an excellent article on how to make and use a manometer;
http://www.rverscorner.com/manometer.html

Most people don't do it but an RV's LPG system should be tested annually.
camperdave
Explorer
Sep 27, 2018
Being new to you and 15 years old, I'd replace the main switchover regulator and both rubber lines between the tanks and regulator as preventative maintenance.
captnjack
Explorer
Sep 27, 2018
Seems to me he already knows there is a leak. Why do further testing? He needs to find the leak, not confirm it. Replace the valve and see what happens. If it still leaks maybe it's a bad hose somewhere. Or the furnace iitself.
midnightsadie
Explorer II
Sep 27, 2018
some real helpful people on this site.
Old-Biscuit
Explorer III
Sep 27, 2018
11" WC...that is 0.4 psi

Leak down test.....
Hookup manometer to a stove top burner
Open propane service valve
Open burner that manometer is hooked up to...let pressure stabilize
CLOSE propane service valve
Open another burner knob slightly/slowly and drop manometer to 8" WC then close it
3 minutes ....then check if manometer reading has dropped

Low pressure system only needs 3 minutes to detect leak down
JoshuaH
Explorer
Sep 27, 2018
Dick_B wrote:
We smelled propane at the furnace and it was a leaking gas valve. Had the valve replaced and the smell went away.

Were you smelling gas inside the camper or outside at the vent output?

I'm planning on doing the pressure test, I don't know why I didn't think of that.

Also a bit of an update, I had one of the propane tanks filled today, when I was reattaching the hose to the tank I turned on the valve and heard a hissing noise, sure enough the hose was leaking, so I'll be seeing about getting a new one of those tomorrow. I'm hoping maybe somehow the gas I was smelling was just this hose but I probably won't get that lucky.
Dick_B
Explorer
Sep 27, 2018
We smelled propane at the furnace and it was a leaking gas valve. Had the valve replaced and the smell went away.

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