Replacing gas regulator and hoses

[silverbullet555]

Well, the camper has been living in the back of my truck for a bit. My oldest and I have been taking it out for hunting season. Camper has worked well, hunting not so much.

I want to improve the connection for the gas tank. The way it is now, the regulator screws into the valve for the gas tank and then a flexible hose goes from the regulator to the connection to the gas system. I have to hook and unhook the tank to go anywhere and the door won't shut when the tank is hooked up.

What do I need to know about regulators and hoses to get this set up correctly?

Single stage vs dual stage regulator.

Horizontal vs verticle regulator.

Potential issues with fittings on a 1995 camper. I would prefer to switch over to the tank fitting which I can just screw on by hand unless there is a reason not to.

The propane is used in the water heater, stove/oven, fridge and furnace.

[silverbullet555]

[time2roll]

http://photoposting.is-great.net/

[BurbMan]

Agreed a pic would help. Mine has 2 20 lb tanks laying down with the regulator hanging in between. In my rebuild I replaced the regulator with a Marshall auto changeover along with new hoses too. I've only got one battery but two gas tanks so I run what I can with them.

You should be able to at least close the hatch on your cylinder, but you need to be sure it's properly vented because regulators are vented and do expel gas from time to time. Propane is heavier than air and will blow if it accumulates in low places.

[mkirsch]

Can you post a picture of what you are talking about? It would be helpful for people to see what you are dealing with in order to make suggestions.

Most likely your current setup is some cobbled-together mess from a previous owner, which would explain why you can't close the door with it hooked up. Or maybe you just need to turn the tank 90 degrees?

In my original setup there were two 20lb grill tanks sitting upright and a changeover valve hung between them. The hoses were cracked and I barely use a tank of propane in a season, so I replaced the whole works with a simple grill regulator. Works fine. Probably won't flow enough propane if I ran the water heater, furnace, and stovetop simultaneously, but I would never do that.

You need a regulator that is rated for whatever BTUs you expect to need. The furnace, stovetop, and water heater are all rated in BTUs. Add up what you think you'll be running at one time and get a regulator at least rated for that if not more.