A clip -o n regu lato r

U sin g liqu efied petroleu m gas (LPG ) in a caravan or m otorh om e is a flexible an dU sin g liqu efied petroleu m gas (LPG ) in a caravan or m otorh om e is a flexible an d

con ven ien t w ay to provide h eatin g, cookin g an d refrigeration fac ilities, w h ilecon ven ien t w ay to provide h eatin g, cookin g an d refrigeration fac ilities, w h ile

rem ain in g in depen den t of site su pplies. G et free h elp an d safety advice w h en yourem ain in g in depen den t of site su pplies. G et free h elp an d safety advice w h en you

join th e C lu bjoin th e C lu b ..

LPG is no rma lly s upp l ie d in a pre s suris ed cyl inde r, w he re the fue l ins ide is s to red unde r pre s sure

a s a l iqu id and on ly be comes ga seous w hen re le a sed and fe d to the app l iance . Th is ha s to be

done a t a s u itab le pre s sure fo r the app l iance s to us e and is no rma lly a ch ie ved by the use o f a

pre s sure -reducing regu la to r tha t s upp l ie s ga s a t a s tanda rd pre s sure to the s ys tem . Tw o

d iffe rent ga se s a re used, p ropane and butane . Bo th a re LPG products but they have s l ight ly

d iffe rent cha ra cte ris t ics .

Th is gu ide w il l he lp you make the be s t o f your LPG ins ta l la t ion in a ca ravan o r mo to rhome , but

p le a se remembe r tha t any w o rk on LPG equ ipment needs to be done by su itab ly qua l i f ie d

pe rs onne l. In the C lub 's op in ion th is means prope rly t ra ined and e xpe rie nced ga s e xpe rts .

C ylinders and regu latorsLa rge r cyl inde rs s u itab le fo r mo to rhome and ca ravan

use can com e in a range o f s iz e s and co lours a cco rd ing

to the ir s ource , but the tw o Ca lo r type s s t i l l

p redom ina te - re d cyl inde rs conta in ing propane and

b lue cyl inde rs f i l le d w ith butane . U nt i l Septembe r

2003, ca ravans and moto rhomes used a d iffe rent

regu la to r depend ing on w hich ga s w as be ing used to

provide the appropria te ope ra t ing pre s sure s , 28mba r

(m il l iba r) fo r butane and 37mba r fo r p ropane . Some

units from cont inenta l Europe use d iffe rent pre s sure s ,

up to 50m ba r.

D ATA SH EET#32 G as fo r carav ans and#32 G as fo r carav ans andm o to rh o m esm o to rh o m es

#32

A bu lkhead -mo unted C les s e regu lato r

Since Septembe r 2003 a European s tanda rd (EN 1949)

has made the s upp ly pre s sure the s ame fo r bo th ga se s

throughout the EU a t 30mba r. W hile p re -2003 un it s

s t i l l re qu ire d iffe rent re gu la to rs depend ing on the ga s

used, a l l current U K-bu i lt ca ravans run a t 30mba r, and

th is f igure s hou ld be ma rked in the ga s lo cke r nea r to

the regu la to r.

The tab le s how s the type s o f cyl inde rs mos t commonly

found in the U K and the ir w e ights and d imens ions .

O the r m ake s may be found in d iffe rent re g ions o f the

U K, but you w il l no t a lw ays be ab le to e xchange them outs ide the reg ion. La rge r s iz e s a re

ava i la b le , but on ly fo r domes t ic us e .

The C lub doe s no t pe rm it the use o f any cyl inde r s to red outs ide a ga s lo cke r ove r 15kg capacity

on C lub Site s o r a t C lub e vents be cause o f s a fe ty conce rns . Idea l ly, cyl inde rs s hou ld be s to red in

the un it 's ga s lo cke r. Gas cyl inde rs mus t a lw ays be t ranspo rted and s e cured in a ve rt ica l

pos it ion, a s lying them dow n may cause l iqu id LPG to e s cape through the va lve and be come a

la rge vo lum e o f com bus t ib le ga s .

Common gas bo t t le s

Sup p lierg as

typ e

LPG w eig ht

(kg )

T o tal w eig ht

(ap p ro x kg )

Heig ht

(mm)

Diameter

(mm)

C a mp in g a z R 9 0 7

b u ta n e 2 .7 5 6 .5 2 3 5 2 0 3

C a lo r

b u ta n e 4 .5 1 0 .2 3 4 0 2 4 0

F lo g a s

b u ta n e 4 .5 1 0 .7 3 4 0 2 4 0

C a lo r

b u ta n e 7 .0 1 6 .0 4 9 5 2 5 6

F lo g a s

b u ta n e 7 .0 1 6 .0 1 9 5 2 5 6

F lo g a s Ga s lig h t

p ro p a n e 5 .0 8 .7 3 9 3 3 0 5

A T ruma regu lato r w ith p ig tail

C a lo r

p ro p a n e 3 .9 9 .6 3 4 0 2 4 0

F lo g a s

p ro p a n e 6 .0 1 4 .3 4 9 5 2 5 6

C a lo r

p ro p a n e 6 .0 1 5 .0 4 9 5 2 5 6

F lo g a Ga s lig h t

p ro p a n e 1 0 .0 1 5 .4 5 8 7 3 0 5

W eighty m attersAs can be s een in the cha rt , many cyl inde rs have a

s ign if icant w e ight and th is mus t be cons ide red w hen

load ing a ca ravan o r mo to rhome . Mos t ga s lo cke rs a re

in the front o f a ca ravan and w il l a ffe ct the nosew e ight

o f the un it . So ga s cyl inde rs and anyth ing e ls e you add

com es out o f the use r payload.

In gene ra l a h igh nosew e ight brings improved s tab i l i ty,

but the re a re l im its f ixed by bo th tow ca r and ca ravan

manufa cture rs tha t mus t no t be e xceeded. Fo r

e xample , ca rrying tw o fu l l 6kg Ca lo r cyl inde rs (a

com mon f it t ing) add a lmos t 28kg to the nosew e ight . I f

th is p rove s to be a prob lem and you need to t ranspo rt

the cyl inde rs e ls ew he re , they mus t be prope rly

s e cured.

The C lub doe s no t re commend ca rrying ga s cyl inde rs in

the ca r, but i f th is mus t be done they shou ld a lw ays be

kept upright and s e cured in p la ce . O ne a lte rna t ive may

be to use Gas l ight compos ite cyl inde rs s upp l ie d by

Flogas (fo rme rly BP Gas l ight ).

W hen the new regu la to rs w e re int roduced in 2003, the U K opted to us e bu lkhead-mounted

regu la to rs ra the r than the pre vious cyl inde r-mounted ve rs ions . The se can be used in Europe

w he re a lo ca l cyl inde r can be conne cted to the e xit ing regu la to r us ing a s u itab le f le xib le h igh-

pre s sure p ipe , o r - p ig ta i l - w ith an appropria te adapto r.

W hich gas?W hich ga s be s t s u it s you w il l depend on how many app l iance s you

have , the ir ga s requ irements and the tempe ra ture . P ropane ga s is

be t te r a t s upp lying a la rge r numbe r o f app l iance s a t the s ame t ime

due to it s g re a te r o ff-ta ke ra te (s e e right ), and it can be used in s ub-

ze ro tempe ra ture s , w he rea s butane beg ins to produce le s s ga s be low

about 4C.

Now tha t the price o f the tw o ga se s is ve ry s im ila r the re 's l i t t le

advantage to buying butane , though you do ge t ma rg ina l ly more

ene rgy from a butane cyl inde r than a propane one o f the s ame vo lume

and if you a re a w a rm -w ea the r ca ravanne r butane w il l be f ine .

E u ropean travelY ou canno t e xchange Ca lo r o r mos t o the r U K cyl inde rs in mos t o f Europe .

I f you a re go ing in the s ummer and no t us ing the hea t ing , a

pa ir o f 6kg P ropane cyl inde rs s hou ld la s t you a t le a s t a coup le

o f w eeks - o r longe r i f you run the fridge from an e le ct ric hook-

up. I f you a re cons ide ring chang ing cyl inde rs abroad you w il l

ne ed a s u itab le -p ig ta i l- o r adapte r to conne ct d iffe rent

cyl inde rs to the regu la to r.

How eve r, you w il l s t i l l have to pay the cyl inde r depos it and

such cyl inde rs canno t no rma lly be e xchanged once ba ck in U K .

Ano the r opt ion is to ta ke Campingaz cyl inde rs , w hich a re

ava i la b le to e xchange throughout much o f w e s te rn Europe and

they have deve loped a s to re lo ca to r too l you can f ind a t the Campingaz w ebs ite . Y ou may a ls o

need to ca rry an adapto r and the se a re re ad i ly a va i la b le from good a cce s so ry s to re s .

H ow m uch gas do you need?The amount o f ga s you need depends on the ambient tempe ra ture , the numbe r o f ga s app l iance s

in us e , the pow e r they a re us ing and how long they a re in us e a t tha t ra te . How eve r, few o f us

eve r bo the r to w o rk a l l th is out , a s w e s imp ly use the ga s unt i l i t runs out and then change the

cyl inde r. As a rough gu ide , many use rs f ind they consume be tw een 0.8 and 1.5kg o f ga s pe r day,

o r s ay an ave rage o f 1.2kg pe r day. O bvious ly w hen the w ea the r is w a rme r you w il l us e le s s ga s

fo r hea t ing and if you a re us ing an e le ct ric hook-up and can use e le ct ricity fo r s ome hea t ing ,

cooking and re frige ra t ion, you can make the ga s s upp ly la s t longe r.

R ed ind icato r o n T rumaLevelC heck deno tes no LPG at

that level

Cylinde rs have a hab it o f runn ing out a t inconven ient t imes ,

such a s in the m idd le o f the n ight o r w hen it is ra in ing , s o it is

o ften w is e to know w hen your ga s is runn ing low . Some

cyl inde rs have a contents gauge o r a re t rans lucent , s o the

contents can be s een. The ma jo rity o f s te e l cyl inde rs have no

means o f re vea l ing the contents , but the re a re a fte r-ma rke t

device s s uch a s T ruma 's Gas Leve lChe ck tha t can provide an

ind ica t ion.

Y ou can a ls o w e igh the cyl inde rs on ba throom s ca le s and use

the to ta l w e ight f igure s in the tab le to s e e how fu l l they a re .

A lte rna t ive ly you can buy changeove r va lve s a s made by

Gas low o r T rum a tha t w i l l a utoma t ica l ly change cyl inde rs i f

you a re ca rrying tw o - but remembe r they s t i l l ne ed monito ring

o r you w il l jus t e nd up w ith tw o empty cyl inde rs .

Pe rhaps more im portant though is to be s ure the ga s you have

w il l s upp ly a l l the app l iance s you w ant to have on a t the s ame

t ime .

A s ing le 6kg propane cyl inde r w i l l have an ava i la b le maximum o ff-ta ke (s upp ly) ra te o f up to

about 0.8kg pe r hour. Th is w i l l be s uff icie nt fo r a cooke r, s pa ce hea te r, fridge and w a te r hea te r,

but i f you use a l l the se and the gri l l a nd four ga s rings a t the s ame t ime you m ight f ind the

cyl inde r canno t cope w ith the demand.

W hen th is happens the app l iance s may no t w o rk e ff icie nt ly and s ome may go out . A f lame fa i lure

device s hou ld a lw ays be f it te d , to pre vent any unburnt ga s ge t t ing into the l iving a rea . In

pra ct is e , th is p rob lem ra re ly happens un le s s you have chosen a sma lle r s iz e o f cyl inde r (s uch a s

a 3.9kg propane cyl inde r w ith a maximum o ff-ta ke o f jus t 0.5kg/hr) o r a re us ing butane ga s in

nea r-fre e z ing cond it ions .

R efillab le cy lindersRe fi l l ing an e xis t ing cyl inde r ra the r than rep la cing it s e ems

a good idea , but the re a re many pra ct ica l, s a fe ty and le ga l

is s ue s invo lved. O nly autho ris ed LPG depo ts a re a l low ed to

do th is and you canno t do it yours e lf w ith a convent iona l

cyl inde r. The re a re s ome cyl inde rs tha t a re de s igned to be

re fi l le d by the use r. Fo r e xample , the Gas low and Gas It

s ys tem a l low s re f i l l ing from the Autogas pump a t fue l

s ta t ions .

In th is s ys tem you purchase a s pe cia l cyl inde r, w hich ha s a

s te e l hose conne cted to an automot ive type f i l le r. Th is is

f it te d into the bodyw ork o f your un it and a ccepts the LPG

de l ive ry noz z le a t fue l s ta t ions . As w ith LPG-pow e red ca rs ,

adapte rs a re needed fo r f i l l ing in cont inenta l Europe . Ava i la b i l i ty o f Autogas va rie s cons ide rab ly

w ith in the cont inent . Sa fe f i l l p rovide a fre e s tand ing s ys tem w hich can be f i l le d a t many Autogas

re ta i le rs .

A ho s e manu factu red in S ep tember 2006(09/06)

A ll s ys tems shou ld have an inbu i lt cut -o ff s ys tem ensure s f i l l ing the cyl inde r canno t e xceed the

important l im it o f no more than 80 pe r cent fu l l (to a l low suff icie nt s pa ce fo r the LPG to e xpand)

and an ove rpre s sure re le a se va lve and a fo rm o f contents gauge a re a ls o provided. It is

impo rtant to remembe r you a re dea l ing w ith a fue l de l ive ry s ys tem unde r cons ide rab le pre s sure

so s om e ca re is needed fo r s a fe ope ra t ion. Fo l low the ins t ruct ions ca re fu l ly. U se rs repo rt tha t

s ome fue l s ta t ions re fus e to a l low ca ravanne rs to re f i l l in th is w ay.

C a ution: Som e ca ravanne rs have been o ffe red a re f i l l ing s e rvice fo r convent iona l U K-based

cyl inde rs w hen t rave l l ing in Europe . The C lub doe s no t re commend th is p ra ct ice a s ove r f i l l ing

cou ld o ccur, w hich pre sents a s ign if icant ris k to your s a fe ty.

F ixed on-board tanksIt is more common fo r la rge r mo to rhomes to have f ixed tanks tha t can a ls o be f i l le d a t LPG fue l

s ta t ions . They usua l ly conta in cons ide rab ly more ga s than can be ca rrie d in removab le cyl inde rs

and a re idea l fo r cont inenta l touring . The re is , how eve r, a w e ight and cos t pena lty and the e xt ra

w e ight w i l l re duce your ava i la b le veh icle payload. Do bew a re o f unde r s lung tanks and a lw ays

ensure they have been f it te d to a good s tanda rd and provide adequa te road cle a rance . The NCC

has a code o f p ra ct is e fo r f ixed ins ta l la t ions w hich any good ins ta l le r s hou ld be adhe ring to .

Ferries and tunnelsU K tunne ls can be used by veh icle s ca rrying removab le cyl inde rs provided the ga s is turned o ff a t

the cyl inde r va lve , though the re may be a l im it on the to ta l amount o f ga s ca rrie d , no rma lly w e l l

in e xce s s o f the am ount on a ca ravan o r mo to rhome . Ru le s va ry on the cont inent and you a re

advis ed to conta ct the C lub 's T rave l Se rvice s fo r s pe cif ic advice be fo re t rave l.

Ro l l-on ro l l-o ff fe rrie s have s im ila r ru le s , though the re a re s ome va ria t ions bo th in the U K and

cont inenta l Europe s o che ck w ith your fe rry ope ra to r. Gene ra l ly, the numbe r o f cyl inde rs you a re

ca rrying mus t be de cla red to the fe rry company and to s h ip 's o ff ice rs , and the re mus t be no m ore

than thre e (tw o in the ca se o f s ome ope ra to rs ). A l l mus t be s e cured aga ins t movement and shut

o ff a t the cyl inde r va lve during the voyage . Euro tunne l current ly pe rm its a maximum o f 50kg o f

ga s to be ca rrie d w ith the po rtab le cyl inde rs and 47Kg fo r a f ixed ins ta l la t ion bo th turned o ff and

is o la ted .

If you have a mo to rhome w ith a f ixed LPG tank be aw a re tha t s ome tunne ls and fe rrie s may l im it

the am ount o f ga s tha t can be ca rrie d , s o che ck w ith the ope ra to r f irs t .

H osesGas supp ly hose s de te rio ra te ove r t ime and in us e , s o

they shou ld be rep la ced a t le a s t e ve ry f ive yea rs and

more fre quent ly in in tens ive use cond it ions . U K hose s

w il l be m a rked w ith the ir da te o f manufa cture and

should be inspe cted fre quent ly fo r damage and w ea r.

Make sure a l l hose clamps a re s ound and the hose s a re

pos it ioned s o they w il l no t be come damaged by o the r

items o r loose equ ipment .

B arbecues

Mano meter tes t ing acaravan gas s ys tem

Some ca ravans have an e xte rna l ga s po rt fo r us ing a ba rbe cue . W hile th is is conven ient , it is

impo rtant to obse rve s ome ext ra pre caut ions w hen us ing such a device . U s ing an e xte rna l ga s

cyl inde r to s upp ly ga s to the ca ravan through th is po rt is no t re commended o r pe rm it te d on C lub

Site s o r a t C lub e vents fo r s a fe ty re a sons .

A l l cooking tha t us e s a naked f lame mus t be done in an a rea w ith adequa te pro te ct ion from

flammable ma te ria l. In the C lub 's op in ion no ba rbe cue , us ing the ca ravan supp ly o r w ith it s ow n

cyl inde r, s hou ld be used in an aw ning be cause o f p rob lems o f vent i la t ion, ca rbon monoxide bu i ld

up, smoke inha la t ion and f ire s a fe ty.

Make sure the s upp ly hose is lo ca ted aw ay from a rea w he re peop le w a lk and use and keep it no

longe r than is ne ce s sa ry fo r it to s a fe ly s upp ly the app l iance . Remembe r tha t a ga s ba rbe cue can

use a lo t o f ga s and it may be advis ab le no t to us e o the r ga s app l iance s a t the s ame t ime . Y our

ca ravan handbook shou ld g ive advice on th is po int .

M ain tenance

A ll LPG app l iance s and f it t ings need regu la r che cking and

ma intenance i f they a re to rema in s a fe and re l ia b le .

The ga s s ys tem shou ld be che cked annua l ly a s pa rt o f the

hab ita t ion s e rvice by a s u itab ly qua l i f ie d pe rs on. An Approved

W orkshop can o ffe r s uch s e rvice w hich invo lve s a le ak te s t (ga s

t ight ), a le t -by te s t o f the ma in va lve and a te s t the regu la to r

lo cks -out a t the co rre ct p re rs sure . App l iance funct ion is a ls o

che cked.

Che ck the app l iance manufa cture r's l i te ra ture fo r s pe cif ic s e rvice ,

ma intenance and ca re requ irements fo r the ir e qu ipment .

S afetyLPG prope rly hand led shou ld be s a fe . It is non-toxic and on ly burns w hen suff icie nt a ir is p re s ent ,

but then it is h igh ly f lammable .

A lw ays turn o ff the ga s a t the cyl inde r be fo re you t rave l.

Neve r us e a naked f lame to look fo r a le ak. A pungent sme ll is added to the ga s , w hich m ake s

it e a sy to de te ct any le aks . Che ck a l l p ipe jo ints us ing a w ash ing up l iqu id s o lut ion - the ga s

w il l bubb le pa s t the le ak. Is o la te the s upp ly, p re fe rab ly a t the cyl inde r, and s eek pro fe s s iona l

he lp . I f the le ak w as inte rna l, open a l l w indow s and keep e ve ryone outs ide . The ga s is

heavie r than a ir and w il l poo l on the f loo r, w hich is w hy you shou ld ensure f loo r vents rem a in

unobs t ructed .

Be aw a re o f the dange rs o f ca rbon monoxide po is on ing - s e e w w w .myccc.co .uk/cosa fe ty.

Fit a CO a la rm .

A lw ays turn o ff the ga s on a convent iona l cyl inde r be fo re d is conne ct ing fo r t ra ve l.

Neve r sm oke w hen chang ing cyl inde rs o r ca rt ridge s .

Make sure a l l vent i la t ion s pa ce s a re cle a r o f obs t ruct ions .

Site ga s app l iance s aw ay from flammable ma te ria ls be fo re l ight ing and neve r move them

w hen l it .

Ca rry a s u itab le f ire b lanke t and/o r f ire e xt ingu is he r, know how to use it and make sure it

G as valve man ifo ld

hasn 't pa s sed it s e xp iry da te .

Fit a Fire A la rm

If you ha ve fe e dba ck on our ne w forma t Da ta she e t,

p le a se le t us know , using our short Fe e dba ck Form.

W eb :W eb : The Camping and Ca ravanning C lub

Greenf ie lds House , W estw ood W ay , Covent ry , CV4 8JH

Tel:Te l: 02476475442

W eb :W eb : Ca lo r

Ca lo r Gas , A t hena House , A t hena Drive , T ac hbrook Pa rk, W arw ic k CV34 6RL

Tel:Te l: 0800 626626

W eb :W eb : Campingaz

Co leman UK, Pa rish W harf Es t a t e , Ha rbour Road, Port ishead, Bris t o l BS20 9DA

Tel:Te l: 01275 845024

W eb :W eb : Flogas

F logas Brit a in, Rayns W ay , W at e rmead Bus iness Pa rk, Syst on, Le ic e s t e rshire LE7 1PF

Tel:Te l: 0800 574 574

W eb :W eb : Gas low

Cast le Bus iness Pa rk, Pav ilion W ay , Loughborough LE11 5GW

Tel:Te l: 01509 842365

W eb :W eb : Truma

T ruma UK, Pa rk Lane , Dove Va lley Pa rk, De rbyshire DE65 5BG

Tel:Te l: 01283 586050

W eb :W eb : Approved w orkshops

Nat iona l Ca ravan Counc il, Ca t he rine House , V ic t o ria Road, A lde rshot , Hampshire GU11 1SS

Tel:Te l: 01252 318251

C o ntactsC o ntacts