Teardrops n Tiny Travel Trailers

I am in the design stage of a teardrop and I want to know what to do with the propane tank lines. do most people detach the propane tank off the tongue (or wherever) and move it around to the back galley? has anyone put permanent gas lines in from the front to the back? what are your thoughts on this? safety...? common sense...? licensing problems...?

Eric

Permanent line from tongue to back UNDER trailer not sandwiched in floor construction...

Way it been on travel trailers for years....

It s royal pain to remove and re-secure propane tank on tongue just to get it filled, think of doing every time you stop someplace....

Dale

Dale M. wrote:Permanent line from tongue to back UNDER trailer not sandwiched in floor construction...

having the lines accessible makes lots of sense. do you use hard pipes or soft? and do you put the lines inside anything (like conduit) to protect it from road damage?

RVIA standards call for black iron/steel pipe, but I have seen copper used.

I would use a flex (rubber hose- (LPG approved)) connection at tank/regulator, steel (black iron is really non galvanized steel) if maybe 1/4 inch variety under trailer with soft copper line to make connection from steel line to appliance at galley. With the soft copper "flared" fittings seem more appropriate then compression (mainly because I hate compression fittings and always have a problem with them)...

Remember you are probably just going to power a little 2 burner stove so huge gas lines are not really necessary...

Dale

I think that I will have a two burner stove in the galley, i am waffling back and forth as far as permanent or removable. they both have advantages... I can't think of much else in the galley I would need propane for.

has anyone added a permanent gas light to the galley or elsewhere on the trailer?

http://propaneapp.server101.com/commerce/search/products/?product_id=FGL100W&merchant_id=1467

that might not be a good idea inside but in the galley it might be nice.

can you think of anything else, other appliances, that an extra propane hookup would be nice for?

P.S. how do I get a permanent signature on my posts?

Eric

Eric, I use a 20# barbque tank, I tote it around wherever it will fit right noe but do plan a tongue mount...I don't cook in my galley but rather on an aux table...I use a distribution tree on the tank and place a lantern on top and use the two side outlets for either of the two stoves I have or one stove and a fish cooker...Coleman(and others) make a full line of propane fired appliances...deep fryers, ovens, slow cookers, "electric", style skillets, etc...all of them can be run off the distribution tree....
...to get to your sig line, once signed in, click the "Profile" button in the top of page index and it will take you there...scroll down to the sig section and add it>>>click submit and there you have it............
madjack

Thanks MadJack. I am pretty new into forum life, but I couldn't let that stop me from my teardrop.

next I need to (carefully) read the section about pictures and avatars...

egjacks wrote:

Dale M. wrote:Permanent line from tongue to back UNDER trailer not sandwiched in floor construction...

having the lines accessible makes lots of sense. do you use hard pipes or soft? and do you put the lines inside anything (like conduit) to protect it from road damage?

I'm a little late addressing this, but its not a accessibility thing, its a safety thing... If line is under chassis and leaks propane is heavier than air and will drift down where it can be diluted and carried off by air currents...

If it is trapped inside floor or inside cabin and when it reaches proper air/fuel density its a bomb when exposed to ignition source.

Dale

Having line accessible for for maintenance is a good idea, Not having a time-bomb-teardrop is a WONDERFUL idea!!!

I will be plumbing the chuckwagon in a couple of weeks. I will use 3/8 or 1/2 inch black steel pipe. As I understand it, do not use galvanized as the sulphur in the gas will cauce the galvanizing to flake off and will wind up clogging things down stream that shouldn't be clogged.
Gas cylinder will be mounted on the tongue and will be hooked via approved hose after the requlator then adapt to the pipe.The pipe will run under the trailer and elbow up into the galley thru a hole in the floor terminating with a gas shut off valve and an approved short flexible stainless steel gas line which will then connected to the stove.

Yes soft copper has been used but road vibration will fatigue the copper and can lead to stress fracturing especially at the fittings.

Just my take other opinions may differ.

bobhenry wrote:I will be plumbing the chuckwagon in a couple of weeks. I will use 3/8 or 1/2 inch black steel pipe. As I understand it, do not use galvanized as the sulphur in the gas will cauce the galvanizing to flake off and will wind up clogging things down stream that shouldn't be clogged.
Gas cylinder will be mounted on the tongue and will be hooked via approved hose after the requlator then adapt to the pipe.The pipe will run under the trailer and elbow up into the galley thru a hole in the floor terminating with a gas shut off valve and an approved short flexible stainless steel gas line which will then connected to the stove.

Yes soft copper has been used but road vibration will fatigue the copper and can lead to stress fracturing especially at the fittings.

Just my take other opinions may differ.

If it were mine, I would do it exactly same way....

Dale

On one of the trailers I built, simplicty was the goal.
I had only a small 2 burner stove, no other gas needs.
Mounting the tank up front, then piping the gas to the back was a lot of extra parts and work not needed (so I discovered after mounting the tank and piping...)

I chose to mount a fitting for a 1 pound disposable bottle, with a separate shut off valve and the regulator hard piped under the galley counter.
I added vents in the floor in case of a leak, and sealed the galley from the cabin so it was air tight/gas tight.
The hatch was always open if the stove was being used...and the vents in the floor along with the galley being isolated from the cabin negated any concerns about a leak.

Rob

<img src="http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a0cf06b3127ccefbe37b4ecd3500000030O02AbNGjdu5bMge3nww/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/">
<img src="http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a0cf06b3127ccefbe2d232adc900000030O02AbNGjdu5bMge3nww/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/">

I like the galley on that teardrop rob. you really have a good layed out well desigined galley on it.

very funtionable. slow.

Thank you.

Rob