Utilities Location

[boomboomtulum]

After I have designed a place for Battery, Propane, Water and electrical to be housed in one vented to the exterior cabinet, I am having 2nd thoughts. The Batt. will be an Optima Gel Cell, Propane will be supplied by 1lb propane bottles, and electical will be the back side of the WFCO 25 AMP Convertor the face of which will be in the Cabin, and of course a 6 Gal. water jug. My concern is will I have a potential melt down/ Nuclear explosion with these housed in the same compartment? If I should move 1 which 1 should it be? Or is my concern unfounded.
Dave

[Dale M.]

Well you have three issues here...... All are rather distressing if you don't deal with them. Y ou have a battery and electrical items which put off hydrogen gas (battery) and can cause sparks and then you have propane a fuel that actually can be explosive....

Hydrogen gas is a flammable, lighter than air gas so you need vents near top of enclosure to vent battery fumes... Propane is a heavier then air gas so it tends to pool at bottom of its enclosure. So you need to vent its enclosure at bottom... I would tend to think IF you have most electrical in one compartment and battery in second and the propane in third compartment, each isolated from the other you may be pretty safe....

Once fumes reach open air they dissipate rather quickly so there is probably no danger of anything catastrophic happening.

Dale

[rbeemer]

Dave,

I do not see anything wrong with what you are doing, as long as the propane bottles are not rolling around and the lid is on tight on the water jug everything should be fine.

[Gage]

Isn't the battery a sealed battery? Again, no problem. I don't believe gases emit from a sealed battery. I could be wrong and according to some, I probably am. Just something to think about.

[boomboomtulum]

Yes Gage it is a sealed Battery so should be no gases from that. Only if there was a propane leak some how and a spark maybe from the convertor, maybe I'm worried about it for no reason just thought I would see what ya all thought about it.
Dave

[Gage]

If you have a propane leak, no mater where you have it, your going to be in trouble. That's why you have a basic safty check list. You'll find that most RV fires you see on the road is because they were running a heater or refrigerator while traveling. That's not good when you have a pilot light on.

[eamarquardt]

Better safe than sorry! Not that much work to mount the battery on the tongue or front of the frame, and the charger separate from the battery.

Cheers,

Gus

[madjack]

Dave, while it would certainly be better to have it all seperated, having a gel cel battery helps in this regard...however, I would consider putting the propane in a seperate location...just in case...always store gas bottles in an upright and protected position........
madjack

[Miriam C.]

I'm a chicken and store my propane bottles in the back of the truck. The battery has a separate compartment to it's self. Not much to put panels and vents in. Some day someone other than me might close everything up wrong.

[Nitetimes]

Well you have three issues here...... All are rather distressing if you don't deal with them. Y ou have a battery and electrical items which put off hydrogen gas (battery) and can cause sparks and then you have propane a fuel that actually can be explosive....

Hydrogen gas is a flammable, lighter than air gas so you need vents near top of enclosure to vent battery fumes... Propane is a heavier then air gas so it tends to pool at bottom of its enclosure. So you need to vent its enclosure at bottom... I would tend to think IF you have most electrical in one compartment and battery in second and the propane in third compartment, each isolated from the other you may be pretty safe....

Once fumes reach open air they dissipate rather quickly so there is probably no danger of anything catastrophic happening.

Dale

Wow, hafta build the next trailer at least 30' long I guess, just to make it safe. According to this little dissertation ain't much we can do that is safe.
Way to much concern over this methinks.

[Dale M.]

Well you have three issues here...... All are rather distressing if you don't deal with them. Y ou have a battery and electrical items which put off hydrogen gas (battery) and can cause sparks and then you have propane a fuel that actually can be explosive....

Hydrogen gas is a flammable, lighter than air gas so you need vents near top of enclosure to vent battery fumes... Propane is a heavier then air gas so it tends to pool at bottom of its enclosure. So you need to vent its enclosure at bottom... I would tend to think IF you have most electrical in one compartment and battery in second and the propane in third compartment, each isolated from the other you may be pretty safe....

Once fumes reach open air they dissipate rather quickly so there is probably no danger of anything catastrophic happening.

Dale

Wow, hafta build the next trailer at least 30' long I guess, just to make it safe. According to this little dissertation ain't much we can do that is safe.
Way to much concern over this methinks.

Actually no...Just some careful venting in a space equal to a tongue box... Just partitioned spaces with venting considerations according to what their contents are... Object is to NOT let fumes collect to volatile level.

Dale

[boomboomtulum]

Here another intresting point. I recieved the Convertor today and on the back it says "do not place in a location with a fuel source as there may be arcs from the convertor" So with that read and the comments from most I will move my Convertor to another cabinet that will be sealed from the Propane and the Battery. I am not worried about the Optima Battery as Gage said it is sealed and has a vent tube if needed you can vent it to an outside source.

[Chuck Craven]

All Lead acid batters out gas! That is part of the chemical reaction in storing or releasing electricity. The older the battery is the more it will outgas. If the battery smells like spoiled eggs it is producing hydrogen sulfide, which is poisons. That’s why you don’t want the battery in the cabin or vent it to the cabin. Lead acid batteries do explode all by their selves. Don’t mix propane and batteries with out some type of barrier between them.
Gel cells still outgas, they have to, or the case will blow open. It’s just that a Gel cell when it gets to its end of life will do it faster than a wet cell. A Gel cell is gelled sulfuric acid so it will not leak out if turned upside down. Once hydrogen and oxygen is released from the chemical reaction it can’t be put back in to the battery. Batteries don’t come with gas return pumps. Well lead acid batteries don’t. Full cells do!

Chuck