External Propane Connection

[Sandy and Shirley]

I just made a direct connect fitting which I hope will work. The problem now is that I’ve been asking Forest River for weeks now if they can tell me the PSI of the propane outlet. There is only one regulated central line on the motor home and, as I have investigated, there are two ways they could have regulated the propane:

They might have regulated it to about 12 to 14 inches of water, which is about the proper amount for most propane devices, and then connected each appliances directly to that source.

The other way is to regulate it from about 250 PSI down to about 10 PSI and then put secondary regulators at each device. If they did it this way I would need a secondary regulator at the grill. Of course they might have done it this way and then installed a secondary regulator between the source and the quick connect outlet.

What upsets me the most is that I have asked this question on the Forest River website multiple times and I have left multiple messages on their phone lines over the past 3 or 4 weeks and have not heard a single word from them. I’ve also talked to my salesman and he has contacted them also with no reply. One thing to have rotten customer relations with the actual customer, it is something else to ignore your distributors.

[rana]

Originally Posted by Sandy and Shirley

They might have regulated it to about 12 to 14 inches of water, which is about the proper amount for most propane devices, and then connected each appliances directly to that source.

Right on the money, but I think you'll probably find more like 11wc in your rig.

[The Wandering Irishman]

Great information here, thanks!

Our 2014 351DS does not have the exterior propane hookup, the newer 2015 models do. When I had our RV in for service at the dealership I asked if they could order in the components from a 2015 model and fit them to my 2014 (the Forest River rep had told me YES at an RV show). Finally they call me back with a quote of $250 for parts and labor to which I agree to. Then when I go to pick it up, they tell me they couldn't figure out where to mount the door as none of their 2015's on the lot had this connection. I had sent them photos (from their own web site which were still up), the FR rep's names I spoke to, etc. Not sure how they gave me a quote without knowing where it was going? I won't bother getting on my soapbox about quality of customer service these days....

So before I bother pursuing this any farther, those that have an exterior propane connection - do you use it as much as you thought you would? What about placement? Do you wish it where somewhere else - further forward or back, under the awning, in a locked compartment, etc.?

I think I'll use it all of the time with my Camp Chef stove (grill, griddle and pizza oven) rather than carry an extra 5-gallon tank. I'm more worried about the "right" placement, but a long enough hose and I guess that's not really an issue either.

Tom

[bend302]

When we were in Florida this winter, it was colder than past years and I was beginning to worry about running low on propane. Since there was no one who would come to the park and refill propane, our choice was to disconnect the Motorhome and go to a local propane dealer and refill.

I had a local mobile service company install a "stay-longer" valve that allowed the attachment of a 20lb tank. It also has an attachment for a grill.

This was installed prior to the regulator and was a lot less than $250. While I haven't used it for my grill, I am sure it allows the use of a regulated propane grill.

It seems counter-intuitive to me to install such a device after the regulator.

Bill

[Sandy and Shirley]

Originally Posted by The Wandering Irishman

Great information here, thanks!

Our 2014 351DS does not have the exterior propane hookup, the newer 2015 models do. When I had our RV in for service at the dealership I asked if they could order in the components from a 2015 model and fit them to my 2014 (the Forest River rep had told me YES at an RV show). Finally they call me back with a quote of $250 for parts and labor to which I agree to. Then when I go to pick it up, they tell me they couldn't figure out where to mount the door as none of their 2015's on the lot had this connection. I had sent them photos (from their own web site which were still up), the FR rep's names I spoke to, etc. Not sure how they gave me a quote without knowing where it was going? I won't bother getting on my soapbox about quality of customer service these days....

So before I bother pursuing this any farther, those that have an exterior propane connection - do you use it as much as you thought you would? What about placement? Do you wish it where somewhere else - further forward or back, under the awning, in a locked compartment, etc.?

I think I'll use it all of the time with my Camp Chef stove (grill, griddle and pizza oven) rather than carry an extra 5-gallon tank. I'm more worried about the "right" placement, but a long enough hose and I guess that's not really an issue either.

Tom

Tom, I made a direct connect fitting for my Coleman grill. It is the third post I made to the forum heading.

I will be trying it out this weekend and let owners know the results on that thread.

The problem with what you and I are talking about is we don't know the pressure of the propane at the external quick connect. There are 3 possibilities.

One, I seriously doubt they would send the full 250 PSI from the tank to that port.

Two, their regulators might have reduced the pressure to 10 PSI so they could then use normal regulators at each furnace, stove, water heater, etc.

Three, they may have reduced to 11 to 13 inches of water, 0.4 to 0.5 PSI, to run all appliances directly.

If they pass 10 PSI to you, you need a regulator on the grill, etc. If they are sending you 11 inches of water then you can't have a regulator. Two low pressure regulators in series stops the gas completely.

Oh yeah, your question LOL, once we have the pressure issue figured out we plan to use that port on every trip.