WARNING to all others about regulator hose to bottle

[tundrwd]

I've not had this issue before (but I've never had an "really old" trailer). On my 2018 FR trailer, I smelled propane last time we were out. So got out yesterday with a spray bottle and soapy water - took the cover off, and started spraying around.


Couldn't find anything. Meanwhile, I must have bumped something and all the sudden, could hear a hiss, and feel the propane coming out of the hose (bottle to regulator), and shut things down.


Took the hose off, was abraded/worn where the bottle cover goes over it, and had 4-5 cracks in it. One now large enough to do more than give out a subtle hint of propane. The other side was abraded too, and possibly very minor a crack or two.



Obviously - ordered 2 new hoses.


BE WARNED! Check your hoses. I think just moving the trailer, etc caused it to rub on the hoses and weaken them.



Now - I noticed that this propane bottle cover fits more tightly than ones I've had previously - even for the same size bottles. This one is snug. And doesn't look like they tried to put a 20# cover over 30# bottles - height is ok. Just very snug sliding down. Newer trailer - so newer cover, maybe they decided to shrink to save .01 per cover in materials - I don't know - do they make "same" size covers - but they fit differently? Like I said, earlier ones I always worried about it blowing off the bottles when towing - this one would take nearly an act of God to move it.

[ependydad]

Glad you found it!

[PopUpPop]

Do you have a picture of what you are referring to?

[tundrwd]

Originally Posted by PopUpPop

Do you have a picture of what you are referring to?

I'll try to get one in the next couple days. But it's completely obvious. Can't miss the wear spots, and really can't miss the cracks in the hose.

[TitanMike]

I had a trailer built in 1972 with the rubber pigtails connecting propane tank to regulator. Sold it in 1985 and the rubber pigtails were still fine.

Bought a new trailer in 1995 and kept it until 2017 with the same pigtails.

Bought my latest trailer in 2017 (2018 model year) and have had to replace the pigtails already

Conclusion? Factories are today using the cheapest they can find rather than the best quality they can find.

Best place for good pigtails is a local Propane Distributor that makes hoses. Take the old ones in and they will most likely save the fittings which are rarely the problem. The hose from China is crap and the crimp jobs are of similar quality.

[tundrwd]

Agreed. We took one tank in to a propane distributor since the valve knob just would come off in your hand when you opened it up. They needed to replace the valve - but couldn't get it off. I'm betting the manufacturer of the tank squeezed the opening to make it "out of round", so you couldn't get the valve out to replace it.

They gave me a new tank.

[NJKris]

Scary the stuff that can happen. I used a propane Y splitter on separate non-rv 20#tanks I bring to hook up firepit, stove, grill, etc. Last summer, the plastic ACME nut tank connection split while using it! Luckily, I was right there, and could hear and smell propane leak through fractured nut. But it was still on tank, and still allowing propane to flow to stove. Had I not been right there to quickly shut it off, things would have gotten real interesting. I have to say, the company, Bayou Classics, was very interested in this mishap, and immediately mailed me a new Y connector with no hassle at all, even though it was older.

[dward51]

2018 is a "really old trailer"??? Funny....

Hoses are made of Chineseium now days I guess

[n1acguy]

I found a couple minor things on my Sunseeker that were rubbing or close enough to rub with expansion and contraction when it was new. I didn't even bug the dealer about those small items, and the dealer was useless anyway.
Anything that might rub is bad news, whether it be a wire, hose, and of course propane lines. Even though it might take a few years for it to be a problem, it will be eventually. If you're able to, it would be worthwhile to inspect and secure anything that might rub. The way these things are built, they don't have time to be meticulous. The way it comes out is the way it goes out, a lot of times even if there's an oops.

[tundrwd]

Originally Posted by dward51

2018 is a "really old trailer"??? Funny....

Hoses are made of Chineseium now days I guess

No - I've had an '05 before - which I still don't consider "really old". Something from the 80's - that's really old...


Where can I invest in this Chineseium? Seems like a wise investment, as everyone will be replacing it every 3-4 years (or sooner).

[larry2c]

I've had to replace 2 hoses on our '17 TT since we bought it. However, it hasn't been the actual hose that's leaked - it's the crimped fitting that was cr@p...

[MillMitch]

Originally Posted by NJKris

Scary the stuff that can happen. I used a propane Y splitter on separate non-rv 20#tanks I bring to hook up firepit, stove, grill, etc. Last summer, the plastic ACME nut tank connection split while using it! Luckily, I was right there, and could hear and smell propane leak through fractured nut. But it was still on tank, and still allowing propane to flow to stove. Had I not been right there to quickly shut it off, things would have gotten real interesting. [/U]I have to say, the company, Bayou Classics, was very interested in this mishap, and immediately mailed me a new Y connector with no hassle at all, even though it was older[/U].

sorry, i have to digress. That comment Bayou Classics taking an interest in the mishap reminded me of college. I bought a Kentucky rifle from a buddy in my fraternity. He had made it from a kit, got bored with it, and wanted to get rid of it. When cleaning after shooting it for the first time I noticed small water leak at the breach. Emailed Connecticut Valley Arms and asked them if that was normal. Got a quick response telling me NOT to shoot the black powder gun anymore and they sent me a new Kentucky rifle kit. Put the kit together and I still have that Kentucky rifle 40 years later.

[TitanMike]

Originally Posted by MillMitch

sorry, i have to digress. That comment Bayou Classics taking an interest in the mishap reminded me of college. I bought a Kentucky rifle from a buddy in my fraternity. He had made it from a kit, got bored with it, and wanted to get rid of it. When cleaning after shooting it for the first time I noticed small water leak at the breach. Emailed Connecticut Valley Arms and asked them if that was normal. Got a quick response telling me NOT to shoot the black powder gun anymore and they sent me a new Kentucky rifle kit. Put the kit together and I still have that Kentucky rifle 40 years later.

They didn't want to get sued when you lost an eye when the breech plug exited at speed

[tundrwd]

Sorry - I’ve had no time to do much except tread water