Propane...how much do y'all use each day?

RockyMtnRay · 10-07-2004, 08:17 AM

In this thread discussing the water heater's electric element , Wayne (G_V Driver) wrote:

Quote:

I've been grousing to myself about the blankety electric switch being outside ever since I found out it had one. Used to hate to go outside (especially in the dark when it always seemed to fail) and light the pilot, now I grumble about the electric switch.

I've gotta figure out how to do this mod. I may never buy another tank of propane.

That last part just totally boggled my mind.

As an almost-exclusively boondock camper I seldomly have electrical hookups and my camping is almost always in cool to downright cold high altitude campgrounds. In mid-summer, I go through at least a gallon of propane a day; closer to nearly 2 gallons a day in early and late summer. Probably most of it is for the furnace (it runs 3 to 4 hours a day), quite a bit for the stove and oven (I use the oven for an hour or more almost every day), and some for the refrig. Not much for the water heater though...I'm so stingy with water, the water heater seldomly comes on...even during/after a shower. AFAIK, my water heater doesn't even have an electrical element. I'm probably at about the extreme for propane use but I sense that my water heater is a very small part of the total.

Hence Wayne's comment really raised my curiousity...how much (or little) propane do the rest of you use? And which appliance is likely your major propane user?

**mjlaupp** · 10-07-2004, 09:17 AM

Ray,
I may have to find a way to dispose of the old propane in my tanks. It does deteriorate with age and non-use, dosen't it? All of my outings to date have been at full hookup sites where I don't need the propane. I cook outdoors on a charcoal grill and use the microwave for heating frozen food and water for tea. I take the chill of of the morning with a ceramic block electric heater and use the outside mounted electric switch to heat my water. I do turn on the propane once a year in the spring and check out the gas appliances for proper operation. You never know when they might be needed.
MJL

**B_and_D** · 10-07-2004, 09:18 AM

We don't use that much...mostly for the refrigerator (when no hookups), hot water heater (when there's no campground showers) and for the stove/oven. We don't use the furnace in the TM except to warm up in the morning, it makes too much noise. When we have hookups we use a small electric heater. It seems to last quite a while for us. But that reminds me, I think I'd better pull off the tanks and fill them up before our next trip!

RMR, do you have a level indicator on your tanks? Have thought about buying one, but also wondering if they really work...

**jbeletti** · 10-07-2004, 09:52 AM

So far, in our first season of camping (14 outings - about 30 nights), we've used about 1.25 20# tanks. So maybe 25 pounds (not sure of the conversion to LP gallons).

That 30 days of gas usage was for the water heater, oven and furnace. We only dry camped once (due to my own induced electrical problem - dry fired the water heater electric element) so that was the only time we used propane for the refer (2 days worth).

Of those 30 days of camping, we probably used the furnace maybe 10 days. Sometimes it ran only a few times per full day other times it ran much more (early spring).

We've got a trip this weekend and one at the end of the month. I am expecting pretty cold midwest weather, although I'd prefer to be surprised with some ambient warmth!

Jim

**Bill** · 10-07-2004, 03:46 PM

Jim (and others take note) -

If you dry-fire the water heater and burn out the element, it need not ruin your camping trip!

In most cases, you won't even know you have done it, except that you have to heat water on gas. No problem.

In a few instances, it will cause the campground's GFI to pop. Note that it does not pop the TM's GFI, only the one in the campground. Not to worry, this is proper. As a temporary fix, find your circuit breakers and turn off the one labelled Water Heater. This should stop the GFI-trip problem. Assuming it does, you are good to go - finish your trip in peace. However, note that turning off the water heater's circuit breaker also turns off AC power to the refrig, so you will need to fire up the refrig on gas, too.

So if it happens, relax and enjoy the rest of your trip - and fix the water heater when you get back home.

Bill

02-27-2005, 10:13 AM

When we have boondocked during the summer months we went through a 20 lb. tank every 5-6 days.
This was with using the refrigerator, stove and water heater. We only turned on the water heater when we wanted to shower or wash dishes and shut it off when we were done.
I imagine the refrigerator was by far the heaviest drain on the propane. My experience when I lived off the grid with an old Servel gas refrigerator was that these things could suck up some propane.
I imagine that in the winter the fridge would use less but running the heater would more than make up the difference.
Five or six days may not sound very long but usually by then you're ready to head to town to do shopping and laundry anyway.
BTW I found that if I unhooked one tank for refilling the propane would leak out of the uncoupled hose end if the other tank was open. I had to make sure to have the remaining tank closed meaning the refrigerator would not be working. I solved this by getting a old propane tank valve assembly to use to close off the open line.

02-27-2005, 02:33 PM

In our first year we camped 24 nights,16 were full hookups...mostly hot water & stove top use, maybe three nights & mornings some heat. Used about a tank and a half with no glitches...a fun first year.

Paul & Kathy

**Bill** · 02-27-2005, 04:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bruce

BTW I found that if I unhooked one tank for refilling the propane would leak out of the uncoupled hose end if the other tank was open. I had to make sure to have the remaining tank closed meaning the refrigerator would not be working.

Wow, that shouldn't be true, as long as you flip over the little lever on the regulator to point to the full tank before you remove the hose from the empty one.

What a pain! That means that in order to change out an empty tank, even when the other tank is still full, all your gas appliances go out. Definitely wrong! Your changeover regulator may have a fault.

Bill

03-05-2005, 01:39 AM

I've been dry camping in Wyoming for about 2 months the last 4 years and get about 16-20 days per 20# bottle. The water heater is seldom used,
the oven has been on once just to see if it worked. Most of my cooking is done outdoors on an old stove or BBQ that are hooked up to a 3rd bottle that seems to last forever. Stove is used to heat water for washing, cleaning and coffee and non-greasy items. Seldom run the heater,
I fire up a lantern and put it down by my legs while I read or watch TV. Much quieter than the heater. I'd say the frig uses the most gas.

03-06-2005, 11:16 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bill

Wow, that shouldn't be true, as long as you flip over the little lever on the regulator to point to the full tank before you remove the hose from the empty one.

What a pain! That means that in order to change out an empty tank, even when the other tank is still full, all your gas appliances go out. Definitely wrong! Your changeover regulator may have a fault.

Bill

I'm not sure about that Bill but that is the way I thought it would work also. That is, by flipping the lever it would shut off the gas to the empty line.
Have you actually tried this? I find that flipping the lever makes no difference whatsoever. I think it is just there to remind you which bottle you are currently using since the changeover takes place automatically when one bottle empties.
Or maybe it just my TM that is this way? We have never been able to get the indicator on the Thetford toilet to work correctly either.

Bruce