OT plumbing together two 20 lb. propane tanks?
On Mon, 4 Jan 2010 01:29:42 -0600, "William Wixon"
wrote: is this possible? plumbing together two 20 lb. propane tanks? i've got a propane heater in my workshop, it draws too much propane for one 20 lb. tank, freezes the propane. i was wondering if i plumbed two together if i'd be able to get enough gas to run the heater. is this stupid? do people do this? was wondering if they were plumbed together should it be before or after the regulator(s)? wondering if that's even possible, to have two separate regulators on two separate tanks running one heater. i don't want to get a larger tank, i've collected about 6 - 20 lb. tanks, i don't want to have to buy or rent a larger tank. (100 lb.?) i usually use propane for quick heat, warm up the shop until i get the wood stove fired up and making heat, then i turn off the propane heater so i'm not running propane continuously, maybe 1/2 hour. b.w. Manifolding multiple small tanks should work OK. I'd do it upstream of the regulator. Tanks manifolded together would then be similar to a larger tank. Boil rates in each tank would be similar because they're at equal pressure, so the boil rate in each of two 20-lb tanks would be half that of a 40-lb tank serving the same demand, and so on. A problem with manifolding downstream of regulators is that the regulators would need to be set to the exact same pressure. If they weren't, the highest pressure reg would dominate until the tank feeding it freezes enough so it can't meet delivery pressure setpoint. |
OT plumbing together two 20 lb. propane tanks?
is this possible? plumbing together two 20 lb. propane tanks? i've got a
propane heater in my workshop, it draws too much propane for one 20 lb. tank, freezes the propane. i was wondering if i plumbed two together if i'd be able to get enough gas to run the heater. is this stupid? do people do this? was wondering if they were plumbed together should it be before or after the regulator(s)? wondering if that's even possible, to have two separate regulators on two separate tanks running one heater. i don't want to get a larger tank, i've collected about 6 - 20 lb. tanks, i don't want to have to buy or rent a larger tank. (100 lb.?) i usually use propane for quick heat, warm up the shop until i get the wood stove fired up and making heat, then i turn off the propane heater so i'm not running propane continuously, maybe 1/2 hour. b.w. |
OT plumbing together two 20 lb. propane tanks?
On Jan 4, 12:29*am, "William Wixon" wrote:
is this possible? *plumbing together two 20 lb. propane tanks? *i've got a propane heater in my workshop, it draws too much propane for one 20 lb. tank, freezes the propane. *i was wondering if i plumbed two together if i'd be able to get enough gas to run the heater. *is this stupid? *do people do this? *was wondering if they were plumbed together should it be before or after the regulator(s)? *wondering if that's even possible, to have two separate regulators on two separate tanks running one heater. *i don't want to get a larger tank, i've collected about 6 - 20 lb. tanks, i don't want to have to buy or rent a larger tank. (100 lb.?) *i usually use propane for quick heat, warm up the shop until i get the wood stove fired up and making heat, then i turn off the propane heater so i'm not running propane continuously, maybe 1/2 hour. b.w. They do it all the time on travel trailers, although it's usually used 1 tank at a time. I've seen dual 100 lb tanks done that way, too. Usually done with compression fittings and flexible copper AFTER the regulators, two ends and a "T". The deal is that 100 lb tanks still can have the old-style valve, the OPD on the smaller tanks can restrict gas flow if you look at it funny. 100 lbs and larger is deemed "industrial" for some reason, guess they figure idiots won't be screwing up hooking them up to grills. They weren't that expensive last I looked, a new 100 lb. empty could be had for maybe $80-100. Just get a hand truck for running the empty back for filling. Stan |
OT plumbing together two 20 lb. propane tanks?
On Jan 4, 7:28*am, Don Foreman wrote:
Manifolding multiple small tanks should work OK. *I'd do it upstream of the regulator. *Tanks manifolded together would then be similar to a larger tank. Boil rates in each tank would be similar because they're at equal pressure, so the boil rate in each of two 20-lb tanks would be half that of a 40-lb tank serving the same demand, and so on. A problem with manifolding downstream of regulators is that the regulators would need to be set to the exact same pressure. If they weren't, the highest pressure reg would dominate until the tank feeding it freezes enough so it can't meet delivery pressure setpoint. I agree with Don, but would add that upstream of the regulators is high pressure. So you want to manifold with plumbing that will not rupture or leak. You could manifold after the regulators. And just use one tank at a time. Open valve on tank A and light heater. After about 15 minutes open valve on tank B and then close valve on tank A. ( I am assuming that a tank does not freeze up in less than 15 minutes. ) That would only take a few seconds, much better than having to shut off the heat , change tanks and restart the heater. Dan |
OT plumbing together two 20 lb. propane tanks?
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OT plumbing together two 20 lb. propane tanks?
There has to be some way to use the heat from the heater, to
warm the propane tank. Can you put a reflector a couple inches in front of the infared, and send some of that heat towards the tank? I had a similar moment, using a 16 ounce tank to heat a room where I was working. I tried using a propane torch to heat the camping tank. Worked some what. If you try that, heat low on the tank, so you're heating the liquid. Try not to cook the label. Move the flame around slowly. Water has a very high heat energy content. Maybe the first thing to do, is to heat a pan of water good and hot, and then pour or drip it onto the propane tank. -- Christopher A. Young Learn more about Jesus www.lds.org .. "William Wixon" wrote in message ... is this possible? plumbing together two 20 lb. propane tanks? i've got a propane heater in my workshop, it draws too much propane for one 20 lb. tank, freezes the propane. i was wondering if i plumbed two together if i'd be able to get enough gas to run the heater. is this stupid? do people do this? was wondering if they were plumbed together should it be before or after the regulator(s)? wondering if that's even possible, to have two separate regulators on two separate tanks running one heater. i don't want to get a larger tank, i've collected about 6 - 20 lb. tanks, i don't want to have to buy or rent a larger tank. (100 lb.?) i usually use propane for quick heat, warm up the shop until i get the wood stove fired up and making heat, then i turn off the propane heater so i'm not running propane continuously, maybe 1/2 hour. b.w. |
OT plumbing together two 20 lb. propane tanks?
--Sure thing. Make sure you use the new yellow Teflon tape. Include
a quarter-turn valve on each feed line so you can swap tanks without destroying the ability to have some heat while doing it. -- "Steamboat Ed" Haas : Currently broke and Hacking the Trailing Edge! : looking for a job... www.nmpproducts.com ---Decks a-wash in a sea of words--- |
OT plumbing together two 20 lb. propane tanks?
William Wixon wrote:
is this possible? plumbing together two 20 lb. propane tanks? i've got a propane heater in my workshop, it draws too much propane for one 20 lb. tank, freezes the propane. i was wondering if i plumbed two together if i'd be able to get enough gas to run the heater. is this stupid? do people do this? was wondering if they were plumbed together should it be before or after the regulator(s)? wondering if that's even possible, to have two separate regulators on two separate tanks running one heater. i don't want to get a larger tank, i've collected about 6 - 20 lb. tanks, i don't want to have to buy or rent a larger tank. (100 lb.?) i usually use propane for quick heat, warm up the shop until i get the wood stove fired up and making heat, then i turn off the propane heater so i'm not running propane continuously, maybe 1/2 hour. b.w. Maybe the sort of thing you need is shown here http://www.bes.co.uk/products/064.asp if available in the US , the page has automatic and manual versions. |
OT plumbing together two 20 lb. propane tanks?
|
OT plumbing together two 20 lb. propane tanks?
Go to a travel trailer place. They will sell you a manifold that
switches on-line a full before the depleted one goes. Shows you what is going on. It allows you to replace an empty bottle on-the-fly. Not really needed... Martin William Wixon wrote: is this possible? plumbing together two 20 lb. propane tanks? i've got a propane heater in my workshop, it draws too much propane for one 20 lb. tank, freezes the propane. i was wondering if i plumbed two together if i'd be able to get enough gas to run the heater. is this stupid? do people do this? was wondering if they were plumbed together should it be before or after the regulator(s)? wondering if that's even possible, to have two separate regulators on two separate tanks running one heater. i don't want to get a larger tank, i've collected about 6 - 20 lb. tanks, i don't want to have to buy or rent a larger tank. (100 lb.?) i usually use propane for quick heat, warm up the shop until i get the wood stove fired up and making heat, then i turn off the propane heater so i'm not running propane continuously, maybe 1/2 hour. b.w. |
OT plumbing together two 20 lb. propane tanks?
On Mon, 4 Jan 2010 01:29:42 -0600, "William Wixon"
wrote: is this possible? plumbing together two 20 lb. propane tanks? i've got a propane heater in my workshop, it draws too much propane for one 20 lb. tank, freezes the propane. i was wondering if i plumbed two together if i'd be able to get enough gas to run the heater. is this stupid? do people do this? was wondering if they were plumbed together should it be before or after the regulator(s)? wondering if that's even possible, to have two separate regulators on two separate tanks running one heater. i don't want to get a larger tank, i've collected about 6 - 20 lb. tanks, i don't want to have to buy or rent a larger tank. (100 lb.?) i usually use propane for quick heat, warm up the shop until i get the wood stove fired up and making heat, then i turn off the propane heater so i'm not running propane continuously, maybe 1/2 hour. It's very possible - the simplest way is to get one of the Double Check-Valve Tees off an old travel trailer, then remove the POL fitting from your existing propane hose. Attach the OUT port of the tee to the Heater hose, then attach the two short whip hoses to the two IN ports of the tee. The check valves are Very Critical, if you can't find the purpose built piece (that they stopped using widely in the 1970's for the automatic units below) get a regular tee and two spring-loaded ball check valves rated for 300 PSI. The check valves ensure that even if some dimbulb disconnects one tank hose with the other one pressurized, you won't have a huge gas leak out the whip hose POL fitting. The hot ticket is an automatic-changeover regulator like this one from Emerson Fisher http://www.fisherregulators.com/products/literature/lp/R962/ Or this one from Taiwan somewhere... http://www.tractorsupply.com/home-improvement/home-improvement/propane-heaters-accessories/propane-regulators/mr-heater-two-stage-auto-changeover-propane-regulator-2136085 Or the Marshall 250 - nice because it's a lever to show which tank is the 'preferred' and the red flag shows transfer. http://www.propaneproducts.com/Merch...ode=Regulators If nothing leaks, the check valves and/or the automatic changeover valves let you change tanks on the fly as it runs on the reserve with no problems - but you want to make sure there are no leaks BEFORE you try it with a lit appliance anywhere close. The automatic valves drop a red flag in a window (some more visible than others) when they have switched to the reserve tank, to indicate that you need to change the empty. Once you change tanks you have to follow the instructions to reset the flag, so it pops again when the second tank runs dry and switches back to the first. -- Bruce -- |
OT plumbing together two 20 lb. propane tanks?
On Mon, 4 Jan 2010 01:29:42 -0600, "William Wixon"
wrote: is this possible? plumbing together two 20 lb. propane tanks? i've got a propane heater in my workshop, it draws too much propane for one 20 lb. tank, freezes the propane. i was wondering if i plumbed two together if i'd be able to get enough gas to run the heater. is this stupid? do people do this? was wondering if they were plumbed together should it be before or after the regulator(s)? wondering if that's even possible, to have two separate regulators on two separate tanks running one heater. i don't want to get a larger tank, i've collected about 6 - 20 lb. tanks, i don't want to have to buy or rent a larger tank. (100 lb.?) i usually use propane for quick heat, warm up the shop until i get the wood stove fired up and making heat, then i turn off the propane heater so i'm not running propane continuously, maybe 1/2 hour. b.w. Hey Bill, Standard stuff on recreational vehicles like RV's & trailers. Try a dealer, or used trailer place. |
OT plumbing together two 20 lb. propane tanks?
On Mon, 04 Jan 2010 22:05:29 -0600, "Martin H. Eastburn"
wrote: Go to a travel trailer place. They will sell you a manifold that switches on-line a full before the depleted one goes. Shows you what is going on. It allows you to replace an empty bottle on-the-fly. Not really needed... Martin William Wixon wrote: is this possible? plumbing together two 20 lb. propane tanks? i've got a propane heater in my workshop, it draws too much propane for one 20 lb. tank, freezes the propane. i was wondering if i plumbed two together if i'd be able to get enough gas to run the heater. is this stupid? do people do this? was wondering if they were plumbed together should it be before or after the regulator(s)? wondering if that's even possible, to have two separate regulators on two separate tanks running one heater. i don't want to get a larger tank, i've collected about 6 - 20 lb. tanks, i don't want to have to buy or rent a larger tank. (100 lb.?) i usually use propane for quick heat, warm up the shop until i get the wood stove fired up and making heat, then i turn off the propane heater so i'm not running propane continuously, maybe 1/2 hour. b.w. and SOME even have a "both" setting. Some of the automatic ones could possibly switch back and forth when the pressure drops, even though the tank is still far from "empty" |
OT plumbing together two 20 lb. propane tanks?
seriously, thanks to everyone for their help and input.
b.w. |
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