Gas firepit using trailer propane

[Vaneta]

I don't use grills much and wouldn't use the one that came with my camper anyway (anyone need one?) I would like to get a gas firepit but most require larger portable tanks which I don't want to fool with. It would be great to be able to use the camper propane. I know the fitting on the camper to hook to the grill is low pressure and that most of those firepits have high pressure regulators. I can see where people make the modifcations to make those work but I would be uneasy about doing this.

I've done some searching with no results but if anyone knows of a gas firepit that is specifically made to hook to the low pressure camper system, please share that info. I am hoping that some entrepreneur has developed such a product.

[canadiankid]

No idea! But curious, how do you cook?

[Camper_bob]

Can't help with your specific issue, sorry. I carry a Camco Little Red Campfire, and I love it. I also carry a spare 20 lb tank for it and my grill and my lantern. I have a propane tree that I attach to the tank to run the grill and lantern. To run the campfire off the tree, in addition to the grill and the lantern, I need an adapter that I don't have yet.

Rather than messing with a regulator delete or a specific low pressure fire pit, I would just carry a tank just for the fire pit. It's not that big a deal, and then you can put the fire wherever you want!

[Sw7000]

I use a propane campfire pit that is fed from my trailer propane. I had a 20' Long propane hose made, with 3/8 npt fitting on one end and the quick release end on the other to tie into the trailer propane quick release. Works great. We camped for two weeks, used the stove, frig, water heater and campfire pit. I never ran out of propane. I have two 20lb bottles.

[Jmooney]

Originally Posted by Sw7000

I use a propane campfire pit that is fed from my trailer propane. I had a 20' Long propane hose made, with 3/8 npt fitting on one end and the quick release end on the other to tie into the trailer propane quick release. Works great. We camped for two weeks, used the stove, frig, water heater and campfire pit. I never ran out of propane. I have two 20lb bottles.

What type of campfire pit.....?

[RoyBraddy]

We have to have wood burning smell from the old fashion camp fire. Usually have a camp fire going from daylight up to 10PM each day haha...

We use the Coleman Road Trip grill and indoor stovetop in our off-road camping for cooking...



This is what we love to do...

Cloudland Canyon - Trenton GA

Roy Ken

[Vaneta]

Originally Posted by canadiankid

No idea! But curious, how do you cook?

I use the stove in the camper, microwave, small toaster oven, and small crockpot.

[Camper_bob]

Originally Posted by RoyBraddy

We have to have wood burning smell from the old fashion camp fire. Usually have a camp fire going from daylight up to 10PM each day haha...

We use the Coleman Road Trip grill and indoor stovetop in our off-road camping for cooking...



This is what we love to do...

Cloudland Canyon - Trenton GA

Roy Ken

That's great, and I love a good real wood campfire too. Problem is that TX has been in a historic drought for over a decade. It's just now getting a little more wet around here. So there's fire bans everywhere. You can still use a propane fire during a fire ban as it doesn't throw sparks or embers, and is considered just like your propane grill or other cooking accessory. So we get to have a fire no matter what.

Also, in TX in the summer, it's not uncommon for it to stay well into the 90s after the sun goes down and my propane campfire doesn't throw a lot of heat. So that means we can gather around a camp fire without worrying about heat exhaustion. Of course, the other edge of that sword is that it doesn't throw a lot of heat to keep us warm in the winter either.

And at the end of the night when we're ready to go in, I just turn off the valve, wait a minute for it to cool off, and go inside. No dousing coals or worrying about a hot spot re-igniting and burning the whole forest down.

While a real wood campfire is nice, there are many advantages to using a portable propane campfire.

[dewey02]

Originally Posted by RoyBraddy

We have to have wood burning smell from the old fashion camp fire. Usually have a camp fire going from daylight up to 10PM each day haha...

We use the Coleman Road Trip grill and indoor stovetop in our off-road camping for cooking...



This is what we love to do...

Cloudland Canyon - Trenton GA

Roy Ken

Roy,
How much wood do you burn through each day?
And with all the EAB and transporting firewood bans, it becomes harder to take a supply with you, unless you are camping relatively close to home.
Buying wood at state park and national forest campgrounds starts to get expensive real fast. Not only that, but they usually sell you slab wood which goes poof and burns up in just a few minutes.

I'm just wondering if you've got some suggestions, because like you, we love to have a fire going, but haven't figured out how to do it so wood doesn't cost us more than camping fees or gasoline for the TV.

Thanks! -Dewey

[North of 49°]

I've been wondering about this myself. While I love sitting around a campfire and relaxing in the evening, I've been kind of prevented by this due to DW's allergies; the campfire smoke aggravates them and if Mama ain't happy... well, you know the rest. Like a lot of other places, transportation of firewood around is prohibited, and the firewood supply available at campgrounds is either expensive, poor quality, or both.

So I've been looking into portable campfires, but I'm also looking for the convenience factor. Our trailer has two 30-lb tanks, so propane availability isn't a problem. I've already modified our Weber grille to work off the trailer propane supply, but I'd like to do the same with a portable campfire.

I found this YouTube video:

RV Gas Grill hookup

And although I haven't looked at any portable campfires to see how they're configured, I'm just wondering if the same method can be used for them.

[Sw7000]

Originally Posted by Jmooney

What type of campfire pit.....?

I use this one. It works great. With the 20' hose I had made I can move it a lot of places. My TT quick disconnect is right about in the middle of the TT. Under the awning.

Gas Fire Ring

[Vaneta]

Okay, some good info which has made me re-think.....I love it that this is the toughest decision I have to make. Camper Bob, I hadn't thought about those fire bans so that's a valid point but I do camp where the only fires allowed is a portable firepit. I had this on my "check out" list:
https://www.volcanogrills.com/ as I could use it as a grill or firepit. (anyone used these?) Then I saw one in Camping World catalog that is a pellet firepit and I had a pellet fireplace insert before so I'm familiar with that. They don't give off sparks but I'll rule that out in case it's not allowed. So okay, you guys have convinced me that carrying a propane 20 lb. cannister isn't all that big a deal so I'm going to start with gas and a cannister and then if I get motivated, maybe I'll try out the conversion to use the camper propane like SW7000 did.

[Camper_bob]

Originally Posted by Vaneta

snip
So okay, you guys have convinced me that carrying a propane 20 lb. cannister isn't all that big a deal so I'm going to start with gas and a cannister and then if I get motivated, maybe I'll try out the conversion to use the camper propane like SW7000 did.

I bungee mine into a milk crate. The crate weighs practically nothing, and does a GREAT job stabilizing the tank for transport. I had a bunch of them laying around from a past life anyway, so they were free too.

My step brother just yanks one of the tanks off the front of his trailer when he wants to use it for something else. We had a large family gathering, and we were using a large propane burner to cook breakfast, he just grabbed one of the cylinders off the front of his trailer and off we went. They're really not that hard to remove; mine are 30 lbs though, so like I said, I just carry a spare 20 lb tank and it's quite convenient.

[oldenuftoknowbetter]

Originally Posted by Vaneta

I don't use grills much and wouldn't use the one that came with my camper anyway (anyone need one?) I would like to get a gas firepit but most require larger portable tanks which I don't want to fool with. It would be great to be able to use the camper propane. I know the fitting on the camper to hook to the grill is low pressure and that most of those firepits have high pressure regulators. I can see where people make the modifcations to make those work but I would be uneasy about doing this.

I've done some searching with no results but if anyone knows of a gas firepit that is specifically made to hook to the low pressure camper system, please share that info. I am hoping that some entrepreneur has developed such a product.

Vaneta,

How much you asking for the grille? Could you post a pic?

[Sw7000]

If you have a longer line made, it will eliminate the regulator on the camp chef portable fire pit. You can then use it on your trailer bottles through the quick disconnect and will be regulated by the TT. The line that comes on the camp chef is only 8'. Too short in my opinion for any real use.

[Vaneta]

Originally Posted by oldenuftoknowbetter

Vaneta,

How much you asking for the grille? Could you post a pic?

I sent a message to your inbox

[North of 49°]

So, after some looking around, I found this one:



The regulator is on the end of the hose, so I'm wondering if it can't be removed and replaced with a propane quick connect to let it hook up to the trailer's propane system, much like we've done with the various Weber grills.

FWIW, here's the link to the item in question in the store. When I have time, I'll go down there and take a look.

[Vaneta]

Originally Posted by North of 49°

So, after some looking around, I found this one:



The regulator is on the end of the hose, so I'm wondering if it can't be removed and replaced with a propane quick connect to let it hook up to the trailer's propane system, much like we've done with the various Weber grills.

FWIW, here's the link to the item in question in the store. When I have time, I'll go down there and take a look.

I happened to see this on my phone and was at Lowe's and saw one of these. I really like it as it is about the right size. The regulator was covered in bubble wrap and I got a sales person who really couldn't help me and part of that is my fault for not knowing what to ask for. So when you check this out, I will be very interested in what you find. I think I want this one

[North of 49°]

I'll have time tomorrow to take a look. I'll take a cell phone photo of the regulator and post it here. I'm thinking it should just thread on to the end of the hose, so we can replace it with the Camco quick disconnect. i like the idea of a portable fire pit, but I don't want to haul around another 20 pounds of propane when I already have 60 pounds sitting on the tongue of the trailer.

[DesertJayco]

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