Furnace / Propane ? Problems

[gypsmjim]

If its not one thing its another. It was a cold weekend - mid 20's - so the furnace was on a lot. The temp in the trailer was maintained perfectly, and the furnace cycled quite well, but the unit was extremely noisy.

The fan came on like normal, and when the burner lit it made a loud rumbling noise as long as it was burning. I don't know how else to describe it. Also, you could hear a vibration that sounded like tin vibrating. The only time I heard that before was just as the propane tank was running out, and thus I suspect it was gas starvation that made the burner run poorly.

When I noticed the issue I replaced the tank even though it was about 3/4 full. When I started the furnace back up it ran fine and quiet again on the new full tank. For about 4 hours. Then the noise came back. If I had the furnace running and the stove was turned on the flame on the stove was very very small. When the furnace was off the stove ran at full flame.

My thinking is that the valve on the tank was "freezing' up and not letting the gas thru. The "new" tank was cold - it was in an unheated shed - but not subjected to the heavy cold winds outside - until after I installed it.

I just hate these new tanks with the anti-leak valves. It seemed like the old style worked better.

Anybody have any comments?

[bansai]

You may be onto something with the freezing up part... when you've been running your furnace for that long, do you find that you have ice building up on your LP tanks? I've had this happen even in July if I'm running a large amount of propane into something for an extended time. I have no solutions to offer, just going down that same rabbit hole... sounds like something is freezing up / clogging.

If you were to let that 3/4 full tank sit and 'thaw' for a couple hours, and bring it back into service, it works fine for a while right?

[RyRoRyan]

One word...regulator

[mike837go]

Mid-20's won't cause a propane tank to loose that much pressure. You need bitter cold of below 0F for a 1/2 full (or better) tank to stop boiling off gas. The stuff boils at -46F. You'd have to draw off a whole lot really fast to get the remaining liquid THAT cold.


I'd side with a regulator issue. Auto changeover? 2-Stage? or super-simple?

[gypsmjim]

I wasn't thinking about fluid volume change (pressure), I was thinking that the metal parts may have contracted to reduce the orifice size.

Its a standard 2-stage single hose simple regulator. I only have 1 tank.

The trailer (and regulator) are only 2 years old. I thought of that too, but my gut feeling is its OK. Any regulator problems I've ever had were due to internal clogging from bugs, etc. My propane line has been either capped or in use since the trailer was new so no bugs could have entered while i owned it. Also, if it WAS the regulator, why did the new tank correct the problem?

I didn't bring the tank inside to warm it up, but I'll try that next weekend. I didn't notice any icing on the tank, other than snow, but the snow fell after the problem started. I do have a cover over the top of the tank, so it didn't get snow covered.

One other thought......Friday afternoon it was 70F outside. It was about 49 when I woke up Saturday, and the problem started at lunch Sat when it had dropped to about 33.

[Seann45]

Ever tried a bottle warmer? Racers using NOX use them to keep the pressure constant. it is just a small heating pad (12V) wrapped around the bottle.

[gypsmjim]

This week's update...

It was in the 40's Friday when we got to camp. Everything was working fine. It went below freezing Friday night and hovered all around 32 Saturday. Sunday morning we awoke to several inches of snow. My propane tank was frozen, the regulator had snow on it and the gas was still flowing.

In other words this was a repeat of the previous week. but the furnace ran perfect.

I guess I won't lose sleep over it....

[JEFF1963]

Gyps... - it may or may not be an issue, but you didn't state at what altitude you were camping. I spoke with Jayco as well as the dealer about this issue; it isn't very common or even well-considered. At high altitudes, above @ 7000 ft, the propane appliances (water heater, furnace, etc.) don't operate as efficiently or well because the orifice from which the propane emits to burn (just in front of the pilot light, whatever) may be too large, thereby putting out more propane than the thinner air can comfortably burn properly. To rectify this a smaller orifice is necessary to correctly match the fuel with the THINNER air at altitude. This adjustment is termed "DERATING". While uncommon, it does happen. However - a qualified technician is recommended to change out the appropriate fittings. Talking to Jayco and subsequently Norcall about this issue, they advise me (as well as I can recall), that the units in my rig (yours may have different manufacturers) are all tested at about 7000 ft. Though this may not be your particular issue, can you advise Forum members the altitude at which your problems occurred?

[gypsmjim]

We have a permanent setup and the trailer has been there 2 years (since new). Never had an issue before. We're in Southern NY at an altitude of about 2600 feet.

[JEFF1963]

OK. Well, as Rosanna-Anna-Dana was wont to say, "Never Mind" . By the bye, for anyone who cares, regarding the "derating", Norcal informed me this possible necessity was most prevalent in the Rocky Mt states where camping higher than 7 - 10,000 feet was most common.

[Seann45]

Ever thought of using a catalytic heater? uses no electricity and all the heat stays inside rather than being pumped outside as waste heat... I have been using one for the last 4 years and am very happy with it.. (Big Buddy) Olympian has some very nice ones with better features..