Do You Tow with Propane Tanks Full or Empty

[Jagiven]

Originally Posted by MrNiceGuy

I'm not disagreeing at all with the properties of propane. I do believe that if a propane tank ruptures and the propane fills a cavity it will create a dangerous situation. This entire scenario can be avoided if a non absorption refrigerator is used in an RV. 12 volt/120 volt refrigerators have been used in the boating industry for years.

If a propane tank ruptures you have bigger issues. An empty tank is probably more dangerous than a full tank.

I have never heard anyone say to transport empty tanks to and from camp. It would be pointless. You might as well buy a 1 pound tank from the CG office.

To me it sounds like someone pulling someone's leg. Or a very uneducated individual talking about something they have absolutely no clue about.

[Crabman]

Originally Posted by FeatherFam

Why do some dealers and RVers say to travel with them empty? Is it for the weight advantage?

Never heard of this. It would be absurd to empty your propane tanks every time you hit the road. Perhaps your dealer meant water tanks? Some say do not travel with fresh water tank full but I also say that's BS or how would anyone boondock.

[ArcticFire]

Like most others. One tank "ON" and the other tank on "Stand-BY". The only place I have ever asked to turn propane off is on a ferry. ...... And they will check; just to be sure.

[wags999]

Originally Posted by Jagiven

If a propane tank ruptures you have bigger issues. An empty tank is probably more dangerous than a full tank.

I have never heard anyone say to transport empty tanks to and from camp. It would be pointless. You might as well buy a 1 pound tank from the CG office.

To me it sounds like someone pulling someone's leg. Or a very uneducated individual talking about something they have absolutely no clue about.

Leaking propane is almost impossible to ignite...you have to get the air/gas mixture between 2% and 9% or nothing will happen.. Only time you see a propane tank explode is when it's heated say in a fire and the gas expands....it's about as safe a product as you can get..NOTHING like gasoline or even the can of charcoal lighter fluid in your storage compartment.

[robert9999]

Full & on

[crumgater]

Originally Posted by MrNiceGuy

I'm not disagreeing at all with the properties of propane. I do believe that if a propane tank ruptures and the propane fills a cavity it will create a dangerous situation. This entire scenario can be avoided if a non absorption refrigerator is used in an RV. 12 volt/120 volt refrigerators have been used in the boating industry for years.

This makes more sense (to me, anyway) in an RV versus a trailer (our previous trailer didn't come with an on board generator)... but still... if you boondock and don't like to listen to generators all day (and night)... an absorption fridge is really handy.

[dewey02]

Originally Posted by Crabman

Never heard of this. It would be absurd to empty your propane tanks every time you hit the road. Perhaps your dealer meant water tanks? Some say do not travel with fresh water tank full but I also say that's BS or how would anyone boondock.

This sounds like the most logical explanation.
Did the dealer say "Don't travel with your tanks full" or "Always travel with your tanks empty" ? If so, he was clearly talking about your FW, GW and BW tanks, not your propane tanks. (And even then, I often travel with a full FW tank when going boondocking)

[Jagiven]

Originally Posted by wags999

Leaking propane is almost impossible to ignite...you have to get the air/gas mixture between 2% and 9% or nothing will happen.. Only time you see a propane tank explode is when it's heated say in a fire and the gas expands....it's about as safe a product as you can get..NOTHING like gasoline or even the can of charcoal lighter fluid in your storage compartment.

20 and 30 pound tanks are no fun to watch when set on/in a fire. Once they decide they are over pressure, the pressure relief pops, and you get a stream of propane vapor, that when caught on fire looks a little bit like a small hot air burner, only with a yellow flame.

No BOOM, NO Nothing! The safety relief does it job.

What to see some self combustion, get charcoal damp!

[Les7h]

There are several youTube videos but no explosions & Mythbusters also could not get any explosions

[Mikey]

Originally Posted by dewey02

This sounds like the most logical explanation.
Did the dealer say "Don't travel with your tanks full" or "Always travel with your tanks empty" ? If so, he was clearly talking about your FW, GW and BW tanks, not your propane tanks. (And even then, I often travel with a full FW tank when going boondocking)

X2. I think you've put your finger on it, Dewey!

[Big1]

Full.

[Bassdogs]

Originally Posted by MrNiceGuy

I'm not disagreeing at all with the properties of propane. I do believe that if a propane tank ruptures and the propane fills a cavity it will create a dangerous situation. This entire scenario can be avoided if a non absorption refrigerator is used in an RV. 12 volt/120 volt refrigerators have been used in the boating industry for years.

Have to disagree since I have owned a 54' houseboat for 20+ years and [drum roll] it had a standard RV gas/electric fridge. Second you said "you believe" something without giving any data or proof. There are hundreds of thousands of rvs [TT, 5'ers, MH's] and how many have you ever read that have exploded while on the road? This is why so many myths get circulated. A friend told me that the friend had a friend who knew someone who had a brother who went to camp as a 14 year old who had a camp councilor tell him that his father [etc etc] met a lady at the grocery who's camper van caught fire in a Walmart parking lot.

Occasionally stuff happens and the unusual can maybe occur under unusual circumstances BUT the other million or so camper days on the road that go without incident should be enough for us to Believe that its ok to travel with propane tanks that are ready to go when you stop for the day. I won't go as far as to say a dealer has never told someone to travel with empty tanks because there are a lot of stupid dealer employees out there. And finally exactly how are you to travel with empty tanks when you stop for the nite, then travel for another day, vacation for a few days, travel to the next site, repeat a couple more times and then drive home, all with empty tanks? Why have propane at all? Lets just use coleman lanterns and stoves.

[bansai]

It takes me over a year to go through a tank, not sure how I would travel with empty tanks logistically.

[RayPayne]

I only travel with empty propane tanks after forgetting to check them for too long.

[RPreeb]

Like the others, I can't conceive of any possible logic that would make me think that trying to travel with empty propane tanks makes any sense at all.

Several appliances in most RV's are designed to run most effectively on gas. There are models in which some items will only run on gas (furnace, some water heaters). I'm not going to be bothered about trying to find a propane vendor near where I'm camped, especially as most of my trips are to the mountains where such services can be hard to find.

[NCMFFD]

Another one for traveling with full tanks and the refrigerator running.

[Northwest Bob]

Full. Run fridge while traveling.

[Atlee]

I begin the season with full propane tanks. During the season, one will never be quite full. When it empties, I switch over to the full one, and refill the empty one.

My Fridge is on when traveling.

[SouthCo]

I do the same as the two previous posters...

[01tundra]

Well, the dealership sent me home with a full tank so..................

Traveling with an empty tank would be kind of pointless in my opinion.

Here's a real shocker, I typically travel with a full to mostly full fuel tank on my TV as well