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Old 03-13-2015, 05:10 PM   #1
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Question New owner-Refrigerator question

We are about to set off for a week's stay in the North Georgia mountains and we are taking a load of food with us. Am I correct in thinking that it's okay to have the refrigerator running on propane while the trailer is being towed?.
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Old 03-13-2015, 05:42 PM   #2
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That's correct. We plug ours in and stock it the night before. then we use propane when we travel. Check out River Vista in Clayton. I forgot this we also leave ours on auto when we are in a park and plugged in.
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Old 03-13-2015, 05:59 PM   #3
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We do the same. I tow TT to the house the day before we leave. I plug into the house and go to work. The wife stocks everything up, including the refrigerator. I unplug the morning we leave and utilize the refrigerator/freezer as a cooler during our travels. All works out great! No need to use propane during the drive and if it's a multiple days drive, we get to the halfway point and plug into shore powers.

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Old 03-13-2015, 06:00 PM   #4
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Here is something from the Jayco Feather Manual:

JAYCO TOWABLE SECTION 4 - TOWING & SET-UP
 
Driving safety and protection against injury cannot be fully ensured. However, we recommend you pay special attention to the following:
Keep the tires inflated to the specified levels. Replace the tires before they are excessively worn.
The propane cylinder(s) should be turned off when traveling. Most refrigerators will keep food cold or frozen for eight hours without running while you travel.
Adverse weather conditions and extremes in terrain may affect the performance and handling of your tow vehicle. Do not operate the tow vehicle cruise control on icy or extremely wet roads, winding roads, in heavy traffic or in any other traffic situation where a constant speed cannot be maintained.
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Old 03-13-2015, 06:34 PM   #5
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Here is something from the Jayco Feather Manual:

The propane cylinder(s) should be turned off when traveling. Most refrigerators will keep food cold or frozen for eight hours without running while you travel.
Written by a very good attorney at JAYCO to limit their liability. In 37 years of having a unit with a LP/110 fridge I have always traveled with it on propane.
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Old 03-13-2015, 06:47 PM   #6
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There's debate on this board on the safety of this practice. You can see the discussions here: http://www.jaycoowners.com/forums/f7...ion-21944.html

http://www.jaycoowners.com/forums/f5...pane-7800.html

http://www.jaycoowners.com/forums/f5...ing-19361.html

There may be others but these threads will give you an idea of how people feel.
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Old 03-14-2015, 07:04 AM   #7
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And yet another very recent thread aligned to this topic: http://www.jaycoowners.com/forums/f7...ity-25133.html; here you will find some state restrictions.
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Old 03-14-2015, 07:09 AM   #8
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IF your fridge is cooled ahead of driving AND if you have virtually no unused space (meaning, pack it full), then your refrigerator becomes like a cooler; even the propane companies note your food will be just fine during transit. Please do refer to the above links as this is a topic with TONS of great info already gathered and shared.
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Old 03-14-2015, 01:00 PM   #9
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Grumpy View Post
Written by a very good attorney at JAYCO to limit their liability. In 37 years of having a unit with a LP/110 fridge I have always traveled with it on propane.
X2. Instructions on everything from boiling water to flying a plane come first from the companies' lawyers and insurance companies' lawyers, not those who know what the H they are talking about. Disgusting. Think I'll start a thread on stupid warnings.
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Old 03-14-2015, 01:21 PM   #10
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I have another refrigerator question for you all that keep it on while driving. I still feel like a newbie even though we have had a Jayco TT for 2 years. The one we have now is our second one and was bought in February. We were told from the person who did our walk thru don't ever use the propane while driving because it's against the law here in Washington. The salesman said sure go ahead I do it all the time. But what about keeping it level? I was also told if refrigerator is not level we would have problems with it and driving up and down mountains is certainly not level.


We just had an issue with the refrigerator. The green light was blinking. Dealer said it probably wasn't level and they reset it. That didn't fix it so they had to replace thermostat. Seems to work now.


So what's the scoop on a level refrigerator?
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Old 03-14-2015, 01:30 PM   #11
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In regards to the conflicting guidance from your dealer - I read that WA ferries have restrictions relating to RV propane tanks that require them to be turned-off and tagged prior to boarding.
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Old 03-14-2015, 01:49 PM   #12
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Thanks everyone. Good advice all around
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Old 03-14-2015, 02:33 PM   #13
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In many instances, it is not recommended. Check your local state laws and the states you plan to travel to. Check from several different angles on this subject. For example in California and New Jersey, the laws do not state that it is illegal to two a travel trailer or operate a motorhome with the refrigerator running on propane, however, it does state it is illegal to tow a trailer with the propane valves open. Some states have restrictions on transporting propane bottles through tunnels.
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Old 03-14-2015, 03:26 PM   #14
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Many areas require turning off or closing propane tanks. Tunnels, ferries. As for the level question, that is not a problem while you're moving. It becomes a problem when parked for an extended time.
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Old 03-14-2015, 05:12 PM   #15
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X2. Instructions on everything from boiling water to flying a plane come first from the companies' lawyers and insurance companies' lawyers, not those who know what the H they are talking about. Disgusting. Think I'll start a thread on stupid warnings.
I used to have a windshield sunshade with one of those stupid lawyer-driven tags on it:
WARNING - Do not operate vehicle with shade in place!
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Old 03-14-2015, 10:04 PM   #16
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Many cities have their entire transit system running on propane or compressed natural gas, there are kits you can buy to convert you car to operate on propane, fork lifts run on propane, inside and outside of warehouses, look around, there are literally thousands of vehicles and pieces of equipment using propane on moving vehicles, it can be done safely, yes you have to use common sense, yes there is a slight risk of fire or explosion, but remember there is 11-40 gallons of highly explosive gasoline near the rear of every car/truck out there.

In Oregon, you cannot dispense gasoline into your personal vehicle, rather it has to be done by a trained and certified attendant, but that does mean that their gas is any more dangerous than the gas in California, or any other state?

It is safe with near non-existence risk to travel with your fridge running.
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Old 03-15-2015, 07:45 AM   #17
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Driving with propane on.. a few things to be aware of
in a serious accident the propane lines on the RV can rupture and any spark will result in a fire ball...
Fuel stops.. if the fridge turns on the cooling unit while you are pumping gas it MAY ignite the gas vapors..
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Old 03-15-2015, 09:15 AM   #18
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Snake Plissken View Post
There's debate on this board on the safety of this practice. You can see the discussions here: http://www.jaycoowners.com/forums/f7...ion-21944.html

http://www.jaycoowners.com/forums/f5...pane-7800.html

http://www.jaycoowners.com/forums/f5...ing-19361.html

There may be others but these threads will give you an idea of how people feel.
X2! Thank you for pointing the OP to the wealth of comments pro and con concerning this topic. In the end some do and a few don't. I do 100% of the time

If people want to understand the truth behind the post that the Jayco manual said not to do it was written by a lawyer, all you need to do is grab an adult beverage and settle into your favorite easy chair with your owners manual. Skip to the Warning/Caution pages and enjoy. Not sure its mentioned, but when winter camping, "Do not stick your tongue on the propane tank".
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