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RV Lifestyle RV Podcast

RT62 What you need to know about propane and driving your RV

RV Lifestyle RV Podcast

Mike Wendland

Personal Journals, Leisure, Places & Travel, Society & Culture, Automotive

4.7624 Ratings

🗓️ 18 November 2015

⏱️ 63 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Should you turn your RV's propane system off every time you drive? Or is it okay to keep it on as you travel down the road? In this episode, we answer the questions, brought about after an RVer got involved in an accident. Afterwards, he got to "what iffing," wondering about his propane issues. We tell the story of his accident and get some great expert help on the answer. Plus, Jennifer's Tip of the Week, a Reader question about restoring a vintage RV, apps to make traveling better, a bucket list destination of the week and a fun interview with a mystery writer whose hero travels the country in an RV. Ever thought about writing a book? You'll enjoy this interview. [spp-player] Shownotes for Episode 62 of the Roadtreking RV Podcast, released Nov. 18, 2015 JENNIFER'S TIP OF THE WEEK - A retractable Clothes Line for the RV Jen's tip is a response to an email she received from a reader named Jean Boyle, who asks: "Jennifer, Did you ever get the pull out clothes line you mentioned in one of the videos? If so, what did you get and do you like it? Thank you!" [spp-timestamp time="6:01"] Well, Jean, and anyone else who may be interested…. Yes, she did get one It’s a very handy retractable 8-foot long clothesline we found on Amazon for around $16. (http://amzn.to/1WXei4z).  We have it mounted in the bathroom of our Roadtrek CS Adventurous XL. It mounted inside the shower enclosure and we use it to dry towels and the like as we travel. Something else we added was a magnifying mirror we also found on Amazon for about $25 (http://amzn.to/1QswnmF) [spp-tweet tweet="Two accessories every RV bathroom should have"] Propane: On or Off while Driving? Don Bell from Texas got in a frightening accident in his RV a couple of weeks ago. We shared the story and video taken with his dash cam that caught the whole crash in a recent blog post. Lots of people wanted to know how it has gone fro Don since the accident. We can report that he is fine. His insurance is going to take care of it all and, thanks to his dash cam video, there is no doubt that he was not at fault and the ticket went to the driver of the pickup truck. This is the dash cam Don uses. But we also heard from Don after the accident. Don wanted to know what he should do about the propane on his RV while driving. [spp-timestamp time="9:12"] Asked Don: "The night before my Roadtrek was involved in a major roadway accident, I was using propane for the refrigerator, Alde water heating system and range. On the day of the accident my propane was turned off at the tank. If one or more of the propane lines had been breached amid sparks flying during the collision, how likely would it be that the residual propane would ignite? What additional pre-trip preparations should I undertake to minimize the risk, if one exists?" I reached out to some experts for their advice. First, Gary Bunzer, known as “The RV Doctor” (rvdoctor.com) and the technical expert for the Family Motorcoach Association (fmca.com) gave us a very helpful and detailed response. Gary Bunzer, the "RV Doctor" Gary says as a compressed fuel, propane is still relatively safe, even in the event of an RV collision. Obviously, if propane is leaking from a severed section of tubing and ignition sources are close by, that would present a problem. But on ASME tanks and DOT cylinders, multiple safeguards are present on every RV. With the ASME tank, more often found on motorhomes, inside the POL fitting that attaches directly to the tank service valve, is a square-looking device called an excess flow restrictor. This excess flow device protects the high pressure (tank pressure) from escaping to quickly should the regulator and/or the POL fitting be broken off. The POL fitting (courtesy RVIA) POL? I had to ask Gary about that one. And he notes that actually, the part has always been called “POL” and campfire wisdom says it stands for “Put On Left” since it’s always a left-hand threaded fitting.

Transcript

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0:00.0

Here comes episode number 62.

0:04.5

It's time for road trekking, the podcast, traveling North America in a small motor home.

0:12.1

Exploring, camping, boondocking, embracing the RV lifestyle, and sharing tips, and where to go go and how to keep things running right

0:21.4

here's award-winning journalist Mike Wendland and his network of road trekking

0:29.1

reporters hello everybody welcome to the RV podcast lifestyle show whether you have a small

0:37.3

RV like the road track Jennifer Jennifer and I travel in,

0:40.1

or a great big Class A motor home, a fifth wheel, a pop-up. Even if you dry camp out of your car or

0:45.7

tent and are just thinking about getting an RV, this shows for you. We talk about getting out there,

0:51.4

enjoying God's creation, meeting interesting people, finding great

0:54.5

campsites, exploring the countryside, as well as sharing tips on keeping our RVs running right

1:00.2

and using the right gear and technology to enhance our camping and RV experience.

1:05.6

That's what road trekking the podcast is all about, the RV lifestyle.

1:14.4

The The podcast is all about the RV lifestyle. This episode of Road Trekking the RV podcast brought to you by Van City RV in St. Louis

1:19.8

and their partner dealerships Creston RV in Calispell, Montana, Wagon Trail RV in Las Vegas,

1:26.6

bringing you the largest inventory of Class B's from three locations.

1:30.9

Alde, ALDE, the only name to know when choosing a heating system for your RV.

1:36.2

Leisure Time RV, a family-owned dealership in Central Florida.

1:39.8

Your vacation starts at Leisure Time RV.

1:43.2

And Verizon Wireless, the nation's largest and most reliable

1:46.2

4G-L-T-E network. Well, welcome, everybody, to another Wednesday in another edition of road trekking

1:53.3

the RV podcast. We've got a lot coming up, including a very detailed description about something

1:58.9

that a lot of people are very confused about and should not be.

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