Propane Leak Solved

[mtnman]

Last February I purchased a very nice, nearly new, used 2008 Hawk. I soon noticed a problem a number of other owners on this forum have reported. I had a slight odor of propane in the propane compartment and my propane leak detector would occasionally “sound-off” when the camper door was opened. The resolution for some of you has been to replace the tank. However, my efforts to detect the leak led me to be almost certain the tank was not the problem. I did the standard soapy water test on the complete tank and on all hose and regulator fittings many times and found nothing. This problem went on for months, with my leak detector only occasionally sounding. It was more of an annoyance than a safety concern for me, and I thought that maybe the slight smell of propane was normal. I finally decided I was going to solve this issue last weekend, but needed a different strategy. I removed the tank and unscrewed the regulator from the wall of the propane compartment. I then connected a spare vertical tank to the regulator and turned on the gas. Now, with the regulator freely accessible in the compartment, I took a bucket of water and placed it in the propane compartment and submerged the regulator in the water. At first I did not detect any leaks. I then turned the regulator upside down in the bucket of water and noticed a very small, steady stream of bubbles coming from the regulator vent. I shut off the tank and the bubbles went away. I turned the tank back on and the bubbles started forming again. My regulator had a very, very small leak in the diaphragm. I spent $20 and replaced the regulator and life is good again with my Hawk It was a simple fix, but a real pain to diagnose.

 

[SunMan]

Last February I purchased a very nice, nearly new, used 2008 Hawk. I soon noticed a problem a number of other owners on this forum have reported. I had a slight odor of propane in the propane compartment and my propane leak detector would occasionally “sound-off” when the camper door was opened. The resolution for some of you has been to replace the tank. However, my efforts to detect the leak led me to be almost certain the tank was not the problem. I did the standard soapy water test on the complete tank and on all hose and regulator fittings many times and found nothing. This problem went on for months, with my leak detector only occasionally sounding. It was more of an annoyance than a safety concern for me, and I thought that maybe the slight smell of propane was normal. I finally decided I was going to solve this issue last weekend, but needed a different strategy. I removed the tank and unscrewed the regulator from the wall of the propane compartment. I then connected a spare vertical tank to the regulator and turned on the gas. Now, with the regulator freely accessible in the compartment, I took a bucket of water and placed it in the propane compartment and submerged the regulator in the water. At first I did not detect any leaks. I then turned the regulator upside down in the bucket of water and noticed a very small, steady stream of bubbles coming from the regulator vent. I shut off the tank and the bubbles went away. I turned the tank back on and the bubbles started forming again. My regulator had a very, very small leak in the diaphragm. I spent $20 and replaced the regulator and life is good again with my Hawk

It was a simple fix, but a real pain to diagnose.



Good info. Thanks. Nothing worse than trying to figure out those small PITA problems.

 

[HERR42]

yes, thanks, especially the good description.

 

[K6ON]

Sounds exactly like what I experience when I open the propane tank compartment
when the tank is on. Thanks for heads-up...I'll check the regulator the same
way this weekend.

 

[camelracer]

Bob

I love the new avatar. Where's the winch and antenna?

Dick

 

[K6ON]

Bob

I love the new avatar. Where's the winch and antenna?

Dick


It has the horn, I'll work on the rest....

 

[mtnman]

Well, at least I thought I had my problem solved. Just returned from 11 days in the high desert of NE California on a muzzleloader deer hunt. The camper performed flawlessly through some pretty nasty backroad travel and some cold and windy weather. However, that #@!% propane leak detector started intermittently sounding off again. I could not smell any propane in the camper, but still have a slight odor in the tank compartment. I ended up pulling the fuse on the leak detector for the entire duration of the trip (not a good thing to be doing). My next move is to submerge the tank in water and see if there is any kind of slight leak. I'm also begining to suspect the leak detector is bad. I will sometimes get it to chirp when I pass by it getting in and out of the camper. Any other ideas from any of you? Any of you had to replace your leak detector?

BTW, I was moving camp to try a different hunting area and was at a gas station that had propane, so decided to top off the tank. I had been camping for 4 days and had the fridge and H2O heater running all the time, and was cycling the furnace a lot during the morning and evenings. (The night time temp was in the teens.) I had only used 1.6 Gal of propane in that 4 days. That is pretty impressive.

 

[DirtyDog]

Trust me, I've been through all this same stuff. The solution was to replace the tank.

 

[CJ8Rockcrawler]

Has anyone just tried to replace the fitting on top of the tank rather than replacing the tank? For those that have replaced the tanks, have you found a local supplier or did you just order from 4wc?

Thanks,

Kyle

 

[Chukar Hunter]

I have a tank valve that leaks if it is not completely open or completely closed and my local Ameragas told me there is no repair parts for the valve and a new tank was the only option. Seemed too expensive so I just live with it for now.
The new problem is the regulator which I think is also the Fridge problem I had. During the summer the only gas I was using was the fridge and it was only cooling the freezer. This winter I refilled the tank and headed out on a cold weather trip, when I tried to light the water heater it would light burn a short time and go out like it was out of gas. I tried the stove and same thing, the burner would light and go out in about a minute. If I leave it alone awhile and try again same thing. I removed my tank to see if maybe my gas leaked out going down the road and it was full so all symptoms pointed to the regulator. The only thing I could think at the time was give it a few taps and see if it is possibly stuck. I reinstalled the tank and sure enough problem solved. Now every time I turn off the tank when not in use or refill the tank I have to tap on the regulator before I install the tank or the same problem happens.
My conclusion on the fridge is the small flame kept burning but low gas pressure did not have enough BTU's and the regulator was just suppling enough gas to keep the small flame going. This winter I have not had a fridge problem but is it the cold weather or the gas supply? I plan on replacing the regulator but just have not had the time yet.
Any suggestions on a replacement brand? Is there differant styles that work better?

 

[mtnman]

Chukar Hunter,
I think your problem is with the ACME valve which is the big green knob which attaches to your propane tank. There is actually a flow regulator in the valve that is supposed to control gas flow in the event of a large pressure differential across the valve. I had problems with mine and replaced the hose with one that has a standard (non-ACME) fitting, and completely solved my problem. Read my entries to the post titled "Propane Hell" on this forum. Here's a link that should take you there - http://www.wanderthewest.com/forum/index.php?/topic/1964/page__st__50

 

[Chukar Hunter]

I guess this is good news, but now I'm not sure about my fridge problem. I really thaought I had a good theroy but this may shoot that down. I think I have a hose around somewhere that is the old style and I may give it a try. Looks like I have to wait untill next summer and warm weather to takle the fridge problem again.

 

[Barko1]

my propane leak detector would occasionally “sound-off” when the camper door was opened.


In researching propane systems one expert said that the leak detectors can be triggered by intestinal gases. I don't know if this was the cause of the problem in your cases but something that may need to be considered

 

[mtnman]

I guess this is good news, but now I'm not sure about my fridge problem. I really thaought I had a good theroy but this may shoot that down. I think I have a hose around somewhere that is the old style and I may give it a try. Looks like I have to wait untill next summer and warm weather to takle the fridge problem again.


Hmm, I thought the freezer and fridge ran off the same cooling circuit, with the only difference being that the bulk of the heat exchanger ran through the freezer portion. I've not inspected my fridge / freezer closely enough to be sure, but I doubt this system is much more sophisticated than that. If your freezer is cooling down, it should only be a matter of time before the fridge begins to cool as well.

BTW, on my problem with the propane leak, I did a complete water submerge test of my tank and new regulator this weekend. I don't have any leaks. Not even a bubble. And, I tested the tank valve in closed, open and partial open positions. No issues. I then started "messing" with my leak detector. I found that I could cause it to chirp, by just running my hand over the front of it. I also noticed the green LED was flickering a bit. I "re-did" the wiring connections on it and nothing changed. I tested it's operation with a propane torch (not lit of course) and it took quite a bit of propane to actually set it off. I'm cetain that it simply has an electrical problem. I'll be replacing it and I'm pretty certain it will solve my problem. I also learned in my research that they recommend replacing them (propane alarms) every 5 years at the longest. The one in my travel trailer is the original, 1997. I tested it with a propane torch and it does not work at all. Not much of a safety feature. I'll be replacing that one as well. I'm surprised they don't come with a "replace by" date stamped on the front.