Propane: 2 feeds of single regulator?

[Deepdraft]

Hi,

Can I feed the propane stove and a Force 10 heater from a single regulator? (would tee it in the lpg locker).

Thanks.

[Dsanduril]

A qualified maybe.

In theory yes, as long as they both require about the same pressure on the low pressure side of the regulator. They most likely do.

The maybe comes from two items:

1. How much gas can the regulator flow, depends on size, make, model of regulator. If your current regulator can't do it you should be able to find one large enough that will.

2. Depends on how much gas your tank can generate. The tank contains liquified gas. That liquid turns to vapor by drawing heat from the surroundings (as you use gas you can feel the tank get cold). In the US we frequently say "propane" but what we really get is "LPG - Liquified Petroleum Gas", which is a mixture of propane and butane in the US. Propane will vaporize down to -42C (-44F) while butane will not vaporize below freezing. You don't have a lot to say about what mixture you get. And the time when you want to use the heater (and thus the most gas) is the time when the tank will be coldest, and thus least able to vaporize the liquid. In snow country we install larger than necessary propane/LPG tanks just to get extra surface area for heat collection and vaporization. So, the temperature, size, and surface area of the tank and the surface area of the liquid inside the tank affect how quickly the liquid will vaporize and supply gas, it is quite possible in cold conditions to attempt to draw more gas than the tank can generate.

[Deepdraft]

It's a Trident Marine regulator, (new). ABYC requires a regulator for each feed, possibly due to pressure variances? Thanks for the information.

[DRS]

What about a malfunction in one that would allow the output of gas while the other is ignited. Not long till boom ! Having said that my system is set up with the outside bbq teed off of the main line

[Dsanduril]

If it's the little Force 10 Cozy Cabin then it has a 6,500 BTU burner, which is about the size of a largish marine stove burner. So, you're basically looking at moving from a two burner to a three burner stove (or three to four, whatever).

Bottom line, it doesn't add that much load, so both the regulator and a 20# tank should be fine as long as it's not really cold.

Can't answer to the ABYC, makes no sense to me. I could see requiring separate shut offs, but not regulators. Every house I've had with LPG has had a single regulator for the entire house (furnace, water heater, stove, oven).

What about a malfunction in one that would allow the output of gas while the other is ignited

Same thing could happen with two regulators, if one device is malfunctioning to the point that it is dispensing unburned propane it doesn't matter whether it's on the same regulator. As noted, I could see a requirement for a separate shut off so that if there are problems you can shut off one or the other.

[Dsanduril]

I pulled up the ABYC standard, this is the only thing I see:

A-1.7.2 Each appliance shall be served by a separate
low pressure, i.e., 50 Mb (5 kPa), regulated supply line that
shall originate inside the cylinder locker or protective
enclosure.

I read that as requiring a separate line, not a separate regulator. The line has to start in the locker (at a manifold or tee), thus preventing tees in the line outside the locker. That does make sense to me, reduces the places where leaks can happen, pretty much only at the appliance connection.

[thinwater]

Yes, I did just that. I have 2x10-pound tanks and it all runs fine in sub-freezing weather.

Sail Delmarva: Let There be Heat!

Just remember the code and the propane detectors.

[Deepdraft]

Thanks all - great info!

[sailorchic34]

I've been doing the same thing for years. If you had a larger gas load I could see needing an extra regulator, but for the typical marine stove and a SMALL propane heater, its not a problem.

I actually ran a gas calc to verify the pressure drops in the hose was acceptable with everything running.. The typical regulator will easily do it (with propane anyway)

[Deepdraft]

Then that works for me too! Thanks.