How much LPG (Propane/Butane) do cruising yachts carry?

[goboatingnow]

Jeepers we cook a lot on board but in high summer it’s mostly salads etc. A 3 .5kg will last me two months as long as I don’t bake.

[El Pinguino]

I have Australian standard connections which I believe are also the standard in US, Canada, and NZ. Standard in Chile on LARGE domestic cylinders but not the small ones.

I carry three 4.5kg tanks from these people.

https://www.stainlesstanks.com.au/pr...-lpg-cylinder/

They are between 20 and 25 years old.

Benefits of having three of this size - easy to handle and you can have one in use, one full, plus one empty waiting to go up the road.

NZ wanted them tested before they would fill them and there was a bit of drama re the rubber boot when testing in Gulf Harbour area - Albany? - in 2014. Ten years earlier in Tauranga no issues.

No probs getting them filled in Chile, Falkland Islands, Argentina or Ecuador.
Prices are all over the place - $CH3500 in Puerto Williams, $CH 17,000 in Puerto Montt and $US10 per bottle here in Ecuador last week. In each case that was on a collect and return basis so was cost of gas plus some bloke's time. BA was just drop off at hardware shop and pick up the next day.
Appeared to be no problems getting them filled in Papeete but it involved leaving them unsecure at a servo and I reckoned the one I was going to get filled would probably get pinched.
I changed all the valves about 9 years ago.

[stormalong]

Have Australia, England, Ireland, Scotland, etc switched to OPD valve tanks?

In the US that would prevent them being filled. They made that change here about 20 years ago. At the same time filling stations started checking inspection dates. Before then most fillers would fill anything.

Australia, England, New Zealand Ireland, Scotland use a POL fitting almost identical to the US and most are interchangeable.

I have had my US tank filled in Australia but the guy was very hesitant to doing it. Said it was illegal.

New Zealand did it after a local inspection.

Ireland no problem. One of my tanks still has a sticker on it from Limerick.

[newhaul]

Originally Posted by stormalong

Have Australia, England, Ireland, Scotland, etc switched to OPD valve tanks?

In the US that would prevent them being filled. They made that change here about 20 years ago. At the same time filling stations started checking inspection dates. Before then most fillers would fill anything.

Australia, England, New Zealand Ireland, Scotland use a POL fitting almost identical to the US and most are interchangeable.

I have had my US tank filled in Australia but the guy was very hesitant to doing it. Said it was illegal.

New Zealand did it after a local inspection.

Ireland no problem. One of my tanks still has a sticker on it from Limerick.

I get my old tanks filled usually at some equipment rental place they don't care as long as it looks good . So keep them clean and painted .

[wingssail]

Originally Posted by stormalong

Have Australia, England, Ireland, Scotland, etc switched to OPD valve tanks?

In the US that would prevent them being filled. They made that change here about 20 years ago. At the same time filling stations started checking inspection dates. Before then most fillers would fill anything.

Australia, England, New Zealand Ireland, Scotland use a POL fitting almost identical to the US and most are interchangeable.

I have had my US tank filled in Australia but the guy was very hesitant to doing it. Said it was illegal.

New Zealand did it after a local inspection.

Ireland no problem. One of my tanks still has a sticker on it from Limerick.

We had a minor problem getting our non-certified tanks refilled in Auckland. The attendant wanted to read the certification information, which was not possible because it was not present. But the tanks were rusty and you couldn't easily tell what was stamped there. So, to help the attendant, I wrote the required information on a card and presented it to the attendant,

"That's hard to read, here is what it says."

Of course the written information was for a properly certified tank.

This worked for 18 months. When we went north nobody cared and I tossed out that card.

[ChrisJHC]

Originally Posted by wingssail

We had a minor problem getting our non-certified tanks refilled in Auckland. The attendant wanted to read the certification information, which was not possible because it was not present. But the tanks were rusty and you couldn't easily tell what was stamped there. So, to help the attendant, I wrote the required information on a card and presented it to the attendant,

"That's hard to read, here is what it says."

Of course the written information was for a properly certified tank.

This worked for 18 months. When we went north nobody cared and I tossed out that card.

Disclaimer: I have a metho stove not LPG.

I would have thought that taking risks with rusty LPG tanks for permanent storage on a yacht was a bit too much!

[wingssail]

Originally Posted by ChrisJHC

Disclaimer: I have a metho stove not LPG.

I would have thought that taking risks with rusty LPG tanks for permanent storage on a yacht was a bit too much!

Well that's maybe the difference between me and you. I looked at the tanks and where they were rusted and where they seems perfectly intact and decided the government in New Zealand was a bit too much. I used those tanks for 9 more years.

[newhaul]

Originally Posted by ChrisJHC

Disclaimer: I have a metho stove not LPG.

I would have thought that taking risks with rusty LPG tanks for permanent storage on a yacht was a bit too much!

Actually the tanks are 1/8 inch thick steel a little surface rust is not a problem . personally I wire brush and spray can paint them every 5 or so years .

[BlueH2Obound]

We moved onto our boat full time in September. Filled the 33.5lb propane tank in min-October, just ran out today . . . used for stove and oven only. Two people, full time cruisers. So, 6 months on one tank!

[goboatingnow]

Filling butane tanks is getting more and more difficult in Europe as safety rules means walk up personal filling is effectively illegal, though many countries have a long history of this and facilities remain.

Some cylinders have OPD Valves and can’t easily be refilled , the 3.5 kg ( camping gas) has an internal ball valve , so both low and high pressure valves can be fitted and these facilitate filling.

In Europe in my experience this bottle dominates on boats as most gas lockers arnt big enough to handle anything bigger

[clownfishsydney]

A 4.5 kg cylinder lasted me 6 weeks, two on board and sometimes a few more for a week. Cooked meal every night, lots of water boiled for tea and coffee every day. Had two cylinders, so three months worth.

[Zencra]

Were in our 4th year now full time and carry 2x9lb bottles. We get 2 months from one bottle depending on how much bread we bake! We have a lithium bank and now use a lot less as we use a lot more electric appliances, kettle, microwave my porridge etc. I need to buy an induction hotplate to use even less.
We have recently crossed the Atlantic and are now for the first time having issues getting a fill but have heard that there are places that will decant butane into our propane cylinders. I'd carry some extra fittings and hose to do just that then you can do your own fills in an emergency. So 2x 9kg bottles would last us 1 year I reckon, at least!

[Benz]

Originally Posted by Zencra

Were in our 4th year now full time and carry 2x9lb bottles. We get 2 months from one bottle depending on how much bread we bake! We have a lithium bank and now use a lot less as we use a lot more electric appliances, kettle, microwave my porridge etc. I need to buy an induction hotplate to use even less.
We have recently crossed the Atlantic and are now for the first time having issues getting a fill but have heard that there are places that will decant butane into our propane cylinders. I'd carry some extra fittings and hose to do just that then you can do your own fills in an emergency. So 2x 9kg bottles would last us 1 year I reckon, at least!

Can you share what sort of fittings are necessary to convert from one fill to another? I'm searching for just this solution.

[wsmurdoch]

While you can buy some adaptors...
https://www.defender.com/product3.js...76255&id=58932
https://www.defender.com/product3.js...76255&id=58946
...you will probably need to make your own hose to transfer propane from one type of tank to another. If you start with a US LPG pigtail that will fit your USA tank, you will have the "A" fitting and the UL approved LPG hose. You will then have to locate the "B" fitting locally. To transfer propane rapidly the fittings need to be full bore with a 1/4" hole, so the US LPG pigtail should be the old style POL.

[Benz]

Originally Posted by wsmurdoch

While you can buy some adaptors...
https://www.defender.com/product3.js...76255&id=58932
https://www.defender.com/product3.js...76255&id=58946
...you will probably need to make your own hose to transfer propane from one type of tank to another. If you start with a US LPG pigtail that will fit your USA tank, you will have the "A" fitting and the UL approved LPG hose. You will then have to locate the "B" fitting locally. To transfer propane rapidly the fittings need to be full bore with a 1/4" hole, so the US LPG pigtail should be the old style POL.

Thanks very much--it's as I thought. I have a variety of fittings for directly filling one tank from another, and some fittings with hoses; I'll just need to get the local adaptors in each place.