Regulators/adapters for propane

[Roger Mills]

Just bought one of Machine Mart's (Clarke) 'Little Devil' fan-assisted propane heaters for my garage/workshop - and boy, does it chuck out some heat!

I have two sources of propane at my disposal - a couple of red propane bottles (6Kg) intended for caravan use, and a larger (13Kg) bottle of 'patio gas' acquired with a patio heater which SWMBO insisted on buying a couple of years ago, and which has been used only once - so the bottle is almost full.

I had hoped to be able to use both sources with the Little Devil, as I have regulators with both type of fitting and assumed that I would be able to swap the Little Devil's pipe from one to the other. But no - for a start the pressure is quite different. Caravans and patio heaters run at 37 mBar whereas the Little Devil runs at 0.3 Bar (300 mBar). In addition, its rubber hose has swaged threaded connections both ends rather than simply pushing onto the regulator's fluted outlet pipe.

The regulator supplied with the Little Devil has the usual left-hand threaded propane inlet connection, which fits the caravan bottles without a problem. But I don't have a way of using the patio gas bottle - which uses a (27mm cylindrical) quick-fit connection similar to the 21mm jobby on many caravan butane bottles. Any ideas for solving this? It seems to me that I would need either an adapter with a 27mm input and an output female left-hand thread to take a conventional propane regulator, or a 'high pressure' regulator which would fit directly onto the patio gas bottle and which has a threaded outlet to take the Little Devil's pipe. Does either exist and, if so, where can I find it? Any alternative ideas?

TIA.

[TTT]

I believe the adaptor you describe is available - try the gaslow website?

[Dougal]

I think you will be lucky to find something that will directly adapt your cylinder-mounted regulator to a 27mm clip on connector.

Your best course may be a new high pressure regulator mounted on a 27mm clip on base, then provide a new hose direct to the heater.

Have a look here:

the database for 'snap tight regulator'

They do the standard 27mm 28/30 mbar clip on regulators but state that other pressures are possible.

is also an adjustable one of these have barbed outlets which may require some further adaptation.

They have a huge range. It would be easiest to speak to them directly:

Rotarex s.a. - UK Office

17 Dagden Road GU4 8DD, Shalford, Guildford, Surrey United Kingdom tel *44 1483 304 800, fax *44 1483 304 810 , mobile-phone + 44 ( 0 ) 777 55 234 91

ROTAREX UK Ltd

24 Fivefield Road CV7 8JE, Coventry United Kingdom tel *44 24 76 33 19 44, fax *44 24 76 33 19 44 , mobile-phone mobile: *44 7711 16 53 60

Alternatively try the websites of blow torch manufacturers selling in countries where 27 mm clip on cylinder connections are used.

[Roger Mills]

Thanks for the suggestion. They certainly have a 27mm clip-on adapter which might do the trick, but their website doesn't say what its outlet connection is. I have emailed them for clarification.

[Roger Mills]

Thanks for that link. Someone else has suggested that Gaslow may do an adapter - and I've found one on their site which may be ok, but will contact Rotarex if the Gaslow one won't do.

[Dougal]

I think you'll find that Gaslow don't have anything along the lines that you need. There is a 27 mm clip on adaptor to take a hose to a remote-mounted regulator: that's no good to you.

[dennis]

Before you spend anymore cash have you considered what all that water vapor is doing to your stuff? Propane heaters are a poor way to heat anything other than a greenhouse unless its got a proper flu. Those space heaters really are not suitable for a workshop although they may be OK on a building site.

[Dougal]

Here's another possibility:

parent company is Italian has Kosangas, Reca and Oara brands of clip-on regulators. I couldn't find any hard technical info. on their sites. http://151.1.209.147/Reca/sh_doc.asp?ID=20869

[Appin]

The message from "dennis@home" contains these words:

I'm sure the doctors will be pleased to know that there is now a real cure for those suffering from a proper flu.