Patio Heaters and Gas BBQs: Calor's Rip-off Concept: 'Patio Gas' !

[Mary Fisher]

We have a gas water heater (a Rinnai) in one of our caravans. It didn't specify any type of gas but there might have been something about pressure - I leave that sort of techie thing to Spouse

OK, I realise that our water heater/space heater/cooker/fridge/lights combination won't have the same capacity or output as your French cottage but it works well with one bottle of butane or with one bottle of propane in most ambient temperatures. I've never, ever, heard of any appliance needing two bottles in parallel! For what you suggest to happen your rate of usage must be extremely great. A daughter has used one large bottles of butane in Wales for fuelling her very large cooker with no problem. In winter she switches to a bottle of propane - and I think she's considering year-round propane.

Perhaps the French are over-cautious?

Mary

[Andy Hall]

I'm sure that that's true.

If you look at a typical set of instructions to install a fixed gas appliance, there is often a set of conversion instructions. The main thing is to change the injector(s) and perhaps to set the pressure differently.

.andy

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[Andy Hall]

I believe that hot air balloonists run into this issue. AFAIK, they have arrangements of parallel connected cylinders with dip tubes into the liquid and then pipework running close to the flame to boil the liquid gas.

It all sounds highly dodgy to me..

.andy

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[Mary Fisher]

Steve must be on a very high French mountain to experience that phenomenon.

Mary

[Andy Hall]

Probably Mont Golfier I would imagine..........

.andy

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[Mary Fisher]

Nice one!

Mary

[Pete C]

All that is needed is for the gas in one spot to boil. Blokes are the ideal candidates for doing this, especially after a night at the pub!

Mike's idea of taking the cartrige to bed is great but I wouldn't want to do that with a 13kg cylinder...

cheers, Pete.

[Mary Fisher]

There were none of those raound.

I'm very pleased to say.

Quite.

Mary

[PoP]

I can just see Mary hitching up her skirt..... ;)

Err, no, I don't think we need to go there.

PoP

[Capitol]

Closely resembles a paraffin blowlamp. They only exploded on very rare occasions.

Regards Capitol

[Mary Fisher]

I rarely wear them.

Why are you not surprised?

Mary

[Owain]

"Andy Hall" wrote | I believe that hot air balloonists run into this issue. AFAIK, | they have arrangements of parallel connected cylinders with dip | tubes into the liquid and then pipework running close to the | flame to boil the liquid gas. | It all sounds highly dodgy to me..

It's just as well hot-air balloons don't use mains gas. Think what CORGI would have to say on the matter.

Owain

[Alan Dempster]

Andrew,

Thanks for your input!

I've already deduced that the stuff in the green 'Patio Gas' bottles (available at vast expense, and only direct from your friendly Calor dealer) is in fact, just Propane in a different bottle.

The plan now is to get a standard fit Propane regulator with a thumbwheel (rather than a hexagonal nut - saves searching for a spanner whilst pissed up at 10:30pm on a freezing summer's evening) and enjoy the cheaper running costs of standard cylinders, available from lots of petrol stations.

Still irritates me that Calor try and con the punter, though!

I will run the new BBQ off Propane too, more than likely..

Best,

Alan

[MBQ]

And petrol camping stoves.

MBQ

[Steve Walker]

That's the manufacturers recommendation and we have found that if we try to run off just one butane bottle, the hot water output drops considerably after a short while.

Steve W

[Steve Walker]

Well it'e a bloody big hill to walk up, but no we're not that high.

I must admit to being mighty impressed by the water supply there though. We've never checked the pressure, but even though we're at the top of the hill, we get a shower powerful enough to almost hurt - and that's with a 5 centime piece with a 3mm hole in it acting as a restrictor on the shower hose!

Steve W

[Steve Walker]

I seem to remember the heater is about 28kW and needs a regulator capable of 4kg per hour. It's obviously not running for very long each time and a

16kg bottle of propane usually lasts us around a fortnight (two people, plus cooking, not usually much heating unless we go at Christmas).

Steve W

[usenet]

Many hobs come with a second set of jets to convert between 'natural gas' and bottled gas. All you have to do is change the jets to change from one to the other (well, this was all it said one had to do in the instructions for our Belling hob). I don't think it even said that I

*mustn't* do it (i.e. the standard CORGI bit), it was almost regarded as a 'user' adjustment.

[geoff]

In message , Pete C writes

Unless it had a female connector ...