Propane Leak?

We just took delivery of a Big Country 3450TS. Filled the two 30# propane tanks to check out all the appliances etc. I left the furnace on about 50'. Outside temps in the 40's, furnace did not run much though. Now, the two tanks only lasted two weeks at the most. I can only compare this to my other rig in which 60# of propane would last nearly the entire summer.

No propane odor can be smelled or detected by the alarm. How many connectors are there under the rig that I should check? I did notice that on one day when I was working in the rig and had the heat up higher, the one propane tank that was being used had some ice on it.

Is this a reasonable consumption? How much propane do you people use?

Many thanks!

SJH, our 5th wheel is almost 37' long w/2 slides and during a 5 day winter camping trip we will empty a complete 30# propane bottle (gotta keep momma & the babes warm/toasty). That is w/outside temps of 36*--45* and furnace set on 70*. One thing to keep in mind, propane bottles are only filled to 80% capacity for safety reasons (expansion room).

SJH, the ice you saw on the tank was probably the level of propane left in the tank. Depending what you have on, you could use 2 bottles in a weekend. We have done that when its been very cold. Check all the conections that you can see with soapy water. You will get bubbles if there is a leak. Bob

We have been going thru about 5 tanks a month this winter plus we usually just run furnance at night set at 60. Use fireplace and sometimes additional electric heater during day. Last months electric bill 100.00 plus another 100 for propane at our campground and this is southern Texas. Someone told me that a 30 pound bottle of propane would only last 11 hours of constant furnance running. Don't know if that is true or not. But this rv is big and the furnance's are very inefficent so I guess you pay or freeze. At another campground a person told me that with these cold temperatures around 20 everyone was going thru a tank in 3 days.

Thanks for your input...perhaps I am over-reacting about the propane consumption. Our previous 5th wheel was a 29 ft Springdale and I was always impressed with how little propane it used! It was much smaller than our new BC!

SJH:
If you want to KNOW if you have a propane leak, get one of those pressure guages you put on the tank in-line with your feed hose. Make sure that ALL propane appliances (including the refrig) are not on and using propane. Turn the propane supply valve on the tank ON then OFF. Watch the pressure guage needle. If the pressure bleeds down, you have a leak.
We had a small leak due to a cracked angle fitting in our kitchen slide. The dealer's service rep didn't bring a pressure guage with him on the call, and tried to convince us that the propane smell we smelled near the stove was normal. It took a 3rd party RV repairer about 3 hours to find the leak, but he knew it was there from my pressure test. The propane alarm never sounded. I don't think it does for minor leaks, and it is quite a ways away from the stove/refrig/furnace, anyways.
A leak down propane test should be done as part of the PDI (as well as a water system leak-down test).