Basic Questions

[Goldenwingers]

As some of you may know, Don passed away this summer and I am now trying full-timing on my own. I'm determined not to make any decisions regarding this lifestyle for at least a year.

However, I'm almost like a newbie since Don did the maintenance and it seemed the time was never right for him to teach me some of the basics. Thanks to the help of Jim B I did manage to get water into my fresh water tank, but now I'm on to propane cylinders and more...

The propane cylinder on the off-door side has a window at the top of it that is currently showing green. I can slightly see there is red there also. Am I correct in thinking that this is my first, main, etc, tank. Once the green is gone from the viewing window, and there is red there, this tank will be empty and I have automatically switched over to the second tank? If I am correct about this, I would then have the off-door tank filled and ready for when the door side tank runs empty. Does the door side tank automatically switch back over to the off-door tank when it runs empty? There is no viewing window on the door-side tank.

I'm also starting a spreadsheet of maintenance items that need to be scheduled. So far I've got:

Anode Rod
Batteries
Wheel Bearings
Run Generator (Honda 2000)
Replace and Stabil gas for gen

I'd appreciate any input on how often these items should be addressed, as well as all of the items that I haven't yet thought of.

 

[jbeletti]

Hi Sheri,

So glad to see you back online. You're gonna get a lot of help here on the forum. Mostly, not by me but by dozens of regulars.

The green you are seeing is actually on the auto-changeover valve. Both tanks are plumbed into that valve, then there is an output to it that feeds the coach. You can manually rotate a lever on the valve. Look for some directional indicator on the lever or valve body to determine which tank you are manually switching over to. You can easily follow the line from the tank on that side into the changeover to know which way to point the lever to select that tank. With that knowledge, you can then tell which tank may be empty (red).

Others will weigh in to clarify what I am trying to say above

Jim

 

[Goldenwingers]

Thanks Jim, so are you saying that the tanks will automatically switch either way, but I can manually turn the valve to determine if one of the tanks is empty? It's going to be a cold winter and I want to get this right BEFORE I run out of propane in the middle of a snowy night.

 

[JohnDar]

View attachment 10789
Let's assume your tank valve looks something like mine. As Jim mentioned, there is an arrow on the valve that can point to either the left tank, right tank, or in the center. If it's in the center, then you will be drawing from both tanks and will have two empty tanks when the indicator changes to red.

With the selector set to the left tank, as an example, when it becomes empty, the indicator will change to red and the valve will automatically start drawing gas from the tank on the right. The indicator on the valve and the selector will not change, however. The indicator will change to green if you manually move the selector to the right side tank. At that point, shut off the left tank and take it for refilling. Once filled, put it back in place, connect the hose and open the valve. When the right tank runs dry, the indicator will again turn red and you repeat the process of switching the selector and getting the right side tank refilled, etc.

I labelled my tanks with my CG site number since I can leave them at the office to get filled and they'll return them to me.

 

[jonesj2]

As a slight reminder too, the valves on both tanks have to be open for it to automatically draw from the other side.

 

[Ray LeTourneau]

Sheri, Let's start from scratch. The ODS (off door side) tank has the main regulator. On this regulator there is a green/red indicator. Also on this regulator is a black plastic handle with an arrow. When this arrow is to the right you are drawing from the ODS tank. If the arrow is to the left, you are drawing from the DS (door side) tank.

When a tank runs out, the regulator pops red and starts drawing from the full tank. At this point, you turn that valve to point to the full tank. Then you close the valve on the empty tank and remove it for filling. When you install the newly filled tank, hook up the hose connector and open the tank valve SLOWLY. You are now set until the other tank runs out.

When the indicator pops red again, repeat this process. Things to remember, the black plastic valve on the regulator is basically just a reminder to tell you which tank is being used, but only when you point it to the tank in use. When you replace an empty tank with a full one, open the tank Valve slowly. There is a safety valve within the tank that will cause problems if you open it too fast. I hope I have helped.

Good to see you back out here. hang in there, it will get easier with time. Don't hesitate to ask a neighboring RVer for help.

 

[Goldenwingers]

Thanks to all for your help. I think I have this one straight now, but I'm quite sure there will be more questions later.