DOT recalls hazardous cylinders manufactured by The Lite Cylinder Company

[Carol H]

Originally Posted by glamourpets

Its interesting nobody has come up with a metal tank with a "window" in the side. I've seen stick-on gauges for metal tanks, but nothing more sophisticated than this.

I have used for a number of years now a propane gauge I picked up at Costco that works pretty well. Its not perfect but find its pretty good at giving me enough warning that I need to get a refilled before I run out. As it on top of the tank its pretty hard to miss each time your shut the tank on or off for travel or storage. The ones that stick to the side of the tanks are a pain to try and read if you have any kind of tank cover.

[Thomas G.]

I was intrigued by these, but I'm now glad that I wasn't tricked into buying one. I told you camping was dangerous!

[jen b]

eff the eff, I just filled mine.

[mszabo]

Me too! And I'm going to use them till its gone.

[Tptmaster]

I have two. They came with my new trailer. I'm very unhappy about this because the tanks were the only thing not breaking down on my 2012 evergreen element trailer. I miss my 1986 Bigfoot . It never let me down.

[Donna D.]

Originally Posted by Tptmaster

I miss my 1986 Bigfoot . It never let me down.

You should have come here before you sold it, especially since you bought a stick built fiberglass trailer. We would have at least, tried to talk you out of it

[deryk]

I really liked the idea of being able to see how much propane is in the tank. I tried one of those gauges and it wasnt very accurate one day it showed it was half full the next day tank was empty. I did buy a hand scale that gives an idea of how much is left in the tank. Im sure my one full and one at 3/4's is good for the summer but when the cold weather hits I dont want to be surprised by it getting cold all of the sudden inside lol.

[Thomas G.]

Originally Posted by deryk

.......... I tried one of those gauges and it wasnt very accurate one day it showed it was half full the next day tank was empty. ......

Yea, those gauges only measure vapor pressure which is essentially constant (except for temperature changes) until just before the tank runs out. Silly design.

[Lil M.]

I also will be taking my 20# Lite Cylinder to the local propane place tomorrow to be emptied, purged and have the valve removed.
I had only half-filled it the first time, then used it to fuel my portable propane fire pit when a group of us went camping. When it ran out, my fellow campers paid to refill it.

[deryk]

Well with any luck the manuf will go back to the drawing board and redesign the tanks...its a great idea to be able to clearly see how much propane is in the tank. Yeah Tom those gauges are a poor design, I had it on my boat when I had propane for heat...figured it would give me an idea of when to change out the tank before I go to sleep and it runs out lol... nope waste of money. Now I will have to use the hand scale and weigh it...when it gets below a 1/4 refill time

[rabbit]

Won't need a drawing board to file for bankruptcy protection of personal assets.

jack

[David Tilston]

The pressure gauge is not a good way to tell how much propane you have, but Manchester makes a tank with a float gauge. I have seen them at Canadian tire. not much more then a regular steel tank.
As far as weight, an aluminum tank is about the same weight as a fibreglass tank. I have an aluminum forklift tank on my trailer:
http://www.fiberglassrv.com/forums/f...ank-49385.html
It has a quick fill port, and a level gauge that uses a float. They are about the same price as a fibreglass tank.
I think if I were to do it again, I would go with a Worthington cylinder. They have room for a liquid draw, (I use the liquid draw on my tank for the quick fill), and they are shiny.
http://www.worthingtoncylinders.com/...lift.sflb.ashx

[Brian B-P]

There have been previous discussions of propane level measurement, and I don't know of any new developments since the last round. Manchester's SureFlame tank with float gauge which David mentioned remains the obvious alternative to a see-through tank for those not buying their propane through a cylinder exchange service; it is a real level measurement, and works fine (I now have two of them).

[rabbit]

Weighing and subtracting the tare weight works well enuf.

jack

[Thomas G.]

Originally Posted by rabbit

Weighing and subtracting the tare weight works well enuf.

jack

I did that today to decide if I needed to refill. Interestingly, the tank that I bought last year from Costco has a November 2007 date stamped on it.

[Brian B-P]

Originally Posted by Thomas G.

Interestingly, the tank that I bought last year from Costco has a November 2007 date stamped on it.

Are you sure it isn't July 2011? The propane cylinder industry missed the lessons of "Y2K" and typically still uses two-digit dates, so the manufacturing date mark tends to look like "07/11" or "11/07".

[Brian B-P]

Originally Posted by rabbit

Weighing and subtracting the tare weight works well enuf.

Yes, that's the best method... if you don't mind dismounting the cylinder and you have a suitable scale handy. I think most people want something more convenient, and that's why some bought the translucent fiberglass cylinders.

[deryk]

Its the lazy factor lol...it is much more convenient to look ata gauge or through the cylinder then undo the tank and weigh it. I did pick up a hand scale to hang a tank on and will give mean idea of how much propane is in the tank....handy for cold weather camping... where ya really dont wanna run out of gas!

[mary and bob]

The new issue of Trailer Life [July] has an article about an ultrasound device to check the LP gas level in a tank. Supposed to be very accurate, Truma Levelcheck, expensive though at $69, but take in to consideration that it has a built in LED flashlight too, so how can you not want it!!!. Same issue has an article about installing solar.

[Brian B-P]

Originally Posted by mary and bob

The new issue of Trailer Life [July] has an article about an ultrasound device to check the LP gas level in a tank. Supposed to be very accurate, Truma Levelcheck..

This is an interesting device, but may not work on our tanks.
A recent discussion: Dometic Gas Checker Pen GC100