Is This Safe?

kloudie1 · Apr 9, 2012

The key is to imagine water leaking thru the bag .. The propane is heavier than air so it will sink out of the bag, much like water would. If that cockpit drain normally exits above water, that is a perfect place to store the cylinders. if the drain exits under water, the propane would not drain out and could, on a very calm day, seep into the cabin by overflowing the companionway sill.

eherlihy · Apr 9, 2012

A 4" piece of PVC pipe with a cap on both ends (cement the bottom, leave the top loose), fixed to a stern rail did the job for me.

Jackdaw · Apr 9, 2012

PVC pipe holder, in the Anchor locker.

Stays mostly dry, drains low to the outside, no access inside.

IF you have one....

Squidd · Apr 9, 2012

I've heard this several times about "storage" inside...

But is it OK/dangerous to "use" the propane tank on say a coleman lamp or heater inside the cabin...?

bria46 · Apr 9, 2012

I certaintly wouldn't use any heater that uses a combustible fueled device without an approved CO detector!! Check Ebay for Detectors that are designed for 12 VDC operation.

Webone · Apr 9, 2012

You can buy a nice Propane/CO detector from an RV dealer. Always store propane outside or where fumes can drain off the boat. Catalytic heater might work ok.

Ross · Apr 9, 2012

Who comes up with this crap? I have had small propane bottles in my house for forty years. When I pull one it is still full. If it leaked it would have long since been empty.

njsail · Apr 9, 2012

my 2 cents - propane is heavier than air. Since it appears you are storing the canister in the cockpit there is a potential for the propane to leak and travel down into the cabin, locker or engine room. Of course you could rationalize this by saying the wind is always blowing and will dissipate the propane harmlessly. A number of years ago I had the valve in the propane bottle head fail (yes it does happen) and not properly seal when I took the stove head off it. I didn't realize it was leaking until I put it on the shelf at home. luckily shortly thereafter i went into the garage and smelled the propane. I opened the door (not the electric garage door) and moved the bottle outside. I gained some additional respect for that little green bottle after that. Now I use the method eherlihy mentioned. I bought a precut 2 foot length of heavy 4" PVC from home depot (1/4" thick). I put a cap on it and added 2 stainless straps and mounted it on the stern rail. It holds 2 bottles. I put a stainless bolt through the bottom of the pipe and that holds in the bottles.

Good luck and stay safe.

Benny17441 · Apr 9, 2012

Nothing in this world is 100% safe. So we are talking about different degrees of safety here. Storing 1lb propane cannisters inside the cabin of a boat carries a degree of risk but in order to assign a degree of risk we would need to compare the actual number of accidents to the total number of boats that store the bottles on board. Whatever risk factor is assigned then would need to be compared with the risk factor assigned to other on board activities. Don't fool yourselves in believing that handling gasoline on board for the outboard is safer than storing 1lb propane bottles inside the cabin. Just ask yourselves, in your many years of sailing and being around boats how many accidents have you heard off being directly attributable to stored 1lb propane bottles? I believe the implanted fear widely exceeds the actual risk rating. It is smart to try and mitigate all risks so you could store the propane bottles in the anchor locker as it is enclosed and vented to the outside but if your boat lacks an anchor locker then you have the option of not cooking or heating the cabin or storing them somewhere in the boat. I would think that clanking bottles in a mesh bag hung on deck would be more prone to failure than those secured in place on a locker or cabinet.

Anchor Down · Apr 9, 2012

Now, now, Benny: we'll have none of that common sense here.

Ron20324 · Apr 9, 2012

It's the possiblity of a problem happening, tempered by the likelyhood of it happening.

Ross · Apr 9, 2012

The valve core in these bottles is precisely the same as the valve core in your car tires. When was the last time you had one fail?

Scott B · Apr 10, 2012

Ross said:
The valve core in these bottles is precisely the same as the valve core in your car tires. When was the last time you had one fail?

Last year when I removed the regulator and the valve stuck open. Put the regulator back on and left it on until I used up the propane.

So, yes they do fail.

Ross · Apr 10, 2012

Scott B said:
Last year when I removed the regulator and the valve stuck open. Put the regulator back on and left it on until I used up the propane.

So, yes they do fail.

But not suddenly while sitting in storage.

chp · Apr 10, 2012

I agree with Scott. When I remove the bottle from the regulator the bottle would leak. It was a small leak that you could only notice when you put your nose close to the bottle neck. I've had this on more than 1 occasion.

kloudie1 · Apr 10, 2012

You are correct, Ross.. In all the years that I've been messing with the little cylinders, I have had only one fail and it was on removal of the torch body from a full cylinder that was over 20 years old.. The real concern is that many folks might not notice a small leak.. I have never seen one spontaneously begin to leak. Even so, I keep mine in a shallow cockpit locker that drains into the cockpit and then overboard through a drain that is not water sealed.

Bill Roosa · Apr 10, 2012

the REAL issue is leaving them on board for long periods while you are away and they start leaking and the bilge pump comes on with some sparks..........and you get to talk to the insurance guy.
while you are on the boat you would have to completely button up the boat to get a small enough flow of air to actually be able to demonstrate the accumulation of propane in a low spot. Just your moving around is enough to stir it up. As a reference CO2 is only slightly lighter than propane and nobody has a CO2 monitor (that stuff can kill you if you stay in a closed up boat and don't let in any fresh air)

Is This Safe?

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