WOW - Check That Propane !!

[doublevan2]

WoW --
Saw this on todays internet news ! Be sure to check your propane connections before you experience this !!

https://www.msn.com/en-us/autos/news...ategory=foryou

[REF]

That’ll buff right out…..it looks like it was parked at a residence, so at least there’s a chance they weren’t in it when it blew, hope no one was injured.
We rented a home brew camper van in Hawaii last year and the owner mentioned he had done some maintenance on the stove or pulled the cabinet out or something and that the propane tank valve was closed. Mind you, this was a regular 20lb bbq style tank sitting under the platform bed in the back of the van, unsecured, so at the least, it should be shut off when not in use. When we parked and went to cook up a meal, I opened up the back doors and turned on the tank valve and almost immediately my wife and kid who were up front heard the hissing and smelled propane, I quickly shut the valve off and aired things out before finding the fitting at the back of the 2 burner built in cooktop was really loose, yikes! Can’t imagine the results of them renting to some clueless people not adept at the inner workings of a camper van.
One more….I lived out in Tahoe years ago, I think it was a service tech working on a propane heater in a condo complex just outside of Tahoe City was blown out the side of the building when the propane that had built up inside the unit finally blew, massive damage, I think he lived, don’t think there was a resultant fire, just a huge hole in the side of the building.

[saline]

Sheesh, that's impressive!

As someone who has been in an catastrophic interior residential propane explosion...I don't recommend it. Zero stars, would not do again.
The explosion was the result of a jerryrigged propane connection. Thank God for good protective gear. Concussions, hearing loss and a 2nd degree burn is all we suffered.

[shenrie]

Wow.

I worked with this guy; story

The stories and pix he had were insane. He said he was under the truck when it exploded. Said that’s what saved him from being killed. Won’t say I understand that, but he was burned over 80% of his body. He said the paramedics didn’t believe he was the “injured” party, lol. Like being mostly naked and laying in the snow wasn’t a give away...

[gcvt]

In today's used car market, that van is probably still worth about $12,000

[Orv]

Originally Posted by REF

Mind you, this was a regular 20lb bbq style tank sitting under the platform bed in the back of the van, unsecured, so at the least, it should be shut off when not in use.

I don't like seeing BBQ bottles inside the van. If the tank pressure gets too high -- for example, if it's overfilled and gets hot -- the safety valve can release propane directly into the van. They're really meant to be outside (which is why trailers have them on the A-frame). At very least, put them in a compartment ventilated to the outside.

That said, in one of those shots of the van there's what looks suspiciously like a two-gauge rig for an oxy-acetyline torch, which makes me wonder if what blew up in this case was actually propane...

[86Scotty]

Originally Posted by gcvt

In today's used car market, that van is probably still worth about $12,000

LMAO!!!!

The van looks like a contractor's van from the interior pics (tools/junk). Not that it matters but we've seen this before a few times.

I'm sure many people remember the one that blew up some guy's whole neighborhood. Pics from the cove he lived in with pieces of van all over the roofs and houses in ever direction.

Crazy.

[ShuttlePilot]

Originally Posted by Orv

That said, in one of those shots of the van there's what looks suspiciously like a two-gauge rig for an oxy-acetyline torch, which makes me wonder if what blew up in this case was actually propane...

That gauge set appears to be a refrigerant gauge manifold, not flammable gases. That and a few other things seen in the picture I would bet this is an HVAC contractor van. Thinking of HVAC tools of the trade I would agree that it is possible this was not a propane explosion. Could have been MAPP gas for brazing for example. I have seen the aftermath of various gas explosions and BLEVEs and if this was flammable gas explosion I say it was a very small tank. I question if it was even a flammable gas or just a pressure vessel failure? The news will say anything.

There is a thread on here somewhere where propane's physical properties and storage was exhaustively discussed. I'll have to search for it.

Side note - I used to refill the 1lb green tanks with one of those "adapters" from the 20lb tanks until I've had a few seep propane out the screw valve, not the safety valve. I caught them right away hissing slightly and safely dealt with it, however had I been in a loud environment where I couldn't hear it and just put them in the garage or the van, things could have gotten dynamic later. But you say I could have smelled it, right? Sure, but just filling them releases enough propane to have the smell lingering around so I would have dismissed the smell anyway. I have since stopped doing that.

- Eric