Hi everyone,

I haven't posted in this forum for quite a while. Things have been good with my coach, so we have just been camping.

I now have a propane problem that developed as I was setting up for this year's camping season. My propane tank will not open from the solenoid operated by the safety sensor in the coach. The valve is open on the tank, but once I switch on the sensor, the unit initially beeps, but then goes to a solid tone.

In years past, I may have had to go through this process two or three times. Eventually, it turned on. Not so this year. After several attempts several times, the tank valve will not open.

I did check the electrical connections going to the solenoid, and they are good.

Is this problem familiar to anyone? Any advice would be appreciated.

Thanks, Bill G

I had similar problem, intermittent at the beginning and then not working anymore. I finally found out a bad ground near the selenoid. Good luck

Thanks Micha, I did check the ground and solenoid contacts and they are good. I think that the valve is difficult to open and the solenoid is having trouble opening it. I am going to need to explore that connection more closely.

I'd first hotwire the solenoid to see if it's really the issue. If it's still sticky, there's a possibility that the heavier ends (contaminates) in propane have produced varnish (propane tends to accelerate the production). You may be able to clean it with acetone after removing it.

If it operates normally hotwired, the problem may be the sniffer inside the coach. Similar to smoke and CO detectors, they do wear out. Hotwire from the sniffer connections to confirm or rule out.

As always Rusty, your simple logic prevails. I'm going to do this on Saturday. I also think I'm going to replace the sniffer and maybe the solenoid as they are both over twenty years old.

Thanks, Bill

Not a bad idea; sometimes because Barths have few of the SOBs' chronic issues, we tend to overlook the age of things. My mechanic discovered today the OEM belt tensioner had failed (after only 130K miles and 21 years). Naturally, I had an onboard spare...

I replaced my tensioner a couple of years ago as well. The new one was not near the quality of the original and I expect I will replace that one much sooner. I just replaced the serpentine belt for the 4th time since I bought the coach in 2003. I will let you know how the progress goes on the LP problem. Are you going to be in New England any time this year? Thanks again.

Bill G.

If you purchase a new solenoid make certain of its electrical characteristics. I wanted to replace my original sensor since it is recommended that it be done every five to seven years. Safe-T-Alert makes a sensor/solenoid combination. When I contacted them to see if I could order just the sensor they told me that it would not work with my solenoid. I asked the service personnel at the local RV repair facility and they confirmed that it won't work. They have tried an a few occasions to replace just the sensor and it doesn't work. There is voltage difference between the two and the new sensor from Safe-T-Alert must have the matching solenoid. I would suggest that if your sensor is supplying voltage to the solenoid that you measure it and make certain that any replacement solenoid matches that voltage. Better yet would be if you could verify the data for the existing solenoid. Good luck...

Bill, no plans to be up your way this year.

Lance,

When I contacted my local RV supply retailer, he noted that the original company who made the propane sniffers had gone out of business a while ago. The new company who now makes them increased the price of the product significantly. They make two versions, one is just a sniffer (under $100) with a warning signal. With this model, you need to turn off the propane manually. The other model operated a solenoid and turns off the propane automatically ($250). This is the style we have in our coaches. Because of the cost manufacturers now primarily use the cheaper version.

I want the automatic protection. As you mentioned, the new solenoid does not work with the older sniffer. Fortunately, the manufacturer includes a new solenoid with the new sniffer. Since my sniffer is the original, now over twenty years old, I am replacing everything.

I ordered one yesterday and when in comes in, I'll install it. An additional problem will need to be resolved now. The manual shut off is operated through a flexible cable that no-longer functions on my coach. Replacing that should also prove to be interesting.

I'll post a follow-up as the job progresses.

Thanks for the info. I may soon take the plunge and replace my system. It is the original from 1993, or at least while the company was still in business. I regularly check it with a lighter and it appears to operate correctly. That said, all sources I have ever looked at recommends replacement of the sensor every five to seven years. Just like you I prefer the solenoid version. I wonder if Safe-T-Alert would sell just the sensor portion when it comes time to replace due to age.
As to the voltage issue I had wondered if a relay could solve that problem but I'm not really excited about putting another component that could fail when needed.

Lance,

I'm not sure how this is going to work out. I would say if you plan on up-dating the sniffer, you will also be changing the solenoid to remain compatible with the new sniffer.

The new company is the only one making these units, as far as I can determine, and they are used across the industry. I assume (?) they have it figured out. That being said, I let you know how my change over goes.

On my Breakaway, it never had a solenoid, just two manual turn offs. there is a sniffer but there is no connection to anything except +12VDC. Not sure if they did that because there are two connections to the propane tank and it would require two solenoids one for liquid propane for the generator and one for gaseous for the appliances.

i do keep the alarm on for monitoring any gas entry to the living space.

Mine had only one solenoid (at the tank) and the genset was fed gas.

My TT has a sniffer that can't be shut off...