Running the LP Heater while towing?

Ok, this is a crazy topic,  but does anyone run their LP heater while towing to the CG? 

Lets say i live within 1 hour of where I plan to camp and its cold out, is it safe to run the heater to help get the rig warm and if it is safe is it worth it? 
[edit]Fixed subject in root message.[/edit]

Hmmmm....interesting question.  Never done it, never had a need to....and we boondock in the winter.  Really, the furnace will bring it from cold to comfortable in 15 minutes or less, so I"ve never really considered running it in transit.

But I can't see where it would be any riskier than running the refrigerator while in transit.  You have an open flame either way, but I've always ran the refer and never had an issue.  You might shut it down if you stop for gas before reaching the pumps just to be safe.  This seems to be the consensus here regarding the refer running, though I don't do it. 

I was chastised once on here for that particular practice....my point being that the fiver is 20 feet away from any fumes.  I asked for one documented case of an explosion of an RV at a gas pump because the refer was left running and got none....but such is life.  It's been debated ad nauseum.  It is illegal to have an open flame near a gas pump....but define "near". 


http://rvbasics.com/techtips/rv-refrigerator-on-while-traveling.html

Your call.

We've done it.  Stopped 1/2 hour before arriving at the cg and turned on the furnace.  It's nice for it to be warm.  But with an electric cube heater and the furnace, it doesn't take long to heat up. 

When we used our 5'er as our winter cottage, if would take 45 mins to an hour to heat up from -3d.  Burrrrrrrr

Barb

Frizlefrak said:

But I can't see where it would be any riskier than running the refrigerator while in transit.  You have an open flame either way, but I've always ran the refer and never had an issue.  You might shut it down if you stop for gas before reaching the pumps just to be safe.  This seems to be the consensus here regarding the refer running, though I don't do it. 

I was chastised once on here for that particular practice....my point being that the fiver is 20 feet away from any fumes.  I asked for one documented case of an explosion of an RV at a gas pump because the refer was left running and got none....but such is life.  It's been debated ad nauseum.  It is illegal to have an open flame near a gas pump....but define "near". 

Click to expand...

Usually they say 10 or 15 ft on the signs so i don't either
just like cell phones too although i knew i guy who spilled a lot because he was on the phone and it didn't shut off.

My furnace takes about 30-40 minutes when it's below 30 or so

Never met a fire fighter who wouldn't say "NEVER drive with a propane appliance on".  We always turn our propane off at the tank before driving anywhere.  Check out the following for guidlines from the Windsor fire department.

http://www.windsorfire.com/divisions-prevention-rv-fire-safety-guidelines

It would seem to settle the question if you just buy two "cube" heaters and run them off the generator while you are on the road. On my rig there is a generator start/stop switch at the driver's seat position, which would make it easy to do half an hour or so before arrival.
Rankjo

Never met a fire fighter who wouldn't say "NEVER drive with a propane appliance on".

Click to expand...

The Oregon State Fire Marshall is one who might disagree. He is on record saying driving with the propane on is no more or less dangerous than driving with the gasoline tank "on". Probably less so, since the propane tank is constructed to much higher safety standards than the gasoline tank. But having two flammable source online in a crash is obviously more danger than just one, so of course there is some decrease in risk by having the propane system turned off.

If you worry about fire danger while underway, you should put fire extinguisher systems in the engine area  and wheel wells. Oregon collects RV fire data and reports that the largest percentage of RV fires originate in the engine area and the wheel area. RVSafety.com has some data on this.

I'm glad to hear that Roamer (My personal opinion is running with LP on is slightly more dangerous than running with it off, however there are several advantages... One being that one of the more common RV fire sources is the propane fridge, and I'd much rather have it catch fire at 55mph on the freeway so that others can GET OUT OF THE WAY than packed side to side in an RV park or FMCA rally damaging 2 or 3 other multi-hundred thousand dollar rigs,  NOTE the danger to my rig is identical parked or moving from this kind of fire... Actually HIGHER parked cause I might not be there to put it out and I do carry both foam and 30 pounds of powder)

I just re-read the subject of this thread.. And one of the things I sometimes "run" while driving is my CD player...

And one of my favorite artists is a Young (Ok, not all that young) lady (Well she was a lady, long story) Named HEATHER Alexander

I guess her CD's would qualify as an LP (Long Playing) Heather.

I'd be interested in reading the statement from the Oregon State Fire Marshall, so a link to the source would be nice. I couldn't find any reference to it on the OSP/SFM web site; Might be buried deep in one of the numerous reports or newsletters.

The only relevant thing I could find on rvsafety.com was a reference to Mac McCoy coming on board as their fire prevention guru. Mac's web site says:

"Driving with propane on can add to the danger if you are involved in an accident or have a fire. Most refrigerators will keep food cold or frozen for eight hours without running while you travel. Shut the propane off at the tank."

FWIW the original poster was asking about a towed RV (trailer, 5th wheel?), so presumably any reference to fire under the hood refers to the tow vehicle, not the RV.

In the event of an accident, I'd be less concerned with the integrity of the LPG tank than I would the various fittings and hoses, especially those nearest an open flame or ones that can be exposed to an ignition source. I've seen first hand what can happen if an LPG leak on the high pressure side of a regulator is ignited by an unintended source. The only way to put out the flame was to turn off the fuel at source; Left me with a badly blistered arm, but fortunately no permanent scars. The integrity of the tank was just fine. This was a home BBQ, but it doesn't take much imagination to extrapolate it to an RV in accident.

On my rig there is a generator start/stop switch at the driver's seat position, which would make it easy to do half an hour or so before arrival.

Click to expand...

    Just a precaution; don't start your generator with the heaters in the ON position. Turn on the heaters only when the generator has settled down and is reasonably warm.

carson FL

Edit: This is meant for the 120V cube heaters...

I just located my ages old link to the fire marshal's statement and the page is no longer valid. It wasn't on the official state or Oregon site, so it probably just went a way.  I can't find another copy either.  Don't even know if the guy is still the marshal.

I found a site with the Oregon data on RV fires - it is not rvsafety.org where [I think] you were looking. It's a commercial site:

http://www.rvsafetysystems.com/Alarm%20article.htm

I'm not trying to convert anybody to using propane on the road if they are not comfortable with it. There is remarkably little DATA available anywhere on RV fires or mobile propane safety, so opinion is rampant. Yours is as good as anybody's.

I found a site with the Oregon data on RV fires

Click to expand...

Thanks Gary. That article merely says that approx 20% of RV fires occurred in the "Engine/Wheel area". No mention of fuel or other areas of the RV.

Don't even know if the guy is still the marshal.

Click to expand...

"He" has apparently been a "she" for several years.

I'm not trying to convert anybody to using propane on the road if they are not comfortable with it.

Click to expand...

Understood. I'm just concerned that some reader(s) will misinterpret various comments as suggesting that it's perfectly safe. As you correctly say, we lack any data either way.

I'm unable to find the source of the Oregon data on RV fires on the web. Might have to dig it out of some of their spreadsheets, some of which are online.

The 200+ engine/wheel fires appears to be out of about 500 motorhome fires, so the percentage may be more like 40%. Of course non-motorhomes still have wheels even with no engine, so that's not definitive. Wish there was more data available.

I've asked an oft-quoted source, fire expert, and prior member of the Oregon Fire Marshall's office if he'd like to comment &/or provide some data. Maybe he'll even be able to point to the elusive report.

Hadn't thought about it until writing this message, but we have several friends who are retired fire chiefs from different CA fire departments. I've made a mental note to ask if they have some words of wisdom &/or data next time I talk with them.

So for those that do travel with it on;  how many shut off appliances/ect. when pulling in to fuel?  Does anyone go farther and shut off propane at the tank?

geodrake said:

So for those that do travel with it on;  how many shut off appliances/ect. when pulling in to fuel?  Does anyone go farther and shut off propane at the tank?

Click to expand...

We shut off the appliances but do not shut off the propane at the tank. It's the ignition source that I'm worried about. Not the fuel.

IMHO gasoline is more dangerous than propane.

We don't shut off the tank but generally do shut off the only propane appliance, the refrigerator, when fueling.  However, we don't always remember, but the danger is much less at the diesel pumps than at gas pumps, so we don't lose any sleep over it if we forget.

So for those that do travel with it on;  how many shut off appliances/ect. when pulling in to fuel?

Click to expand...

Assume by "it" you mean propane, but when you say "to fuel" that could mean either a gasoline or diesel pump or to fill the propane tank.

We turn off the propane appliances AND the tank when we fill with propane.

Have to admit we've never turned off anything when going in for either gasoline or diesel and that's in 35 years of RVing with both gasoline and diesel RVs.  And I do agree with Ned that gasoline is more dangerous than diesel which generally takes quite a bit longer to catch fire.

ArdraF

...we've never turned off anything when going in for either gasoline or diesel and that's in 35 years of RVing with both gasoline and diesel RVs.

Click to expand...

Ardra, I was taken aback when I read that. Failing to turn off an appliance - both the flame and the appliance ignition source - while fueling at a gasoline pump is downright dangerous. There have been numerous reports of fires caused by such deeds. Might as well toss a flare out the window while fueling 

We always shut off the fridge and confirm all other flame sources such as water heater are off whether getting diesel or propane.  When getting propane I make sure the person pumping the propane does not even hook up till we are both out of the vehicle.