Exterior camp stove with trailer propane hook up??

[Baytoven]

I have a PUP with a regulated high pressure outdoor line, 16 psi according to the manual and service techs.  I run a briefcase style stand alone stove, also 16 psi according to papers and techs, on the PUP's regulated high pressure line.  Works fine.  If the PUP runs out of propane, I can run the stove with its regulator off unregulated propane bottles, as it was originally intended.

GB, I think the confusion lies in where you would plan to regulate the additional line.  You state that the stove is already regulated so it would not be getting up to 300 psi in pressure.  If the only regulator on that line is at the appliance, then the line would be delivering unregulated tank pressure from the tank to the stove.  Yes, the stove's regulator would bring the pressure down, that's its job, but I don't think that's the point the others are trying to make.  Such a propane line would contain unregulated tank pressure and be exposed to damage as it crosses under the PUP, until it reaches the stove regulator.  I imagine propane code would frown on this.  PUPs with regulated high pressure lines such as mine have a regulator at the tank, so the propane line that crosses over to the curb side of the PUP only contains 16 psi, not (potentially) 300 psi. (After the initial stage of regulation, the main propane line enters a second stage regulator that brings the propane pressure to 11" of water column, or approx 1/2 psi, and then enters the PUP to feed its appliances.)

Just make sure that the hose you use is up to the task.  If you tee off at the tank before the regulator, it is unregulated tank pressure.  The hose needs to be rated for that pressure.  And I wouldn't recommend installing such a line permanently.

[Oz and Us]

As we probably will not be keeping our trailer longer than another year I won't be investing the money (approx $400) to run an extra line.  I am going with rabird's idea of an ACME type extend a flow tee.

If by that you mean "The Darkside calleth" then you'll be able to put that hose & Extend-a-Flow T to good use since almost all hard side trailers built these days will have 1) no gas feed at all to the curb side of the trailer OR 2) a low pressure gas feed that's capped OR 3) a low pressure gas feed that terminates in a low pressure quick disconnect fitting ... I've yet to see one with a regulated high pressure feed as Fleetwood supplied on their Grand Tour series, unfortunately.

Now that you have this Extend-a-Flow you'll be able to just ignore any low pressure feed that may be on any trailer and just run directly from the tanks to your cooking location if you want to, obviously.  However, I don't and the reason is simple ... our previous Santa Fe did have a regulated high pressure feed (16 p.s.i.) located on the curb side of the trailer so I'd park my Baby Q on the campsite picnic table and run the gas hose out to it from this curb side feed.  I found though that having a long hose running on the ground where someone would inevitably trip over it to be a real PITA ... and for me running one from the front of the trailer where the tanks are located would be even worse.  YMMV of course but I think for now I'll just stick with using canisters or my 5 lb tank for running my Baby Q and stand alone Coleman two burner camp stove but it sure would be handy if trailer manufacturers would all adopt Fleetwood's idea of supplying a regulated high pressure gas feed on the curb side of their trailers that could universally be used for powering a variety of propane powered appliances.

[SkipD]

The best solution is one we implemented many moons ago when the stuff was still on the market.  We have a half-dozen or so refillable 14-oz propane cylinders.  They differ from the standard off-the-shelf 14-oz cylinders in that they have a valve that can be opened a little to relieve pressure while filling them. 

The filling process uses a fitting that connects a refillable cylinder to our 20-lb cylinder.  The 20-lb cylinder is inverted on a picnic table to provide a gravity-driven feed to the refillable 14-oz cylinder.

The bottom line is that we have the portability of the disposable-size cylinders but the fuel cost of the bulk-filled 20-lb cylinders.

Unfortunately, you cannot buy the refillable 14-oz cylinders any more.  I don't know when the "rules" banned them, but it was quite a while back.

[Oz and Us]

The best solution is one we implemented many moons ago when the stuff was still on the market.  We have a half-dozen or so refillable 14-oz propane cylinders.  They differ from the standard off-the-shelf 14-oz cylinders in that they have a valve that can be opened a little to relieve pressure while filling them.

That would be a GREAT solution but since this type of canister isn't available here in Canada either my next best solution has been to use a 5 lb tank which doesn't take up any more space when traveling than do four 16.4 oz canisters, a few of which I always carry anyway.  The problem I do have though is getting that stupid 5 lb tank filled properly ... my last fill I did at Costco where I took documentation with me to prove how much this tank should hold and insisted it be filled to the weight I had calculated as correct.  When I got it home and weighed it the tank was still short by 1/2 lb but close enough it wasn't worth going back to argue about.  Perhaps the solution would be for me to fill the 5 pounder myself from a 20 pounder?

[rabird]

My brother vents the small bottles via the relief valve to fill (needle nose pliers). I don't since there is no need to fully refill the littles bottles, partial refill is enough and it doesn't cause the relief valve to leak.
At music/chili fests, there are plenty of folks that are discarding partially full bottles that I gladly accept.

[tjy355]

Just read thru the entire thread and still have some questions as I too, would like to use the propane tanks on my popup to connect misc outdoor propane appliances (Coleman stove, BabyQ, maybe a larger outfitter stove or turkey fryer type single burner stove).

1) OZ&US - in reply #24 you link to a photo of a "Coleman stove" and you mention its "external regulator."  This confuses me...  is that little tube that connects the propane bottle to the stove the regulator?

2) Given that it not recommended to permanently plumb the unregulated propane under the trailer and the consensus is that it is OK to install a tee at the tank and use a portable hose...  Is there a practical limit on length for this hose?  I'm thinking 20-25' to keep the hose out of the way under the trailer and extend to the rear area of the popup where I normally setup my kitchen.

3) My PUP has the dual tanks with the combined switchover valve and low pressure regulator.  Has anyone solved the issue of putting the tee between the switch and the regulator Since the switch over valve is a nice convenience (allows to drain one tank at a time...) ?  Are the switch over valve and lo-pressure regulator available as separate items? 

Thanks in advance for your thoughts!!
Tom