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Propane quick connect... problems, self install?


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We elected to not have the factory propane quick connects installed. We thought the front one was too vulnerable to stone/debris from the tow vehicle  tires. And hence maybe the rear would be vulnerable from the trailer tires. At the factory tour , and inspecting ours, we noticed that fittings are close to where post production retro hookups would be easy. As the front one, because of the door and awning limitations, would not be used by us and it will not be installed. However, after using our Oliver for a while (and the rising price of those little green bottles), we have decided the rear quick connect would be desirable. We will install with a shield that will protect it from flying debris. Has anybody had any problems with these? Anything that I should look out for? Stuff to add, or look out for??

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I got both and use both, though the regulator will whistle and needs to be changed out one of these days because if we are running the fire pit outside full blast, it screams at us, but that's just another project on the list. It works and I prefer the back port because you're far enough away to not be bugged by the regulator whistling away... :)

 

Reed

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Happy Camping,


null


Reed & Karen Lukens with Riffles our Miniature Poodle


2017 Oliver Legacy Elite II  Standard, Hull #200 / 2017 Silverado High Country 1500 Short Bed 4x4


Past TV - 2012 Mercedes-Benz ML350 4Matic BlueTEC Diesel


Click on our avatar pic above to find the videos on our Oliver Legacy Elite II


 

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canoe,

 

I installed my own with the same concerns.  I did not want it exposed to excessive weather or possible damage.  So I teed it in at the propane bottles and reach in through a port to access it.  This is a very easy installation and it cannot get into much trouble.    The valve in the line completely isolates it and stops any chance of a leak.

 

I then got (3) ten foot sections of hose an can set my fire pit or outside stove wherever I want.

 

 

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John


"I only exaggerate enough to compensate for being taken with a grain of salt."


LE2 #92 (sold),   Black Series HQ19   

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Canoe,

 

 

 

I had a 4" port for a while, but it was hard to snap in the quick disconnect while the hose with strain relief was coming out through the hole.  So I installed an 8" one and it is much better.  A saber saw blade goes through the fiberglass like butter.

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John


"I only exaggerate enough to compensate for being taken with a grain of salt."


LE2 #92 (sold),   Black Series HQ19   

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Me again. I noticed your propane receptacle is female, whereas the factory installed units are male. Any difficulty getting premade hoses to fit? How do you join hoses together? Do you have to adapt each hose? Are the brass fittings NPT, a mixture, or do gas lines have their on dedicated thread? 3/8?

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Canoe,

 

I just bought a quick disconnect set, which has the male and female ends that plug together. The male piece has a 3/8" pipe female on it's other end.  It's a 3/8" MPT by male disconnect.  Then each of the hoses have a 3/8" MPT end and a female flare.  So to connect the three 10' lengths you need a 3/8" female pipe thread (FPT), by 3/8" male flare.  Then the end MPT screws into the disconnect.  At the tank area tee and ball valve, you just need to assemble fittings to get you to a female flare.  Then the whole assembly screws together.

 

I discovered that there seems to be no standardization with the quick disconnect fittings and I did not want to use compressed air fittings.  So I just looked around until a found a nice brass set that was for gas and got it.  Then I adapted as needed to put it together.  The hoses come in 10' lengths and I got mine at Lowes.  The disconnect came from an obscure Ace hardware.  It's just a little puzzle to put together and make nice.  And it works very well.  The same hose works for both appliances, so I can switch between the camp stove and the fire pit by unscrewing the female flare nut and screwing it back on to the other appliance.  Then plugging in the other end to the trailer.

 

I used it this weekend with the new 8" port and that works well too.  We had a nice propane camp fire.

 

I hope all this makes sense.  I'll send more pix if needed.

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John


"I only exaggerate enough to compensate for being taken with a grain of salt."


LE2 #92 (sold),   Black Series HQ19   

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Raspy,

 

Thank you. We now have a plan, maybe more like a mental sketch, of our path forward. Still thinking we only want a hook up off the stern. Maybe hidden in a protected spot on the bumper. Now to see if we can conceive some sort of wye, as we use a grill and a CampChef stove/oven setup usually. The lobster /corn cooker we will probably leave with a 20 lb. tank as we don't always have that on the menu

 

We have been thinking of a Clam screenhouse. Wonder if too airtight for a propane fire pit? It would have been real nice at a gathering, on a couple of damp evenings this summer, when we had an arctic breeze coming in off Moosehead Lake. Next day it was in the eighties, go figure.

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Canoe,

 

I know what you mean about wanting the connection near the stern.  But for me the difficulty of getting it there in a clean way was more trouble, by far, than just running a 30 foot hose form the front.  The long hose has worked out well with setting the fire pit way out where it is safe and not under the awning, or behind Ollie when parked that way.

 

The underside is so clean and it has those small cross pieces. It also has zero clearance where the axle Ubolts touch the frame.  Plus, I don't like the idea of drilling in a bunch of holes for the mounting hardware, etc.

 

I'd like to see what you come up with.

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John


"I only exaggerate enough to compensate for being taken with a grain of salt."


LE2 #92 (sold),   Black Series HQ19   

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  • Moderator+
...Canoe, I know what you mean about wanting the connection near the stern. But for me the difficulty of getting it there in a clean way was more trouble, by far, than just running a 30 foot hose form the front...

 

On all the later models I have inspected, the gas line running the length of the trailer on the starboard side terminates with a plug.  This would be where the stern gas fitting would be connected.

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Steve, Tali and our dog Rocky plus our beloved Storm, Maggie, Lucy and Reacher (all waiting at the Rainbow Bridge)

2008 Legacy Elite I - Outlaw Oliver, Hull #026 | 2014 Legacy Elite II - Outlaw Oliver, Hull #050 | 2022 Silverado High Country 3500HD SRW Diesel 4x4 

 

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It's probably already Tee'd under the heater, which is already close to the bumper, so.... The line is already there. The line runs back down the curb side rail and connects to the stove, water heater and then the heater in the back, so the line has been ran and is in use right now.

Happy Camping,


null


Reed & Karen Lukens with Riffles our Miniature Poodle


2017 Oliver Legacy Elite II  Standard, Hull #200 / 2017 Silverado High Country 1500 Short Bed 4x4


Past TV - 2012 Mercedes-Benz ML350 4Matic BlueTEC Diesel


Click on our avatar pic above to find the videos on our Oliver Legacy Elite II


 

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The idea of a plug at the end of a gas line, inside the sewer hose storage bumper, for a 16" long gas line makes no sense. We did find a series of fittings in three different places at HD, that we are sure we can adapt. They say natural gas on some, but am sure the will handle LP, as there are no orifices for the gas to flow through.

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  • 2 weeks later...

We have the quick connect on the front. Less than 50 miles from the factory in Tennessee, a driver not paying attention on the interstate, ran over a "gator" and flipped it into our TV. Our TV in turn flipped the gator right into the area where the connect is located. I later discovered the only damage was a little scuffing of the fiberglass (easily buffed out) and the green rubber protector was knocked off the connector but, was still attached. I simply reattached the cover as it was. The hardest part was finding a quick connect 12' long tube...finally found one at the Camping World in New Braunfels, TX.

Cash - AKA Sitting Bull


http://www.shot-in-texas.com

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We have the quick connect on the front. Less than 50 miles from the factory in Tennessee, a driver not paying attention on the interstate, ran over a “gator” and flipped it into our TV. Our TV in turn flipped the gator right into the area where the connect is located. I later discovered the only damage was a little scuffing of the fiberglass (easily buffed out) and the green rubber protector was knocked off the connector but, was still attached. I simply reattached the cover as it was. The hardest part was finding a quick connect 12′ long tube…finally found one at the Camping World in New Braunfels, TX.

 

Yikes!

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John


"I only exaggerate enough to compensate for being taken with a grain of salt."


LE2 #92 (sold),   Black Series HQ19   

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We have the quick connect on the front. Less than 50 miles from the factory in Tennessee, a driver not paying attention on the interstate, ran over a “gator” and flipped it into our TV. Our TV in turn flipped the gator right into the area where the connect is located. I later discovered the only damage was a little scuffing of the fiberglass (easily buffed out) and the green rubber protector was knocked off the connector but, was still attached. I simply reattached the cover as it was. The hardest part was finding a quick connect 12′ long tube…finally found one at the Camping World in New Braunfels, TX.

 

Did you get to keep the gator? I love eating Cajon cooked alligator steaks :)

Happy Camping,


null


Reed & Karen Lukens with Riffles our Miniature Poodle


2017 Oliver Legacy Elite II  Standard, Hull #200 / 2017 Silverado High Country 1500 Short Bed 4x4


Past TV - 2012 Mercedes-Benz ML350 4Matic BlueTEC Diesel


Click on our avatar pic above to find the videos on our Oliver Legacy Elite II


 

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  • 9 months later...

Everyone has there idea what works for them. In our case we wanted to be able to set up the cook stove/grille and the Little Red Campfire that maybe a distance farther then the propane hose would reach, yes you can just get more hose, but for us the extra 20gal. bottle was no problem for us to carry. So now we have both the extra bottle and the quick disconnects, we use both for different situations.

 

 

 

trainman

2019 RAM 1500, 5.7 Hemi, 4X4, Crew Cab, 5'7" bed, Towing Package, 3.92 Gears.

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