We've just bought our first PVC having 'messed about' on small yachts for over 60 years. Our new (to us) 1998 van has a old Electrolux fridge powered by gas when off grid and 230v only on hook up - as is the Propex water heater. The cooking arrangement is a two burner gas hob. My pet hate has always been 'gas' installations due to potential safety issues and for that reason I was pretty determined to change to a 12v fridge with plenty of solar power. However, looking back on my sailing days, I recall that the predominant 'technical issues' for the amateur cruising sailor was invariably 'electrics related'. This experience motivated us to run with the current arrangement for a 6 months trial before 'investing in' full solar powered set up. In preparation for the trial, we installed a 140Watt solar panel and for peace of mind, most gas piping and fittings were professionally replaced and a proper gas locker installed - the whole installation was then certificated by a Gas Safe engineer. The gas bottle area was also reconfigured to accommodate a spare bottle (properly drained). We run a 7 kg Butane Calor bottle and a 4.5 kg GasFlo bottle (same regulator as the 7kg Calor) - this gives us the option in these difficult supply times. The solar, plus the engine alternator and hook up charging, keeps the 110 amp leisure battery nicely topped up. The biggest draw on the battery is the start up of the Chinese diesel heater (despite their reputation we find it works great) . After 6 months it seems that the system works really efficiently, so for the time being we're sticking with it. The deciding factor has been the peace of mind the Gas Safe certification has given us. Gas is never 100% safe, but I I do think we've reached a sensible compromise. I suspect the day is coming when, like the marine industry, insurance companies will stipulate not insure unless gas systems are GasSafe certificated. I'm personally happy with that, but that's purely a personal opinion.
My goodness, there's enough there to feed an army ! We had an oven in our first three motorhomes but they just provided extra storage room. We now have a Classic Hymer without an oven and on the (very rare) occasions I cook, I do it outside either on a two ring hotplate or in a slow cooker. Even at home we usually eat out if a hot meal is essential !
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