Gaslow refillable system

[vanfan]

Hi funsters
Hoping for some experience/ advice regarding a gas low refillable system.
Just read 2019 thread but still confused!
Chatting with our dealer today ( we expect delivery of our new 6m PVC end of June )
He showed us the gas low kit and it had 2 11kg bottles. I said surely if it’s refillable we only need 1 bottle? IE less weight and hopefully a bit of extra room for careful storage. He said he advises 2 incase we run out!
Doesn’t this defeat the object?
We will only use gas for cooking ( 2 burners, no oven or grill) and heating water when on aires. We are not really into cold weather motorhoming, so do not expect to need heating all that much and besides we intend to keep the bottle topped up regularly. Am I missing something?

 

[Pausim]

If weight is a factor you could look at Safefill, even lighter than Alugas. I have recently put a single 10kg Safefill in my new van, it should be plenty but if it proves to be a problem I can buy a second Safefill. When buying any refillable check the date on the bottle, it only has a 10 year life. I got a big discount on my bottle because it was already 9 months old.

 

[ontheroadagain]

We have a 11kg refillable and a 6kg Calor.
We too have a compressor fridge and we don’t use our motorhome much in winter. Had this for over two and a half years and the Calor bottle has never been used. Both are connected together via a simple manual switch over valve so there is no need to change pigtails etc.

 

[ChrisL]

Just as a practical example I last filled my 2 x 11kg cylinders on the 18th March, I am now into the red but not out on cylinder 1 and about 1/3 through cylinder 2, that includes 1 week off grid, the rest on hookup.

 

[PlacidoD]

"Yes you do need to be careful on 6 amp when using a fridge. I think mine uses about 4amps. I just switch the fridge off when boiling a kettle for example or heating the water."

Thanks for that!

P.S. With a relatively long overhang behind the rear axle I very much focus on keeping weight down behind the rear axle. Hence SafeFill bottles rather than Calor steel. I was running a 4.5kg Calor alongside the 11 kg SafeFill until the Ebay auction win. There is not much weight difference between the 4.5 kg Calor and an 11kg SafeFill with both full. Bulk yes. Weight no.

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[Gellyneck]

"Yes you do need to be careful on 6 amp when using a fridge. I think mine uses about 4amps. I just switch the fridge off when boiling a kettle for example or heating the water."

Thanks for that!

P.S. With a relatively long overhang behind the rear axle I very much focus on keeping weight down behind the rear axle. Hence SafeFill bottles rather than Calor steel. I was running a 4.5kg Calor alongside the 11 kg SafeFill until the Ebay auction win. There is not much weight difference between the 4.5 kg Calor and an 11kg SafeFill with both full. Bulk yes. Weight no.

We've just finished our Calor 6kg Lite, yip remember those, used as backup for 11kg Safefill and replaced with another 11kg Safefill from another Funster.

 

[chesterfield hooligan]

Don't forget Safefill where you can refil but you can see the amount of gas liquid remaining.

 

[jennywren]

Hi funsters
Hoping for some experience/ advice regarding a gas low refillable system.
Just read 2019 thread but still confused!
Chatting with our dealer today ( we expect delivery of our new 6m PVC end of June )
He showed us the gas low kit and it had 2 11kg bottles. I said surely if it’s refillable we only need 1 bottle? IE less weight and hopefully a bit of extra room for careful storage. He said he advises 2 incase we run out!
Doesn’t this defeat the object?
We will only use gas for cooking ( 2 burners, no oven or grill) and heating water when on aires. We are not really into cold weather motorhoming, so do not expect to need heating all that much and besides we intend to keep the bottle topped up regularly. Am I missing something?

Hi
We have 1x 11kg gaslow with the option to carry 1x 6kg 'calor'. You are correct, they do add considerable weight, even when empty. Whether you need 1x11kg or 2x11kg will depend upon your intended usage and where you are travelling. Most of the time, in Europe and UK, I think you only need the 11kg gaslow. We do travel in Scandi quite alot and in Finland, they do not have 'refillable' options as most other countries do. For that reason, we will then add the 6kg calor for peace of mind.

I would also suggest, you monitor closely for a decent period of time (keep a log of when/amount you fill up the LPG) so that you get a good idea of how many kg/litres you use per day (we tend to use 0.3kg to 0.4kg per day but we are lowish users and everyone is different). You can then estimate with a good degree of certainty your lpg requirements.

Hope this helps.

 

[cyberyacht]

We've got 2 x 6kg, not filled up since 2021 and still on the first bottle.

I got through three times that in a six week tour of France & Spain recently. Mostly fridge, cooking and hot water with the odd bit of heat on a couple of chilly mornings. Mostly off-grid.

 

[AJM2]

Have the single 11kg bottle and never regretted not getting a second fitted. Remarkable how little it uses for everyday use during warmer months (France for 4 weeks in summer gives me no anxiety), If I was doing longer trips in Winter I might consider it or if obtaining LPG was a problem where touring. Fit one and then see how you get on?

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[Hymer Tony B]

You could get by with one but it leaves you open to "range anxiety". The gauges aren't wonderfully accurate and gas may not be available near where you are staying.
We have two bottles, one 11kg, one 6kg, We run the larger one til empty and then we know we have a few days leeway until we need to top up. If we were only doing short breaks and gas is available close to home we'd get by quite happily with one bottle and filling each time we went away.

Same set up as ours. 11kg and 6kg. If you use gas for heating and fridge we'll worth that extra capacity

 

[wfdTamar]

I’m another with an 11kg refillable and a Calor backup. Electric fridge so don’t use a lot of gas. My Hymer came with a gas gauge fitted which is handy so once it gets to about a third full I keep an eye out in the myLPG.eu app for cheap gas. You could get a Mopeka Bluetooth sensor to keep an eye on it (if you can’t see the one on top of the tank easily.

 

[prthomas]

We have 1x11kg and also originally had a backup 6kg calor. But I got a Mopeka sensor and that meant I never needed the 6kg so removed it to free up some more payload and space. The Mopeka sensor is pretty accurate if mounted correctly and works with its app or Victron kit (which is how I use it). Now as long as I plan ahead a little I don’t worry about running out.

 

[Clive Mott]

Several facets to this one.
If your camping lifestyle is mainly off grid then having plenty of gas is handy, especially if you have a three way gas fridge. Don't get me wrong I believe the advantages of the 3 way gas fridge outway their disadvantage especially when you consider the much larger battery usage is of compressor fridges. However with a bulk LPG you can Top Up wherever you see a LPG or Autogas filling station, you don't need to wait until the bottle is empty as you would with a Calor gas bottle, and this was always the reason for having two bottles. Do you need one or two? Only time will tell. We just about empty one 11kg bottle a year with our camping lifestyle but that is several shows but 2 months in Spain but on hookup where the gas is used only for cooking. If weight is a concern then get Alugas as these aluminium bottles are much lighter than the steel Gaslow jobs, otherwise very similar in features. If you don't do more that a couple of days without some reasonable driving then a compressor fridge will be an advantage. One 6 KG gas bottle holds the same amount of energy as 63 X 110 AH batteries so without hookup a gas bottle will keep your fridge going a long time. A typical compressor fridge will by itself totally flatten a 110 AH battery in 1.5 days, so lots of solar is very important.

 

[Momac]

You could just have the one gaslow and take another say 6kg Calor for assurance?

Use an lpg app for filling stations.

That's what we do....in seven years, we have never used it, but it's reassuring to know that it's there, and easy to replace when you get home.

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[PaulW2]

Hi funsters
Hoping for some experience/ advice regarding a gas low refillable system.
Just read 2019 thread but still confused!
Chatting with our dealer today ( we expect delivery of our new 6m PVC end of June )
He showed us the gas low kit and it had 2 11kg bottles. I said surely if it’s refillable we only need 1 bottle? IE less weight and hopefully a bit of extra room for careful storage. He said he advises 2 incase we run out!
Doesn’t this defeat the object?
We will only use gas for cooking ( 2 burners, no oven or grill) and heating water when on aires. We are not really into cold weather motorhoming, so do not expect to need heating all that much and besides we intend to keep the bottle topped up regularly. Am I missing something?

You definitely can get by with one if you can be sure you will top it up in time. A single bottle, as you will use it, should last a long time.

 

[Bazzagas]

Hi funsters
Hoping for some experience/ advice regarding a gas low refillable system.
Just read 2019 thread but still confused!
Chatting with our dealer today ( we expect delivery of our new 6m PVC end of June )
He showed us the gas low kit and it had 2 11kg bottles. I said surely if it’s refillable we only need 1 bottle? IE less weight and hopefully a bit of extra room for careful storage. He said he advises 2 incase we run out!
Doesn’t this defeat the object?
We will only use gas for cooking ( 2 burners, no oven or grill) and heating water when on aires. We are not really into cold weather motorhoming, so do not expect to need heating all that much and besides we intend to keep the bottle topped up regularly. Am I missing something?

I had two 6kg calor bottles..As we are away for 8 weeks in europe , where you can't get calor bottles..I had a gaslow 1x6kg bottle fitted..with the intention of keeping 1x6kg calor for back up....the gaslow lasted 3 weeks on cooking , fridge and mostly heating....we switched to calor for 1 day then I filled the gaslow , 11.3 litres for just over 10 euros...the calor at my last exchange was £35...thats nearly 3 times gaslow fills for one calor...I agree with brynric , you do start to get a little range anxiety, but it was 94p a litre at a fuel station in roses spain...so it's full now and will hopefully last till we come home..

Hi funsters
Hoping for some experience/ advice regarding a gas low refillable system.
Just read 2019 thread but still confused!
Chatting with our dealer today ( we expect delivery of our new 6m PVC end of June )
He showed us the gas low kit and it had 2 11kg bottles. I said surely if it’s refillable we only need 1 bottle? IE less weight and hopefully a bit of extra room for careful storage. He said he advises 2 incase we run out!
Doesn’t this defeat the object?
We will only use gas for cooking ( 2 burners, no oven or grill) and heating water when on aires. We are not really into cold weather motorhoming, so do not expect to need heating all that much and besides we intend to keep the bottle topped up regularly. Am I missing something?

 

[Broadway]

I would recommend going for two bottles. We have two 11Kg but if weight is an issue go for two 6Kg.

 

[Landy Andy]

Just bought a 6kg calor last weekend. £47

 

[Richard n Ann]

I would recommend going for two bottles. We have two 11Kg but if weight is an issue go for two 6Kg.

Yes 2 are great, you don't need a gauge, if one bottle lasts 2 weeks you know you've got 2 more weeks worth

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[1967bowesj]

Just bought a 6kg calor last weekend. £47

I have an empty 6kg in the shed, I’d rather put the £47 to a refillable!!

 

[Landy Andy]

I have an empty 6kg in the shed, I’d rather put the £47 to a refillable!!

Yes. I’m the same. This one was for my gas bbq in the garden. I wish the van was in the garden so I could run it off the refillables.

£47 is a ridiculous amount for not that much gas.

 

[BouncyBoatFolk]

Yes. I’m the same. This one was for my gas bbq in the garden. I wish the van was in the garden so I could run it off the refillables.

£47 is a ridiculous amount for not that much gas.

A second refillable bottle not permanently fixed in the van might work for you. I'm certainly exploring this for us when touring UK against when in Europe. For the UK I'd remove one bottle as we only used one 6kg in a month round Europe.
Mike.

 

[enark]

I have an empty 6kg in the shed, I’d rather put the £47 to a refillable!!

Last time i filled up it cost me £6, i thought i had used up the 20l, but transpired it was still half full.

 

[TrudeandDall]

You definitely can get by with one if you can be sure you will top it up in time. A single bottle, as you will use it, should last a long time.

Exactly! You don't have two diesel tanks on a vehicle, the second one just incase you forget to fill the first one. One refillable LPG tank with good management should never run out.

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[Landy Andy]

Depends on how much gas you get through.

Vehicles that drive very long distances have more than one fuel tank.

 

[drmartinwhite]

Hi funsters
Hoping for some experience/ advice regarding a gas low refillable system.
Just read 2019 thread but still confused!
Chatting with our dealer today ( we expect delivery of our new 6m PVC end of June )
He showed us the gas low kit and it had 2 11kg bottles. I said surely if it’s refillable we only need 1 bottle? IE less weight and hopefully a bit of extra room for careful storage. He said he advises 2 incase we run out!
Doesn’t this defeat the object?
We will only use gas for cooking ( 2 burners, no oven or grill) and heating water when on aires. We are not really into cold weather motorhoming, so do not expect to need heating all that much and besides we intend to keep the bottle topped up regularly. Am I missing something?

We have a Hymer BMCT 600, 4.5 Tonnes and we opted for 2 x 11kg Gaslows with auto changeover. We do the odd long weekends in the late autumn, things like Bruge (and that was cold), and the odd weekend Jan, Feb and March too. Once you get into April hardly put the heating on so for the rest of the year only used for cooking. I am pretty sure we have over had to switch into the second bottle as we always tend to fill up as we are passing any LPG source. We don't even set the auto changeover unless we suspect, rarely, that the bottle might be low and overnight van temperature is going to be below 5 degrees such that it trigger the boiler dump valve. Because we have the payload it is no bother for us, but if I went down to a PVC version and needed the weight off, that second bottle would go cos you manage quite well without it by planning ahead. But it all depends on your style of camping, if you like to ski for a week or two, two bottles is defo needed.

In your case I would say one is fine.

 

[Mark1965]

Hi funsters
Hoping for some experience/ advice regarding a gas low refillable system.
Just read 2019 thread but still confused!
Chatting with our dealer today ( we expect delivery of our new 6m PVC end of June )
He showed us the gas low kit and it had 2 11kg bottles. I said surely if it’s refillable we only need 1 bottle? IE less weight and hopefully a bit of extra room for careful storage. He said he advises 2 incase we run out!
Doesn’t this defeat the object?
We will only use gas for cooking ( 2 burners, no oven or grill) and heating water when on aires. We are not really into cold weather motorhoming, so do not expect to need heating all that much and besides we intend to keep the bottle topped up regularly. Am I missing something?

I was thinking of getting one of these refillable Gas bottles systems for our Swift PVC as we only carry a 7kg Flo gas.
However, I read on a forum on MH Fun of people being stopped from refilling at EU service/filling stations.
Apparently this is common is Spain. It's ok to fill the underslung tank but not portable bottles...
On this basis I haven't gone any further with purchasing a gas bottle system..
We don't go off grid so EHU is always used unless it's a park up for a night en route.
Perhaps to this is an urban myth?

 

[denisejoe]

If you're always on EHU then a refillable bottle would last for years as you would only be using it for cooking I would think. You might just as well stick with the Flogas.

 

[Bazzagas]

I was thinking of getting one of these refillable Gas bottles systems for our Swift PVC as we only carry a 7kg Flo gas.
However, I read on a forum on MH Fun of people being stopped from refilling at EU service/filling stations.
Apparently this is common is Spain. It's ok to fill the underslung tank but not portable bottles...
On this basis I haven't gone any further with purchasing a gas bottle system..
We don't go off grid so EHU is always used unless it's a park up for a night en route.
Perhaps to this is an urban myth?

I filled up at a station in roses , Spain..it was my first European fill and the gun was totally different to my local station in uk...I had the adaptor , but couldn't lock the gun on...i asked the staff inside and although the sign on the pump said " not for filling bottles ", the lady on the cash register came out and did it for me...very helpful....my gaslow point is fitted higher up in the body, so it didn't look as though I was filling a bottle...
I'm not sure they would help at motorway services...

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[MichaelT]

I was thinking of getting one of these refillable Gas bottles systems for our Swift PVC as we only carry a 7kg Flo gas.
However, I read on a forum on MH Fun of people being stopped from refilling at EU service/filling stations.
Apparently this is common is Spain. It's ok to fill the underslung tank but not portable bottles...
On this basis I haven't gone any further with purchasing a gas bottle system..
We don't go off grid so EHU is always used unless it's a park up for a night en route.
Perhaps to this is an urban myth?

Only the safefill ones where you fill directly to the bottle, if you have a filler on the side of the van then you will be OK.