Which refillable cylinder and what do I need ?

S

Speedie

Joined
Sep 17, 2024
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106,540
MH
Mclouis Lagan 253
Hi All - New to motorhomes so please bear with me. I want to take advantage of cheaper LPG by using a refillable cylinder 11kg instead of the Calor propane 6kg I have now but which one is the question and also what would I need. Do I need filters etc. I have been looking at Gas IT , Gas Bank Duo , Safefill and Gaslow with GasIT being the cheaper cylinder but it depends what I need to add . I don't want to drill holes in the side or door of the gas cupboard so would prefer direct attachment or internal filler .

Thanks In Advance for any suggestions !

Mick
 
We have gaslow , a 6kg and an 11kg with an internal filler . Never been refused a fill up. I did drill a small hole to take the gaslow adaptor hose to allow it to connect to a bottle outside ( Spanish or Moroccan) and then plug the hole with a circular vent. Which looks to be part of the gas locker door. Never had any issues and even with lpg in the uk at £1 per litre it's still cheaper than calor.
 
How much payload do you have to spare? Alugas (aluminium) and Safefill (composite) are much lighter than Gaslow (steel).
 
Try doing searches on Safefill etc, etc. You will find loads of threads on the subject.

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Following this with interest as I will have a similar dilemma.
 
There are definitely LPG stations in the UK that will not fill straight to cylinders. I have seen the signs. I would always go for an external fill such as Gaslow.
 
Speedie said:
. I don't want to drill holes in the side or door of the gas cupboard so would prefer direct attachment or internal filler .
Click to expand...
All 4 vans we have had always had the filler fitted in the sill.

As for type we prefer Alugas they do 11 & 14kg, have the 14kg ones.
 
I have Gasit and Safefill bottles. I have never had a problem in Europe or the UK with an internal filler. In most cases I fill the bottles prior to enter the petrol station to pay.
If you have a Blue Light card or a Forces card then GasIt will give you a 10% discount.
 
Safefill may suit, if you already have propane bottles then the fitting is the same. Take out old bottle, fit in a Safefill.
If you have blue butane bottles then you would need to buy and replace the "pigtail" again easy enough.

HOWEVER... You need to be aware that to re-fill the bottle it's meant to come out and be filled outside the van, some garages have an issue with this even though this is what the bottle is designed for. Bad practice of some people trying to re-fill calor bottles have made them wary. Locally I have no issues and there are a few places that fill without problems, i tend to put the bottle in the car and drive down for filling.

As a guide, i filled my 10kg Safefill 2 weeks ago with 19ltrs for £13.87.. Compare that to Calor (y)

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Its a doddle to drill the required hole in either the cill or the gas locker door.

I presently have two gaslow refillables, but with the refill port inside the gas locker, not my ideal, but have not been refused yet. If i do i will get my drill out.

I dont think much difference between gaslow, gasit etc, they are pretty much similar u less you are really struggling for weight, then maybe the alu bottles are lighter, but probably cost more?
 
enark said:
Its a doddle to drill the required hole in either the cill or the gas locker door.

I presently have two gaslow refillables, but with the refill port inside the gas locker, not my ideal, but have not been refused yet. If i do i will get my drill out.

I dont think much difference between gaslow, gasit etc, they are pretty much similar u less you are really struggling for weight, then maybe the alu bottles are lighter, but probably cost more?
Click to expand...
It's not the best place to have a fill point in the door but it's the easiest panel to replace if you need to. (y)
 
Jimbohorlicks said:
It's not the best place to have a fill point in the door but it's the easiest panel to replace if you need to. (y)
Click to expand...
Possibly easiest to drill, as its flat. I drillled the skirt on previous MH and it was curved, that said was still a doddle.

But you do then have moving pipes, whilst the skirt option they can be secured semi rigid..
 
I have my fill point inside my locker and have never been refused filling in 6 years. But to fit the fill point in the fill locker only requires two screw holes. So if you have problems filling, and wish to change later to an external filler then it’s an easy alteration and you will just require longer hose and external fill point.
 
Safefill and take them out to refill. (You can take them in the motorhome or the car)
No need to do anything else but buy the bottle(s) and you can still use exchangable Calor bottles if you need to.

The website mylpg.uk will help you find the nearest (including a lot of Morrisons supermarket forecourts)

Beware that you need adapters for the EU including Ireland.
 
Verteuil Man said:
I would advise Gaslow.
Click to expand...
Genuine question. Why? I have Gasit and having looked at those and Gaslow side by side the only difference seemed to be the paint colour and the handle. Gasit fittings were cheaper but again, no discernable difference. Indeed the hoses and connectors were identical and probably came from the same factory.
 
Speedie said:
Hi All - New to motorhomes so please bear with me. I want to take advantage of cheaper LPG by using a refillable cylinder 11kg instead of the Calor propane 6kg I have now but which one is the question and also what would I need. Do I need filters etc. I have been looking at Gas IT , Gas Bank Duo , Safefill and Gaslow with GasIT being the cheaper cylinder but it depends what I need to add . I don't want to drill holes in the side or door of the gas cupboard so would prefer direct attachment or internal filler .

Thanks In Advance for any suggestions !

Mick
Click to expand...
Basildog?

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We have Gaslow, 2 x11kg bottles,and have been very happy with them.
Filler in the sill btw (y)
 
meanders said:
Genuine question. Why? I have Gasit and having looked at those and Gaslow side by side the only difference seemed to be the paint colour and the handle. Gasit fittings were cheaper but again, no discernable difference. Indeed the hoses and connectors were identical and probably came from the same factory.
Click to expand...


We all prefer to recommend what we have fitted I suppose. Personally I only have experience of Gaslow .
 
meanders said:
Genuine question. Why? I have Gasit and having looked at those and Gaslow side by side the only difference seemed to be the paint colour and the handle. Gasit fittings were cheaper but again, no discernable difference. Indeed the hoses and connectors were identical and probably came from the same factory.
Click to expand...
I have no experience of either Gaslow or Gasit but from a quick glance online they appear to have very different valve arrangements, which might account for price differences. When I have bought refillables (Alugas and Safefill) I have put a high priority on the cylinder having burst protection, which stops the flow if the high pressure hose to the regulator gets damaged.
 
Gaslow all the way. Superb service and top notch products.

External filler means no grief or potential for grief.

An external filler on my Landy and a tail means I can cheat a bit!!!

Tony
 
Landy Andy said:
I have my fill point inside my locker and have never been refused filling in 6 years. But to fit the fill point in the fill locker only requires two screw holes. So if you have problems filling, and wish to change later to an external filler then it’s an easy alteration and you will just require longer hose and external fill point.
Click to expand...
Mine was the same fill point in the locker as you say only two screw holes easy to change to an external filler if required but never done as it was never a problem. Also if you change vans easy to swap back.

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I've only ever used GasIt underslung tank.

Filler point external, as was everything else.

One small hole drilled through the floor for the copper pipe to enter the van. GasIt sold a plastic coated pipe which protects it from stone impact etc outside the van.

Five years later and I'm moving it over to the new van and my only criticism is that the clips they supplied and the fill point bracket they supplied were not stainless steel and so had corroded over time. Don't know if they've improved the quality of these items in the interim period but I'm simply going to make up my own stainless bracket and buy some marine grade jubilee clips.

Rather than buy an expensive filter which protects the regulator, I simply bought a spare regulator and the first one is still going strong. However I think it also depends on where you buy gas. I've read that places like Morocco don't always have the cleanest gas so a filter would probably make sense.

I only use mine for cooking so a tank full lasts a very long time!
 
Speedie said:
Hi All - New to motorhomes so please bear with me. I want to take advantage of cheaper LPG by using a refillable cylinder 11kg instead of the Calor propane 6kg I have now but which one is the question and also what would I need. Do I need filters etc. I have been looking at Gas IT , Gas Bank Duo , Safefill and Gaslow with GasIT being the cheaper cylinder but it depends what I need to add . I don't want to drill holes in the side or door of the gas cupboard so would prefer direct attachment or internal filler .

Thanks In Advance for any suggestions !

Mick
Click to expand...
I went down the Gaslow route with no problems. I drilled a hole in the skirt just below the gas door locker and fitted the filler there. The filling pipe went through the floor of the gas locker where the ventilation holes are. Works a treat.
 
I went down the Safefill route when I had a caravan over seven years back. Sapped it over to both the motorhomes subsequently. About four years ago bought a second cylinder and the savings on the price of gas has paid for them. The decision for going down the refillable route will depend on your consumption. If you are always on hookup, then cooking use only means that is is unlikely to be economic. If you off-grid a lot then it is a no-brainer, plus you can obtain gas abroad unlike a caller cylinder.
 
Our first van has Stako bottles same or similar to Gas it. It was and outside locker so after a few year the powder coating flaked off and the bottom of the cylinders went a bit rusty.
Since then always had Alugas.

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