Gas stove in cabin? Safety?

[fender22]

I have a 3/4 cabin cruiser I want to use a 2 burner stove in. It has a little galley etc and a bench top for the stove and not going to permanently install the bottle but just want to make sure I'm doing the right thing? I was thinking of hooking up the bottle while I'm cooking and afterwards having the bottle out in the open air.

Any advice appreciated

[Horse]

Just make sure you have the safety cutout on the stove. Thats the type you buy in a marine store rather than a camping joint.

Make sure your bottle can't leak into the bige either

[Mrs Ronnie H]

Hi
We have a two burner gas with grill in the cabin. I have the gas bottle in cupboard underneath. I have set it on fire resistant sheeting and alwasys turn the bottle off when not in use.
I think the main point is to have good ventilation and make sure there is nothing flammable near it and most of all never leave anything unattended while cooking. Keep an eye on it.
We also have a portable cylinder one burner that is used most often to boil the kettle. Perhaps this would be an option as you can use them out on the deck.

We haven't had any problems-- just be safety conscious like all things.

The stove in the cabin was one of the metho types- a proper marine one with the holders on top to keep the pots held in but personally I thought gas would be safer so we took it out. I used the holder part from the old stove and adapted it to fit the new gas one.

If you are not sure seek some advice from someone who deals with gas-- our neighbour down the road is a gas fitter and he inspected ours. Fine but stated as with everything to be safety conscious.

Cheers

Ronnie

[tunaticer]

Gas is fine if you keep the area well ventilated. I would be keeping a close watch on your bottle for signs of corrosion or electrolysis esp around the valve being a brass to steel joint.

I would think that gas would be much safer than any liquid that could be spilt in rough conditions.

Jack.

[oldboot]

Two things scare the willies out of me.
Gas stoves in boats and gas stoves in caravans.
What ever you end up doing, you need to be realy careful

hardly a summer goes by that we dont hear of a boat either blowing up or being burned to the waterline... for some reason.

cheers

[death_ship]

i am a gas fitter and i would recommend you fit a gas detection system, with a sensor under the appliance and in the bilge or lowest point, also i would never use it with the bottle in the cabin. put the bottle in an area that drains overboard, gas is heavier than air and sinks. i recommend these systems to everyone, apart from ensuring you always turn the supply off at the bottle you just cant be sure. also if you dont have it certified by a gas fitter, insurance can be useless in the case of an accident. its not worth the risk.

[Big G]

Gas is heavier than air and it does tend to fall into the lowest point. No one would be happy about having gas in the bilge so it only makes sense if you are going to have the bottle in the cabin it should be housed in an air tight compartment that is vented to the outside of your boat via a clamped hose to a skin fitting.( vented to outside the hull) The compartment should have a sealed door that gives easy access to turn off the cylinder when not in use. The compartment should have provision to hold the cylinder firmly in place. The stove should be an approved marine appliance and the service line from the gas cylinder to the stove should also be sealed in suitable flexible conduit hosed clamped at the stove end and at the compartment end. This means that any gas leaked from the cylinder or the flexible service hose will be vented to the outside of the hull where there is n o danger of explosion from leaked gas.

The only gas that could find its way to the bilge would have to leak from the stove after the service line connection. As one should only have the gas turned on while cooking, any malfunction or leak at the stove will be observed and the service valve on the cylinder should be immediately turned off. The sealed door on the gas compartment should be kept closed at all times except when turning the cylinder on or off.

The gas fitting should be certified by a gas plumber as unfortunately LPG vehicle gas fitters are not authorised to certify this type of fit.( even though auto gas fitters are more experienced with gas installations in vehicles where the standard are very strict and these rules should be applied in boat gas fits)

Unless common sense and a high degree of workmanship is used I would rather see a marine metho stove fitted. No inexperienced or unqualified person should attempt to plumb a fixed gas appliance in a vessel or vehicle.

Big G.

[mik01]

no one has yet mentioned that your LPG bottle should be a marine grade cylinder and not the standard cylinder you and I use at home as they simply rust out over time. I have personally seen extremely dangerous cylinders left to rust on boats.

you can get these cylinders from some marinas pre filled. whilst slightly more expensive, your life is worth far more. Having worked in the gas industry for many years, I can tell you that properly respected, LPG is very safe and a great fuel. as above, ensure your lines are connected correctly, your O rings are not dried and brittle and you regularly inspect the hose for corrosion and cracking/splitting.

also, ensure you use your appliance in a well ventilated area (in case of a leak) and never seal the cylinder in a closed area where there are electrical wires/radios/etc. There's no problem with using the cylinder in your galley where there is adequate ventilation, and you are correct to remove it after use.

cheers,
mik

[mik01]

Two things scare the willies out of me.
Gas stoves in boats and gas stoves in caravans.
What ever you end up doing, you need to be realy careful

hardly a summer goes by that we dont hear of a boat either blowing up or being burned to the waterline... for some reason.

cheers

I dare say those reasons really are only attributable to lack of basic maintenance and lack of common sense. I would be far more scared of a metho or any other liquid based fuel supply in a cabin - especially one that rocks back and forth!

[cormorant]

Metho is heaps safer. It burns cold if not through a jet and pressurised and can simply be put out with water instantly. It requires a large density to ignite and doesn't explode readily and spills evaporate.

Not as hot as gas generally but 100 times safer.

Those little porta gas stoves with the canisters are asking for trouble in any enclosed area or on a boat.

You never ant a naked flame on any petrol boat be it inboard or outboard.

[PinHead]

with a little common sense the gas is the best way to go. Have a metho stove burning and get a spill and see what fun you have..the liquid runs and you cannot see the flame.

[Grand_Marlin]

Those little porta gas stoves with the canisters are asking for trouble in any enclosed area or on a boat.

Why do you say that?

Thats what I use and I have never even looked like having trouble.

I like the fact that:
it is not a permanent installation,
the cylinders are easily replaced,
the gas is easily shut off,
I can easily use the unit out on the deck where there is good ventillation.

Any form of cooking appliance on a boat can be dangerous, for the reasons others have already mentioned.

The chances of a cooking appliance exploding your fuel tank would be very small.
I say this because if it were true, a lot more boats would explode with smokers on board.

The accidents always seem to stem back to a cooking appliance with a leaking fuel source.

Cheers

Pete

[PADDLES]

i agree pete, the butane ones are the go if you need to use a stove, i could be wrong but i think that the butane will dissipate in the air a lot quicker than propane and doesn't sink to the bilge like propane. i do agree though that a boat is not a nice place for a naked flame because the other gas that is heavier than air and i reckon is the most dangerous of the lot is fuel vapour.

[cormorant]

In reply to a couple of points.

It is hard to get petrol to ignite with a ciggy as it is the vapour that ignites and this needs the right explosive air mix and a flame. I wouldn't suggest you try it but Mythbusters have and I I have seen an idiot do it in real life- well actually a fireman but anything flamable is dangerous in my mind. Most accidents with fires which are explosive are actually caused by naked flame of lighter or match not a ciggy butt so you are probably at most danger when lighting the match or if electricity arcs.

The butane stoves - especially the cheaper ones are very dangerous as many don't have an auto flame out device. Many have a chassis that gets very hot. Once the cylinder is pierced on cheaper ones it can leak when stored as there is no off tap on the actual cylinder or you have to use the whole cylinder. They are not windproof. Some of the expensive Japo and Korean ones have better features and are better constructed but at $200 each you get what you pay for and may as well get a marine BBQ for a little more.


A boat is a extremely confined space and due to cabins and coamings has large areas that are not containing circulating air and this is the danger as it is not necessarily the bilge only that can turn explosive. Many electrical switches and fittings in boats still produce a spark and much of the wiring in boats is hidden away and can deteriorate.

The biggest problem of all these compromise items is that they aren't designed to do the job, not servicable in marine applications and your insurance company knows it so regardless of how much common sense you apply there are risks you can't mitigate.

As for a metho spill we always have a water bottle near the stove and a fire blanket- have used the water after a spill not wiped up after refilling and thankfully not had to use the fire blanket. Water kills metho fast you try it.

1 cup of metho spilled will just burn but the equivilant 1 cup of liquid gas will have the potention to explode and blow a cabin off if it has the right air mix.


Hope that helps explain why I feel it is dangerous

Corm

[PinHead]

Gas is no problem at all if all fittings are in good condition...completely safe to use..I would be more worried about petrol fumes from an underfloor fuel tank that has never been checked than gas fumes from a portable appliance used correctly.