I had been planning to heat water for a nice hot cup of coffee to warm the Scamp up on my recent fall trip, but had a rude awakening when the stove wouldn't stay lit. The fridge appeared to be working on propane, although the air temperature was barely above refrigerator temperature anyway so I was just relying on hearing the flame and feeling the heat. When I tried to light the stove it only stayed lit for 15 seconds or so. After that no more sound of propane flowing. I tried turning the fridge off to see if they just weren't sharing well, but it did the same thing. When I set up camp I always light the stove first to make sure I have propane flow so it did appear to be working then.
Where should I go next with my trouble shooting?
I would guess that you checked to see if your propane tank had fuel and that you opened the valve on the propane tank. I would guess that it could be your propane regulator. If you follow the hose out of the propane tank it will lead to the regulator which is located on the tongue of the trailer. Leading out of the regulator the hose will then connect to a fitting on the front of the trailer. The regulator controls the amount of propane that goes to the appliances. I would remove the exit hose on the regulator to see if any propane is evident. If none, I would guess the regulator is bad. I just replaced the regulator on my Scamp. In my case the diaphragm ruptured and was leaking propane. Regulators are cheap and most RV stores will stock what you need. Just bring the old regulator with you to the RV store and show them what you need and they should have it in stock. I wish you luck in trouble shooting this problem.
The propane tank has a safety valve that shuts off the flow of propane if if the hose becomes disconnected. This valve will also activate if you turn the valve on too fast. To prevent this, close the valve off, then very slowly turn the. propane tank back on. This may solve your propane flow problem. Good luck.
Dave & Paula
http://www.rvdoctor.com/2002/01/what-pros-do-propane-system.html
This sounds like a clog from debris in the stove line which is not an unusual happening, sometimes propane supplies are contaminated. In my 13's, the stove line comes up from a T which continues on to the fridge.
If you remove the stove cover so that you can see where the propane line connects to the burner assembly, you can remove the propane line. You may see some debris right there when you remove it, if not go outside and slowly open the propane supply for about 30 seconds and hopefully blow the line clear. You might want someone watching the line to verify that propane is coming out the stove line properly when you open the tank. If the stove line is putting out propane with no issues, then the clog is in your burner assembly. Clean out the burner assembly while you're in there regardless. Put the line back on slowly turn the propane on and test the stove.
Let us know what you find.
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The current best guess based on working through everyone's suggestions is that it's the regulator. Today the fridge wasn't working other than the initial rush of flame. I'll try replacing the regulator in the spring. Seems like I'm just asking for another issue to pop up if I do it now before I button everything down for a long winter.
Thanks for all your help.
Regulators can be (and should be annually) checked out with a manometer and even if you get a new one, it should be checked out too. My experience is that even though they are preset at the factory, they are not always properly adjusted. Also I think your stove has a secondary regulator, so it could be either reg, both, or even something else.
Be sure you have the main regulator mounted with the vent facing within 45 degrees of down, close to straight down is best (and/or use a cover). I have seen that Scamp does not properly mount the reg on single tanks setups. Mine got water in it for this reason, rusted internally and failed in about two years.
As for waiting till Spring.. I like having the Scamp ready to live in at anytime in case the HVAC in the house fails, but thats up to you of course.
Thanks for the advice.
My Scamp has no furnace, so it will be of little use to me if I run into home heating issues this winter. I'll rely on my wood stove as my backup at home so no worries for me there.
After a long winter topped of with some pandemic-based activity modifications, I finally installed a new regulator. Still the same issue. I actually took a video of it so I could see what was happening and the flame lights really well, but only for 4 seconds or so, then fades out. Both burners do the same thing.
Since I've tried the new regulator and we checked that the lines were clear to the best of our ability last fall, I think it may be time for me to figure out who to take it to to check it out. I'm not sure which will be more time consuming, me trying to figure out what to fix and how or me trying to find someone in my area to fix it.
Sounds to me like there is a restriction or blockage in the gas supply lines to the stove. The stove uses more gas than the other appliances. Do you have one or two tanks? If two, does the problem happen with both tanks? Also the tanks have a "slug valve" that will shut off the gas if the tank is opened too fast. Open slowly. Look for crimped or sharply bent lines, especially the rubber ones. Do both stove burners act the same way? "Things" can build nests at the base of the burner where the air vents are. Overall be careful! If you can smell gas don't light anything. LPG is heavier than air so if you can smell it between 5 and 6 feet above the ground there may be a lot more around your feet. Work with your Scamp well opened up. Good luck.
It would be really strange to have it happen again but....last winter while in AZ I had ro replace a propane tank to regulater hose (cracks due to old age).
The new hose would not let gas thru. It had a flap of rubber inside right at the crimp fitting that was on the tank end of the hose.
Bob D
2005 13' Scamp "Lil Critter"
Brenda, AZ
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