Bad Day at a Campground

[RKassl]

We camp many times at the St Croix Casino RV Park in Turtle Lake, WI. Last night an RV exploded there the husband was found outside the RV on the ground burnt over most of his body. His wife and dog were not hurt. They say an LP leak did it.

On our Montana there is an LP detector right under the stove in the kitchen. Does this sense a gas leak with the living compartment only? If so does anyone know if there are remote detectors that you can put in the LP storage compartments to maybe alert to an external leak?

This accident has really made the wife and I a little nervous. Any discussion will be appreciated.

[bsmeaton]

Bob,

The consequences of an LP accident are usually fatal, and I am sorry for those folks. That is actually the first time I have heard of that happening in a true RV, but I have witnessed it happen in a mobile home at our old lake property.

The LP compartments technically cannot have a buildup of LP, because LP is heavier than air and the entire floor of those compartments is open to ground, (dont ever seal those up for storage). There is a potential for LP to collect in the front cabinet where the pipe passes through, however it is a solid pipe with no unions or fittings actually located in that compartment (on mine anyway).

The interior leak detector alarms at 50% LEL, or at half of the lowest saturation of LP (actually Pentane) required to sustain an explosion. However, they only measure the air in that specific spot, so they are not foolproof. Overall, if you consider the upper bedroom level, the furnace location, and the overall concentration of appliances that use propane, the detector is most likely installed at the best location possible. I am not aware of low cost systems with remote sensors, but there are sure no restrictions from installing as many of those as you feel necessary. Probably the next place I would consider installing one would be the basement near the utility openings to the furnace area. I always figured there could be a potential for gas escaping from the furnace into the main basement space. I am not aware of any LP lines that actually run inside the enclosed belly space, but I could be wrong.

[HamRad]

Brad,

Excellent explanation. It is very unusual for for an LP tank to explode. You almost wonder if there might not have been something that was blocking the bottom of the tank compartment.

I certainly hope everyone survives.

Dennis

[richfaa]

I have seen a propane tank explosion.Huge blast, unbelievable. I have never seen one or heard of one exploding on a RV..I wonder what went wrong.

[bsmeaton]

It most likely was a leak or appliance failure that allowed gas to buildup inside the coach rather than an actual tank failure. The tanks would need to be exposed to pretty extreme heat from a fire to fail.

The mobile home I witnessed was found to be the stovetop as a probable cause, as it was found with multiple burners on. It could have been in use for cooking, but it occurred around 2:00 AM and there were small kids. They suspect someone left the stove on or one of the kids turned it on earlier that night and it built up enough inside the mobile home that it exploded from the hot water tank lighting up or even a light switch being turned on as someone got up to investigate the smell. So sad.

If you hear anything as far as potential reasons for this one, please let us know. I worry about the stove top all the time and get up continuously to check it, especially with kids. At times I even take the knobs off or just shut off the tanks.

[rames14]

Our detector failed over the weekend. When I was researching, it said it was set for 25% of the LEL. One of the problems of being colorblind is I had to have the DW tell me if the indiator was really yellow. Anyone else have one quit? Ours is over four years old, so I guess it is probably time.

[awaywego]

Sorry to hear about the fire and injuries.

You did not mention if it was a fifth wheel or motorhome. I have seen several fires in motorhomes and one fifthwheel and that was caused by a candle which was left burning on a table.
Please let us know if it was a motorhome or not.

[Fire5er]

I agree with rames14, I think they are set at 25% LEL (Lower Explosive Level). Just got back from a hernia surgery today and so can't run out to the Monty and look. But most people can smell a propane leak well before it gets close to 25% LEL. But if it occurred at night and they were sleeping they may not have been able to smell it as your sense of smell goes to sleep also.

[rames14]

The other thing, as mentioned, is that propane is heavier than air. That is why it's mounted near the floor. Shortly after we moved to the Milwaukee area, a local company had a devastating propane explosion that killed three - and blew up an entire factory building. The whole workforce was out of work for months. Propane can be bad stuff.

[ARJ]

It may be wise to inspect the hoses from the tanks to the regulator. I just replaced both of my hoses as one was leaking at the crimp and neither was flexible anymore (2007 Mountaineer). On my previous TT, one of the hoses blew right off the tank connection allowing a full tank of propane to exhaust into the backyard. Manufacturers supply the cheapest crap they can lay their hands on!

[RKassl]

Just thought I would share more details about this accident. You will not believe it. Apparently it was a slide in camper for a pickup. The guy brought an LP bottle inside the camper to use it for some type of cooking device. Apparently it caught fire so he carried it outside, where it exploded! This is not a normal practice. I haven't hear how the guy is doing or if he is still with us? So sad!

[bsmeaton]

Thanks for the update