propane electric turn off

[tjandoverguy]

i put a new propane 12v gas shut off on system
it gets hot to the touch,i complained to ebay seller and he returned money within an hour

the question is" is it dangerous"

[belizesailor]

"Warm" and "hot" are somewhat subjective terms, but generally, its normal for solenoids to get warm. Less so w the latching variety, but Ive never seen those in a propane install.

[pcmm]

The solenoid getting warm/hot (depending on how long its on for) is normal. Remember its an electro-magnet activated by a coil. electricity applied to a coil of wire does 2 things create a magnetic current (to open the solenoid) and creates heat.

[denverd0n]

"Warm" is okay. "Hot" is not. If you can put your finger on the solenoid and hold it there for a couple of seconds without feeling like you are going to burn yourself, then you're probably okay. If it is too hot for you to deliberately hold your finger on it for a second or two, then it is too hot.


Another way to think about this, of course, is that an improperly operated propane system can blow up your boat and kill everyone on board. Is that really where you want to try to save a few dollars? Personally, I would spend the money for a top quality solenoid.

[hellosailor]

There's no firm way to answer that. If you have any doubt about electrical safety in a potentially explosive gas system? Hey, you already got your money back. Go buy a UL/CE approved part that you can have some confidence in. Or, keep using the ebay one and you'll find out, eventually, if it wasn't safe.

[tjandoverguy]

i will put a heat gun on it tomorrow

[smith8273]

Mine gets surprising hot!

[Calif.Ted]

I think everyone is disconcerted when they first discover how hot the shut-off solenoid gets. I always figured that's why they put a red light on the switch, to remind you to turn it off when not in use.

[tjandoverguy]

its 100 degrees

i guess not bad

[moseriw]

NEVER! I never heard of one that lived longer than 2 years. Skip that scrap and turn off at the bottle itself.

[belizesailor]

Originally Posted by moseriw

NEVER! I never heard of one that lived longer than 2 years. Skip that scrap and turn off at the bottle itself.

Solenoids do die, but Ive had many last much longer than 2 years. Turning off at bottle is not convenient in all installs.

[belizesailor]

Originally Posted by tjandoverguy

its 100 degrees

i guess not bad

A bit above body temp...wouldnt worry about dat.

[nhschneider]

My wife and I have been living aboard/cruising for the last seven-and-a-half years and we’re still using the Trident propane solenoid that we purchased long before we left. We’re pretty diligent about turning off the solenoid when we’re not using the stove but sometimes we might have the oven on for several hours and our Trident solenoid gets too hot to touch. I agree that it’s disconcerting but we always check for leaks (soapy water in a spray bottle) when we’re switching tanks. I don’t know how hot a surface has to be in order to ignite propane fumes. Probably would depend on atmospheric temperature. Does anyone know?

Fair winds and calm seas.

[Calif.Ted]

The auto ignition temperature (at which it ignites spontaneously) is 920 to 1020 Farenheit.
https://propane.ca/safety-regulation/
I don't think anyone wants to see me in my underwear to open the gas before I've had my coffee.

[nhschneider]

For what it's worth, here's ABYC's chapter on LPG systems:

http://oya.com/yardblog/wp-content/u...11/01/A-01.pdf

They specifically refer to the importance of either a manual or electrical valve on the low pressure side of the tank.