Propane cylinders in French Polynesia

[Roy M]

Hi folks, I'm trying to get info on the availability of propane in the Marquesas and other parts of French Polynesia. Specifically, I'm curious about the gas cylinder valves used on fork lift vehicles commonly found in the port districts for loading ships. I'm pretty sure they are using these because they can be used in warehouses. My reason is that I'm going to be bringing my 15 horsepower Lehr outboard, and I carry three 7.5 gallon GRP fork lift tanks (made in Norway) aboard as fuel for my RIB. I want to set it up so I can also fill my domestic, galley propane tanks with the appropriate adaptor hose.

I found a company (GasBOAT 4018 Adaptor Kit) that supplies the adaptors shown. Does anyone have contacts in the marine industry that might be able to confirm that these tanks are available in FP? I use the lift truck tanks because they are configured to provide LIQUID fuel in a horizontal position, and they fit perfectly in the RIB athwartships, under the seat.

[kiltym]

Outside of Tahiti it is pretty much gravity fill, even if you have it filled for you by a local. Every island has bottle exchanges where you can leave a deposit, fill your tanks, and return the bottle for the deposit back. Adapters that fit FP bottles can be hard to find outside of Tahiti however. A bit of a catch-22 if you want to do it yourself.

[Roy M]

kiltym, are you in Polynesia now? Do you go, on occasion, to the commercial docks where there might be forklifts? Could you ask where they get their tanks filled? Many thanks.

[Hobie_ind]

We got our US bottles filled in Hiva Oa and Nuku Hiva this season. I don't recall anywhere we went in the Tuamotus that looked like they'd fill bottles from elsewhere. They may exist but you'd have to look around. Propane this year was difficult to get a few times and even the locals were running short in some places due to seemingly sporadic delivery ship schedules. Gasoline wasn't any issue.

We couldn't find just a HP connector to screw into the bottle in FP to make a gravity fill setup for our bottles. Lots of LP connectors available, but obviously the threads are backward and one shop pointed out that the seal configuration is a bit different. Checked at numerous places and was told the HP connectors without a regulator are getting harder to find. I got the impression the intent now there is to have the regulator attached directly to the bottle to minimize the high pressure hose risks.

I ended up buying a regulator with a longer neck on the HP side. I cut the connector off, drilled and tapped it to accept a barb connector, and then used that to gravity fill our tanks. Clearly you don't have a certified fitting at that point so the usual cautions and disclaimers apply. You'll have to use your own judgement.

Just a potential heads up if you're going further west...I've been warned that it's unlikely I'll be able to get my US fiberglass tanks filled anywhere in NZ or Oz as they don't recognize the certifications. We'll see when we get there.

[El Pinguino]

Originally Posted by Hobie_ind

............

Just a potential heads up if you're going further west...I've been warned that it's unlikely I'll be able to get my US fiberglass tanks filled anywhere in NZ or Oz as they don't recognize the certifications. We'll see when we get there.

I've just been through the hoops in NZ with my stainless tanks ( they didn't like the boots that were vulcanized on when they were made) but eventually they tested and passed them...

However under no circumstances will they test F/G ones... and no test = no fill.

Dunno about Oz.

And also...you can arrive with brand new alloy or whatever tanks from the US and they will still require them to be tested AFAIK... ( mine were 12 years since last test in NZ... test is good for 10 years.

[Hobie_ind]

Originally Posted by El Pinguino

I've just been through the hoops in NZ with my stainless tanks ( they didn't like the boots that were vulcanized on when they were made) but eventually they tested and passed them...

However under no circumstances will they test F/G ones... and no test = no fill.

Dunno about Oz.

And also...you can arrive with brand new alloy or whatever tanks from the US and they will still require them to be tested AFAIK... ( mine were 12 years since last test in NZ... test is good for 10 years.

That's what I'd heard, so I'll likely just gravity fill mine from a cheap steel Kiwi bottle while we're there.

[ski69sail]

Hi There

I have the same gas cylinders in New Zealand and it impossible to get them filled or certified for filling I purchased them in Aussie and bought them over. They have Aussie certification.
Would be easier to get a petrol outboard.

Raymond

[crazyoldboatguy]

Originally Posted by El Pinguino

I've just been through the hoops in NZ with my stainless tanks ( they didn't like the boots that were vulcanized on when they were made) but eventually they tested and passed them...

However under no circumstances will they test F/G ones... and no test = no fill.

Dunno about Oz.

And also...you can arrive with brand new alloy or whatever tanks from the US and they will still require them to be tested AFAIK... ( mine were 12 years since last test in NZ... test is good for 10 years.

Stainless Steel propane tanks? Where'd you get those?

[gjordan]

I recently tried to get an older LPG tank tested and filled (California) and it needed a new valve which was no longer available. Having done the "hang it from a tree" trick in Mexico and FP, I asked the old guy that was trying to help me, if I could do that and he said that the new tanks have a different internal pickup that doesnt allow liquid to come out if the tank is not vertical, so I could not just fill it from a new tank. I dont think he was feeding me BS, so checking on this at your local gas dealer might be a good idea. Just a thought. ____Grant.

[El Pinguino]

Originally Posted by crazyoldboatguy

Stainless Steel propane tanks? Where'd you get those?

From these people Marine LPG Cylinder | Specifically designed for marine useStainless Steel Tanks & Pressure Vessels

Bought two 21 years ago and a third 13 years ago... only thing I have had to do is to replace the valves at about 12 to 15 years....they posted them out to me .

Not cheap but as a lifetime investment they are good value.

[kiltym]

Sorry, no longer in FP.

[Dave852]

No propane in FP, only butane. Works fine on the galley, may want to double check the outboard. The picture you posted is of a fiberglass tank, did not see the adapter. It's a good idea to pick up your adaptor before you leave. Tahiti, Rarotonga had a proper filling station with all the adapters as did Tonga believe it or not. Everywhere else in FP will be the hang in the tree method using their rental tanks as mentioned previously. Have to imagine their forklifts will be using their system.


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[Roy M]

Thanks, folks! I love CF and the internet.

[JPA Cate]

NZ takes Australian standards and modifies them a bit more...smaller nation syndrome.

Ah, yes, sometimes I think it would be great if we could all agree on some kind of standards. ...Like a world without "x" kinds of standard pipe threads, many different sizes of nuts, bolts, and threads, etc.

Wow! talk about unrealistic.

Mattyw:

Sorry you took offence.

What it is is that people go buy higher quality stuff than is standard in NZ, and it is a bit aggravating, when such an item is totally certified in the country of purchase, that it has to be re-certified in NZ.

It feels just like "mordida" in the Latin American countries--an unnecessary hassle and expense, jumping through stupid hoops, but it is the way of the world and it must be suffered. It is entirely natural that people gripe about what feels unfair to them......just as you did with your post....

Ann

[Hobie_ind]

Coming from Canada, that in my opinion often also suffers from "small nation syndrome" when it comes to standards, I've come to believe a large part of the differences in safety codes in some places unfortunately has far less to do with personal safety than it does with protection of local manufacturing and trades.

I've worked through the arguments of our "our conditions here are unique" numerous times in my engineering career when moving and re-certifying equipment across different jurisdictions. Honestly we really found very few instances where that held true.

Just my opinion. Luckily Australia, NZ and most of the Pacific so far at least uses the same propane connection as North America, so that simplifies things a bit!