Mount 20 lb. propane tank on OUTSIDE of vehicle

[trspaulding]

So it seems the two options are a horizontal mounted tank for propane under the bus or to build a locker that vents through the floor.

What's the problem with mounting a a propane tank to the back of a shuttle bus? A bunch of rigs have gasoline tanks mounted on the back but mounting a propane tank (BBQ size) to the back wall of a bus appears to be a no-no. What am I missing? Can someone please enlighten me?

My thought would be to mount a bbq size canister on the back of my bus to fuel a stove (internal) and an L5 water heater mounted above the bbq canister.

Thanks all!

[CHEESE_WAGON]

Originally Posted by trspaulding

So it seems the two options are a horizontal mounted tank for propane under the bus or to build a locker that vents through the floor.

What's the problem with mounting a a propane tank to the back of a shuttle bus? A bunch of rigs have gasoline tanks mounted on the back but mounting a propane tank (BBQ size) to the back wall of a bus appears to be a no-no. What am I missing? Can someone please enlighten me?

Besides becoming a flambee if someone rear-ends you?

It's for safety, of course. Anything hits or punctures those tanks, there is a high probability you won't even know what hit you. That's why many motorhomes have their LP tanks mounted beneath the body where they have some protection from unintentional collision-induced detonation. Travel trailers usually put them on the triangle where the hitch tongue expands to meet the frame, though I'm not really keen on that -- they're relatively well-protected when the tow vehicle is attached, I suppose, but I just don't think it's a good idea to have something that volatile exposed to wayward objects.

Originally Posted by trspaulding

My thought would be to mount a bbq size canister on the back of my bus to fuel a stove (internal) and an L5 water heater mounted above the bbq canister.

Thanks all!

Mounting it on the back wall could cause a similar situation to turn it into a projectile. Much better to mount it underneath.

You could always route hoses through the floor and build a cabinet / cage beneath the floor for them... So much the better if your bus has underbody storage, such compartments come in quite handy for such things... Just my $0.02,

[Iceni John]

NFPA 1192 has a lot of requirements that are outdated or irrelevant to self-converters, but its LPG storage location does make sense - propane cylinders and tanks should be between the front and rear axles. Also, if you have propane cylinders outside they could A) be stolen, or B) be pilfered with, or C) arouse the ire of any zealous LEO with nothing better to do, or D) prevent you getting into some campgrounds.

John

[musigenesis]

Originally Posted by trspaulding

So it seems the two options are a horizontal mounted tank for propane under the bus or to build a locker that vents through the floor.

I'm doing a sort of combination of these two. I had to rebuild the floor around my wheel wells and in the course of this I built in a 2'x2' platform raised about 10" above the floor in front of the passenger-side well and open to the underside. My stove will be on top of this platform inside, and underneath will be the propane tank compartment, with its base flush with the side skirt. Because of the raised platform, the height of this compartment will be closer to 30" instead of the 17" or 18" height you could normally get out of an underbody compartment, so I'll be able to have my tank (or tanks) vertical while still being mounted safely outside the bus.

[Biscuitsjam]

I used forklift brackets under the bus between the axles. I added mudflaps to the front tires for some extra protection:

https://nashfuel.ecrater.com/p/14124...r-tank-bracket

[trspaulding]

Gotcha. Makes sense.