Date:         Tue, 25 Apr 1995 16:47:06 -0400
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@vanagon.com>
From:         PKrogh1158@aol.com
Subject:      More Propane 

I'd like to add this to Derek's fine post of this morning.

The Manchester Tank Co., manufacturer of my tank, was less than thoroughly
knowlegable about the care and maintenance of the tank.  The advice I
followed was to sand the surface rust, but to not take off any more metal
than necessary, as this would affect the structural integrity of the tank.

Also, I used rustoleum Rust Reformer, not plain rustoleum, as the primer.
 This is supposed to peretrate and "transform" the rust.  This is a very
runny fluid that I thought would do well penetrating the area under the
label, where I was working blind.  You should take the tank off to paint it,
which is very simple.  To do it right it should take about a week, with
sand/wash/dry/prime/topcoat/topcoat (5 to7 hrs. work).  

Pay special attention to that label.  If it seems to be deformed by the rust
 in any way (it does have a slight twist along the perimeter when new) , you
may have a serious problem underneath, and should consider, IMHO, replacing
the tank.  No one will tell you what the margin for error is here, as the
consequences of being wrong are too great.

If you have questions about the safety of the tank, I would show it to a
propane professional, although several of the ones I talked to did not appear
to be too bright, and I did not have full confidence in their opinions.

Remember, the tank is still quite explosive even if it only contains the
residual vapors.  Don't be banging it around or subjecting it to lots of heat
unless it has been professionally bled of all it's propane vapor. Remember,
propane is heaver than air.  Never let it collect in a low spot (like
underground garage) if the tank is leaking, or you need to empty it.  I let
my (scavenged) replacement tank discharge very slowly on my front lawn on a
windy day before working on it.  I did not bleed the vapor, as I was hand
sanding it , and did not need to change out the valves.

I think we should all have a healthy respect for the VERY explosive device
that we carry around under out campers.  I hate to ask, but has anybody ever
heard about a fire or explosion from a Westy propane system?

Once again, VW leaves us Westy owners on our own after we drive off the lot,
as NO ONE ever said word one to me about this situation, neither the dealer,
my FLIARS, nor Suburban propane.  I guess it's all up to us.

That being said,
Happy Camping
Peter Krogh