.... And So It Continues....

We got home from our outing yesterday in the later part of the lit afternoon.  We decided it was best to check the tanks one more time because we need to be sure to have enough propane to last a couple cooler days during the holiday shut down in a smaller town.  It seemed that all was well. (After all, you wouldn't expect troubles to arise in the warmer and lighter hours... What fun is that...)

So once the darkness we hunker down for the night, and I am starting to bake a pie while hubby is working on his computer.  He comes in and asks where the draft is coming from.  It turns out the furnace was on, but not blowing heat.  In fact, it was blowing very not heat.

After a few back and forth searchings inside and out, confusion and interpreting of gauges versus tank weight, we finally decided that there should be enough propane, the line was heated, so it must be the regulator.  We heated it with a heat gun ( a bit risky as the heat coil could potentially sparked the propane fumes that always linger in the propane tank compartment - but what else can you do??...) we got it running and it functioned fine for the rest of the night.

Today we topped both tanks.  While at the service station, Ken was discussing the details of our night time ventures, and we learned a bit of new information.  It was basic information that should have been a part of our extensive walk through that our dealership gave us.... but how much can you cram into a 10 minute tour??... But I digress...

We discovered that because we had a setup that has 2  30 lb tanks, the regulator is of the persuasion that you can open both tank valves, and set the flow to come from one of the tanks, and when it empties, the regulator will automatically switch it to the other.  When you go out to monitor usage, if the flow is coming from the other tank, you know that you need to refill the first tank.  We have been manually switching it and only keeping one tank on at a time.  We thought the second tank would leak out if we left its valve on at the same time that the other was in use.  (you can never be to careful, you know)

The other thing we did was to get a piece of foil coated bubble insulation and wrapped it around the tanks to keep the cold from overwhelming the chamber, and we have a trouble light with a low wattage regular bulb (one that still gives off heat) and if needed, we will turn it on inside the compartment to take the chill off.  Again, we will only do it if needed, but if the bulb breaks and causes a spark, you may cause a fire.  Unlikely, but very possible, nonetheless.

I took some pictures today of our surroundings.  The one I found amusing is the pile of snow in the corner of the yard where the plough pushed it.  the humour of it is found in an earlier post's note on the comment from this park's management about the snowfall generally being clearable with a broom.

Anyway, as it is Christmas Eve, I am going to settle into a light and fluffy movie with Ken and wait for the visions of sugar plums to dance.  The heaters are now working well, and we will pick up the larger tank on Monday.  (by then, the cold snap should break, but hey - propane fills for half the cost is worth it any time of year.)

 

Merry Christmas and may the season's blessings be on you all.

Adieu.