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PatCrusse · 11-18-2002, 08:19 PM

I have searched the forum for information on LP Regulators with little success. The few times questions have been asked about regulators, there haven't been much of an answer. So here's my question...

I have the original, two stage regulator on my Tradwind. It does not work. Once the first tank is empty, it will not swich over to the second cylinder. I have to disconect the reculator and swich tanks.

I would like to get a new automatic regulator. Camping world offers one made by Marshall, but it has gotten horrible reviews. Are there any other options?

Thanks in advance,
Patrick

Dave-O · 11-19-2002, 08:15 AM

Andy carries the original Fischer regs at Inland RV for $165 the last I checked. Alternately there may be a place near you that would rebuild it. Start with the propane companies locally. They'll know where to point you.

NSMITH · 11-20-2002, 10:50 AM

Concerning the stock regulator on an 84 Excella - I know a properly working regulator will automatically kick over to the other tank when one tank is exhausted. The "arrow knob" looks like it should be used to keep track of tanks needing service. Does the arrow know actually do anything? How is it supposed to be used?

I've read the manual but it's not worded clearly at all.

Neal in Indiana

Pahaska · 11-20-2002, 11:14 AM

Yes, the knob will choose which full tank will be drawn from first. A happy side benefit is indicating which tank needs to be refilled.

NSMITH · 11-20-2002, 11:40 AM

Gotcha. Wish the manual would be so clear.

BTW, something that has been driving me crazy that I'm sure someone can answer: My panel is shot, so I have no reliable indicators for any type of tank status, be it LP or holding or whatever. This has turned out not to be such a big deal, but I've wondered how in the earth the LP tank status is detected. Is it pre-regulator pressure? I've even looked for "scales" detecting the weight of the tanks but don't see any such thing.

Tks

Pahaska · 11-20-2002, 12:00 PM

My International monitor panel also has LP readings that aren't hooked up. I'm not sure what sort of tank sensing would make them work. I don't think it would be worth any effort, though.

I never use the A/S for more than a few days at a time in cold weather. I simply check the green stripe whenever I turn on the tanks and again when I put the trailer away. I bought my A/S May 31st and I just refilled the first tank the middle of November. That included a lot of cooking, quite a few showers, and using the oven 4 times. Unless you use the A/S for long periods at a time, using the furnace, the indicators are really not of much use.

I do know that you can buy an add-on that senses the green stripe in the regulator and lights a LED in the trailer when it turns red. I believe that Camping World has it.

PatCrusse · 11-20-2002, 12:12 PM

This is great info. My Tradewind does not have any LP gauges inside. I will have to play around with the regulator again to see if I can figure it out. But I think that it is broken because:

1:With one tank connected, the other hose open, and the arrow pointed toward the connected tank... When I turn on the tank, LP comes out of the hose.

2:When I connect a tank to the other hose, and disconnect the first tank, and DO NOT move the arrow... The same thing happens. Tank is turned on and LP flows out of open hose.

3:When I follow the same procedure with the arrow pointed in the other direction, nothing happens. No LP flows. I cannot even light any indoor appliences.

I am afraid to leave both tanks turned on because I am not sure if there will be too much pressure. I use one tank 'till empty, turn it off, then turn the second one on.

Am I just an idiot? Am I doing something wrong or do I need to get it rebuilt?

Pahaska · 11-20-2002, 12:20 PM

It does sound like you have a defective regulator.

As far as I know, the current Marshall regulators have no problems. They did have a recall some time back. I believe that they are made just down the road here in San Marcos.

There is absolutely no risk in leaving both tanks on. The pressure is not additive. Turning both on is just the same as having one 40#tank instead of 2 20# tanks.

PatCrusse · 11-20-2002, 12:23 PM

Thanks John. I will probably go ahead and order a Marshall regulator from CW. They have gotten horrible reviews on CW's web site, but I can't find any other affordable option.

Does anyone know if someone sells rebuild kits?

Pahaska · 11-20-2002, 01:35 PM

I'm sure that they aren't rebuildable.

I guess I am lucky. I have had Marshall regulators on 3 successive trailers without any problems. Sounds like they made a recent design change, though. My International parts manual just says "LP Regulator, Marshall Brass, 601731" without specifiying any additional model number.

James Schmidt · 11-21-2002, 03:40 AM

For what it,s worth---I have been using a Marshall Brass regulator for over a year now with no problems. It works like it is supposed to! My original regulator began to give problems with manually changing the pointer. It would not move so I changed it. Upon inspection of the old regulator I found that it was gummed up with some gunk. I cleaned it up and it seems ok, so I kept it for future use.

3Ms75Argosy · 12-09-2002, 03:42 AM

Not to sound silly, but can the old regulator (mine's orginal from 1975) work with the new OPD vavle and hose? I was thinking of changing the regulator when finally changing my tanks, but I read the reviews of the Marshall regulator at CW - SCARY! All the bad reviews are from 2002, so something must have happened this year. My tanks and regulator have been covered, so they seem to be fine cosmectically. Also, what is the "pop-up" knob at the top of the regulator? Mine is up, and I think red? Does it mean the tanks are close to empty? I'm still trying to figure out the arrow. If it is pointing left, it will drain the left tank first and then switch over automatically? How do you know that it has? I don' t have internal indicators on the Argosy.
It seems to be working fine - how do I know it's time for replacement?
Thanks!
Marc

PatCrusse · 12-09-2002, 06:50 AM

I don't know if I can answer your question correctly, because my regulator was broken from the time that I bought my AS. I can say that it behaved the same with non-OPD tanks as with OPD tanks. I don't see why they wouldn't work.

As for the Marshall regulator... mine came in two weeks ago. I hooked it up and it has worked great. I hope it holds up for a while. I have been checking it on a regular basis.

Just in case anyone is curious, I have been heating my Tradewind to 50 degrees during the day, and 55 at night. Temperatures have been in the low 20s at night and mid 30s during the day. I used up a 40lbs tank in 8 days just for heat. No cooking or hot water. That's a lot of gas, but it sure is nice to be able to use the trailer whenever I want to.

I will keep trying this idea of not winterizing the trailer, but it may not last. My wife and I are going to Florida in January, so I may winterize it after that trip. Meanwhile, I am able to work inside the trailer when I have time.

Patrick

Inland RV Center, In · 12-09-2002, 08:53 AM

Tinkering with "ANY" LPG requlator, especially if you take it apart, is the same as checking out dynamite to see how it works.
There is a one word answer, for everyone, and this comes from the national sales manager of Robert Shaw controls.

DON'T

Andy
inlandrv.com
airstreamparts.com
airstreamcandy.com

74SovereignInt. · 12-09-2002, 11:19 AM

Just bought a replacement regulator on the advice of the vendor I bought compliant tanks from . Their opinion was that the regulator should be replaced after fifteen years.

I was told that the arrow points to the tank being used and that the pop-up shows red when that tank is empty. The regulator will automatically switch over to the other tank to continue operation uninterrupted. Switching the arrow to the full tank allows you to remove the empty and refill it, again without interruption of service. The pop-up should show green again at that point.

Just passing along what I was told. You should verify the accuracy yourself with your local vendor specific to your model regulator.

wallybyam · 12-09-2002, 12:22 PM

For whatever it is worth, I had Bill Thomas Airstream in St. Louis, Mo. replace the original regulator on my 99 Excella with a new Marshall regulator. This new Marshall failed in just five months. LP was leaking from around the selector valve. As I could not find another brand regulator I replaced the new/bad Marshall with another of the same brand.

Was going to try and get the faulty Marshall replaced, but as the cost was only $45 at Bill Thomas ($39 for the replacement) I didn't feel that it was worth getting my blood pressure up.

CO_Don · 12-26-2002, 05:14 PM

I just replaced my old marshall requlator with a new 254-00 because my old one would not transfer. Threw the old one away. The inputs here said I made a mistake. I also sent a message to the Marshall e-mail address www.mgc-mbc.com asking their response to CW evalutations and inputs here, but have gotten no respose. I'll attribute the lack of response to the holiday season rather that lack of interest. Has anyone found a suitable replacement other than the $165 unit? Interesting that I've never had a problem with any of my propane system on multi RV units in the past. In the aerospace community we would have been on this like flees on a dog. Think of the liability implications! Thanks.

Ken J · 12-26-2002, 06:29 PM

Thats interesting, Charlie Burke at American Way suggested the 254 because that is what they use now. Seems to work great.

CO_Don · 12-26-2002, 06:50 PM

Well, I hope so. Repaced it without knowing that there was a problem and took it to storage. I checked the fittings as I had no reason to suspect the unit at that time. We'll see how it works after Xmas is over and I get back to "putting it on the road."

jimmickle · 04-18-2004, 07:16 AM

I had the marshall regulator on my 2002 Safari (built in November of 2001) fail on the way to WBCCI international in June of 2002. Since it was Friday afternoon, and we were in a small town in Minnesota, I was lucky to get a replacement so that we would have heat and refrigeration for the next few days. Ours was not the only failure on the caravan. Out of 20 units, we had, as I remember it, some seven or eight failures. One member of the caravan had a failure at the rally in Michigan before the caravan left, and replaced it with a new unit. It failed on the way, and had to be replaced again. Mine was returned to Airstream who reinbursed the cost of the replacement as it was still under warrenty. So far the replacement is working OK. I was able to buy a used spare from a propane dealer near the rally site. It is the old Marshall that is put together with screws and has a brass changover warning gage. Another customer had it replaced with a new one as a precaution before a trip to Alaska in a pick-up camper.
With the failure rate of the latest from Marshall, I think that he made a mistake.
BTW, the recent Marshall regulators that I have seen were made in Mexico, a country not noted for understanding quaility control. Lional Trains was almost put out of business when they move production to Mexico to save money. The product that they got was JUNK!! They moved production back to the US and saved the company.