Odd Backing Inccident and Mangled Gas Line

[perryg114]

Well I was putting the trailer in its usual wintering spot beneath the gum tree. The ground is a little soft and slightly unlevel. So I put down some 2x12's long ways in front of the wheels. Well when I ran over the boards the one on the left side popped up when the wheel hit it. It was stopped by the trailer skin. Well when I backed up the top of the board caught the fridge gas line and mangled it. The trailer actually got hung on the gas line. I could not go forward because the angle was too steep on the board and I could not go backwards because the board was hung on the gas line. So the next time you are shimming with boards beware of this possible outcome. Now I have some loose belly skin and a gas line to fix. I ended up putting the boards cross ways and that seemed to work. Now if it will stop raining maybe I can get things fixed.

Turns out I have some 3/8" tubing with the yellow plastic on it. I bought a flaring tool at Lowes yesterday. The PO had already put a T behind the fridge for a little propane heater of some sort. I put a cap on it but would rather it not be there at all. Nothing like a source of CO2 and CO in an enclosed space. I guess the PO was lucky he did not kill himself with that rig. I am hearing some information about using double flares on propane lines which makes no sense to me. Usually, that is used for hydraulic lines in excess of 5000 psi. We don't even have 5 psi here. Even if the regulator blows, you are still not talking that much pressure. In the aerospace industry the down stream components need to be rated for the tank pressure if the regulator were to fail. I would think the appliances are the weak link here and not the tubing. The double flare is useful when dealing with high pressures because the pressure tends to spread the tubing apart making the seal even tighter. It also provides a little more crush when using steel. Most of the time, we use copper washers on flare fittings unless the tubing is copper. So copper is about as good as it gets already as far as sealing.

Perry

[J. Morgan]

Going double flare is no big deal, you can buy a tool for forty bucks or so, but it is entirely unnessasary.

I have a very nice hydraulic double flaring tool that I didn't use for double flaring on my Airstream at all, and if I had it to do over again I still wouldn't.

And yea, weird accidents suck.

1/2 Ton 4WD Truck, 72 Sovereign Hensley Arrow

[slowmover]

The flare question is of interest. And hopefully not contentious I say with a smile. Glad you've the opportunity to clean things up, but sorry for what occasioned it. Sounds like what can happen to me. I find I can live with "gaining character" though I'd rather my vehicle didn't need to acquire its share of my errors.

[Protagonist]

I thought that the RVIA standards required double flare. Then I looked up the exact text in NFPA 1192, which is the RV standard adopted by RVIA. It specifically says, "single or double flare." So you can use either one. Double flare is stronger (if done right) and that's good for a moving trailer, but it's not at all essential.

I'm not sure what to do about your leveling board popping up on soft soil when the tire first hits it, but you might try beveling the end to make a short ramp, so that the tire rolls up the bevel.

[perryg114]

Well turning the boards 90 degrees worked pretty well. I just had to make sure the spacing was correct. If you put them long ways the wheels don't always follow since the tow vehicle is usually at an angle. It is hard to predict the exact path when things are not straight.

I think I will have to make a patch around the hole for the gas line. It tore through a few inches. As for the low skin, I have some hardened self drilling screws. I will still drill a pilot hole for them. The cheap screws will hit the frame and just wring off, been there done that.


Perry

[perryg114]

Well gas line is fixed. Not 100% done with the cosmetic stuff but I have the furnance going for the mother in law at Christmas Time. I installed a new thermostat today but that is another thread.

Perry