Good god, this project sucked. It was easily the most frustrating job in the whole project. Why? Read on.

Background

I was watching a lot of YouTube videos back in the research phase of this project, for inspiration. I came across a channel that I thought was doing a very nice job overall. Then he published a video describing an accident that had occurred due to a gas explosion in his own bus. He had a leak in the cab, and the propane smell additive in his propane had dissipated. When he sparked up the stove, he blew the windows out of his bus, with him inside it. There was a fire, he was seriously injured, and as far as I know, his bus project was never completed as a result.

So, for obvious reasons, I was afraid of propane. This was going to be a project that I would hire out. So I called some plumbers. They said they don’t work on RVs, and to check in with RV shops. RV shops either said they don’t work on custom builds, or they said that I would need to bring the bus to them. That was a problem, because the bus was not registered to drive. After a lot of back and forth and probably about 2-dozen calls to various specialists, I gave up and decided to do it myself.

With my paranoia fully charged, I was determined to not blow myself up. This meant more research to be done, the purchasing of the best tools for the job, and a lot of careful and methodical work with checks and double checks and triple checks along the way. I bought a Pipe Flare Kit to prepare the connections, and a pipe cutter to neatly cut my lines. Neither of these were tools I had ever used or even seen somebody use. I became intimately familiar with the tools over the course of this project.

Doing the Work

I did not want to do this job going into it. So the frustration of having to take my life into my own hands, plus the absolute NIGHTMARE of threading copper tubing throughout small spaces in a vehicle without kinking, puncturing, weakening, or getting dirt inside, was a recipe for a very cranky Isaac. I had to be firm with the tubing, but not so firm that I broke it. I was crawling around on my back, cramping my fingers into small spaces all day. All of the tools were very tough on my hands, too. It sucked!

In the end, I got it in place, and protected the lines as much as I could. It wasn’t the most pretty installation, but it was good enough that I could trust that I would not explode.

I learned through research that the best policy is to place as many connections and junctions placed outside the living space as possible. That way, if there are leaks, they are outside, rather than accumulating gas in the cabin. Good policy, but I also wanted to be sure nothing leaked AT ALL. I was extremely careful to test every connection for leaks, and THERE WERE LEAKS. I had to go back and replace a couple of connections and tighten several pieces. This didn’t really inspire self-confidence in my abilities. I powered forward. After testing and re-testing everything over and over again, I was finally confident that my connections were secure.

Safety First

Still, I installed a propane and carbon monoxide alarm, just to be sure. Then, I left the space for a few days to see if the alarm went off. It did! This was not due to the propane, since the propane was not turned on yet. The batteries were the culprit. I had just topped them off with distilled water, so they were burping hydrogen. That in itself is a problem, since hydrogen is also explosive. I solved the issue by installing an active ventilation system in the battery box. After that, no more false-alarms.

Moment of Truth

Finally, the moment had arrived. I hooked up a BBQ propane tank to my propane adapter. My main propane tank was empty, so this was my only option for the final test. I cranked the handle and went into the bus, smelling around for rogue propane smells. Satisfied that I wouldn’t blow myself up I sparked up the stove. That blue flame was such a relief to see. I tested the other propane appliances, and was pleased to see that everything worked. My job was done. Good riddance!