How long will 20 lb. propand bottle last?

[kemp kampers]

We are new to pop up camping. We just purchased a 2001 Rockwood, We asked the mechanic who did our demo about how long would the propand last is we only use it for the hot water heater and cooking (probrably cooking two meals a day). He said it wouldn't last the weekend and we should invest in at least 1 more tank? Any information would be greatly appreciated!

[Dee4j]

I have 2 tanks on my HTT. I'm not sure the size, it's the one's you use for your BBQ's and you can trade the empties for full ones at the store. I usually get several trips out of mine and I also run the heat a bit also. When I had the PU, I had an electric oscillating ceramic heater that I would put on the dinette table at night. I've always had 2 tanks which is nice, if one runs out because  you forgot to fill it, you do have another one and you know to get the other one filled before your next trip. My HTT has an auto switch over which is nice. The time you run out of propane is when it's colder than heck in the middle of the night and you discover this when you wake up freezing cause the heat isn't working.

I guess it also depends on how cold it is also even if you are just using a water heater. It wants to keep the water at a certain temp. I have mine set to the lowest setting and it gets plaenty hot

[kemp kampers]

[Thanks for the info, all is appreciated!

[ForestCreature]

We have 2 tanks, fill both up at the beginning of the season, usualy about now. We may need to refill one more tank by mid sept. We use the water heater, don't cook off it and run the furnace @60* at night if needed.

Last year I think we had about 30 nights in

[kampingkoge]

I have 2 tanks as well, one on the camper and a 2nd as a spare and for the gas BBQ... only need to fill them a couple times a year.  Always run hotwater, Always use the heater at night and the stove for meals.

[mike4947]

If you'd like to estimate how long a tank would last you here's a few BTU numbers you can use.

Propane has apx 20,000 BTU's per pound.
 
The furnace uses either 16K or 18K BTU's while the burner is running. But remember it doesn't run all the time.
 
A water heater uses apx 350 BTU's for the pilot light, and around 20K BTU's for the burner. BUT again the burner rarely runs for more than 5-10 minutes and if the weather is warm and the water souce not putting out ice cubes it will rarely turn on.
 
A propane fridge uses apx 700BTU's and that is 24/7 the flame is always on.
 
The inside stove will use apx 4000BTU's per burner.

[GeneF]

Currently on the same tank for the past three plus weeks.  Using it for hot water, this has been on 24/7 and for cooking.

Furnace is the biggest draw.  You can go through propane fairly fast depending on how warm you want to be.

[fritz_monroe]

The guy that did the demo obviously didn't have a clue how long it would last.  Should you get another tank?  Probably, but not because it won't last a weekend.  The reason to get the second tank is because Murphy says it will run out in the most inoportune time

We got our pup last year.  We camped 14 nights and rand the water heater every trip.  We didn't use it for cooking, we use portable tanks right now.  We did run the furnace 3 or 4 nights.  We didn't go through the 2 tanks we have on the pup.

[rccs]

I have always gotten by with one full 20 lb. tank or slightly more ever since I have had the popup. We camp at least 6 or more weekends, both 2 and 3 night ones. My camper does not have a hot water heater but if I don't have an electric hookup, which is most of the time, I still heat water for dishes and washing up on the stove. If it is cold we run the furnace mostly from about 9:00PM through the night and keep it at a comfortable but not hot setting on the thermostat.

[A2SuperCrew]

The guy that did the demo obviously didn't have a clue how long it would last.  Should you get another tank?  Probably, but not because it won't last a weekend.  The reason to get the second tank is because Murphy says it will run out in the most inoportune time

We got our pup last year.  We camped 14 nights and rand the water heater every trip.  We didn't use it for cooking, we use portable tanks right now.  We did run the furnace 3 or 4 nights.  We didn't go through the 2 tanks we have on the pup.

I agree with Fritz.  We added a second tank just so we know we'll never run out.  Last year we used one 20lb bottle.  We use hot water, and did run the furnace at night in the fall.

It's just nice to have a "Plan B".  

[kemp kampers]

Thank you to everyone for all your input! Camping here we come!

[flyfisherman]

Only use the main tank for the cook stoves so one tank will usually see me through unless there were some long extended trips. When the weather is colder and will be using the MrBuddy Heater will tote along an extra tank (the one from the BBQ grill!) and that extra tank I carry in the bed of the pick-up.

Also use propane here at home, too, (hot water tank and gas log in the fireplace). Have learned an thing about propane tanks getting close to empty; that's the big tank here at home or the 20 pounders I use for the grill and the camper ... when they get close to empty they will start to smell, just like maybe there's a leak someplace!  Don't ask me why that is because I simply don't know and no one has come up with a logical answer. When I begin to smell that funky propane smell around the camper I know that "EMPTY" is just around the corner! Like maybe the next day or two you'll be out!


Fly

[GeneF]

Finally ran out.

Been just about a month on one tank.

This is with the hot water heater on 24/7, cooking 1 or two meals in the camper and about three nights of having the furnace on.

Fridge was on electric.

On the other side, we used 109 kwh for the fridge, fan, lights, laptop, radio, etc.  Oops, did use the a/c one day.  This was for three weeks.  We are on a metered site.