Wanting to change my fuel tank for a lpg tank.

[Jason2985]

Hello.
I`m currently running a 3.9 V8 Disco on LPG. 1996 P reg
Its a BRC system with 2 torpedo under slung tanks.
I have a 2" lift but some of the green lanes i encountered in Yorkshire at the weekend were close to the tanks.
And any more extreme will damage the straps, this happened to me in my last Disco with a 2" lift in France where i pushed the tank back breaking a strap and also a multi valve.
Had to limp home.
So i`m after getting rid of the under slung tanks and replacing the petrol fuel tank with a lpg tank.
And small petroltank.
I need my boot space so i cant put a tank in there.
Can anyone recommend a fitter or is it hard to replace my self?
I live in Heywood, Lancashire.(Greater Manchester)

Regards..

Jason

[webber1982]

hi m8 im in st. helens ill make some enquieries tomorrow and find out whats on offer to fit ur needs ill put a price together for u ill see what i can do with the numbers

[Jason2985]

Hello Webber1982.
That would be great.
Thankyou for your help.

Jay

[webber1982]

hmmm having spoke to our supplier yes it is possible to do a petrol tank reduction conversion.

the petrol tank + fitting kit is an autotanks unit which is the best u can buy bar non and is 36 ltr. the cost of which is £231 + vat

then under the back in the space left u fit either 2 * 40 ltr lpg tanks or 1 40 ltr and 1 35 ltr lpg tank depending if the vehicle has a tow bar or not.
the lpg tanks we supply are again the best u can get bar non and are stako 4 hole tanks the advantage of 4 hole over single hole is they fill a hell of a lot quicker and are a hell of a lot safer in the event of an accident. the price of which are £142.45 + vat each. ouch.

u will for certain be able to get these cheaper i think single hole ones are about £80 ish each ill make some more phone calls.
u will also need some one way valves to prevent lpg from flowing from one tank into the other which under the lpga cop 11 u are not allowed. this is of course u have not got these already fitted.

[Jason2985]

Thanks for the info Webber1982
Looks like i`m going to have to do some saving, i would prefer the 4 hole tank to the 1 hole tank.

Jay

[webber1982]

definately a better tank and the only tanks we fit really, i do get single hole tanks in for people who request them as some people just have set in their mind what they want and there is no explaining to them. personally i would pay 10 times more for 4 hole after watching the videos on the traing courses that ive done. dont get me wrong single hole tanks have their place the ones that are on ur car now im guessing are single hole as most people who fit sill tanks fit single hole ones cos they fit sooo much easier.

[spyder]

RPI do a 4 hole toroidal tank which goes in place of the original petrol tank for £328?

[webber1982]

that fits under a disco ??? then where do u put the smaller petrol tank.
according to all my suppliers the way to do it properly is the way ive described above but i cant get a earth man price out of any of them for good kit and i wont fit single hole tanks cos there simply crap.

[Jason2985]

Hi Webber1982
I will have to come and have a chat with you as when i put the ignition on there is a strong smell of gas.
I have a BRC system.
A good system but maybe the bladder thingy has perished in the vapouriser.
Been quoted £150 to replace the vapouriser by Pioneer gas in Rochdale.
I thought you could just change the bladder on them?

Jay

[webber1982]

depends if they can ge the parts if its when u turn the ignition on u shouldnt get any smell as the solenoids should only open when its actually changed to gas. the diaphragme is quite a common problem but u dont have to replace it with a brc regulator it can be any brand if its a single point system which i think yours may be if its a multi point kit then it does have to be brc.

[webber1982]

when u get chance bring it across to me and ill check that the sols are not stuck open i had this the other day. smelling of gas when the engine is off and the solenoid valve was stuck in the open position.

[Rossko]

[webber1982]

qualify it no problem.

everything on a single hole tank is smaller it has to be to fit it all into the size it is this includes the safety pressure relive valve which on a 4 hole tank has approximately 20 mm of drilling down the center to let any vapour away in the event the tank is A: involved in a fire or B: crushed in any way. the drilling of the safety valve of a single hole tank is approximately 3-4 mm simply not big enough to let enough flow through if the tank is involved in a blazing fire its not the driver that has to worry by the time any tank has lifted a safety valve ur well and truly toast its the fire brigade putting u out that its a problem for.
another safety issue with some single hole tanks is they dont have a electronic lock off solenoid built into them in the event of an accident if a pipe is sheared a 4 hole tank will automatically shut the gas off when the engine stops ie pipe breaks engine has no fuel so stops no rpm signal solenoid shuts. single hole tank without integral solenoid pipe breaks engine stops gas keeps coming until either the excess flow valve cuts in which does not shut the gas off completely mind or the tank empties its self. even the suppliers themselves say 4 hole is better. if u had seen the videos i have on the training courses ive been on u would not want a single hole tank fitted to ur car. i agree there are plenty of them around and yes the they do have to meet standards but those standards are not as tight as u might think. i would still rarther have somthing that exceeded the standards in every way than only just scraped to meet them and fills a damn sight quicker to boot. also a 4 hole tank can have individual parts changed rarther than having to change the full multivalve which can be costly. 4 hole tanks are a damn sight more reliable too in all the time ive been installing ive seen 2 4 hole tanks with problems 1 of them wouldnt fill very easy to change the fill stop valve cost around 3 quid the other would not display its contense cracked float inside the tank again around 3 quid. there is hardley a week goes by that i dont see a faulty multivalve weather its not letting enough gas in ie shutting off too early or not showing its contense properly even seen them where they wont let gas out and at about 50 quid with postage and vat for a multivalve. no thanks. i only fit to customers cars what i would fit to my own and do have on both of my own i earn a living out of people who want a proper job doing not just the cheapest and fastest possible im not the cheapest installer but im one of only a few people who will offer a 2 year parts and labour warranty on any work i do.

[Rossko]

Well clearly webber1982 knows better than the Euro & UK safety approvals boards, and all the tank manufacturers, and the suppliers who keep letting people use these dangerous unreliable horrors

I do have a preference for 4-hole tanks too, but often a single hole will make better use of available space and so on. I've got no concerns at all about comparative safety. Just choose the right horses for courses. For those with single-hole tanks, don't be panicked or bamboozled, there is no general problem.

If you've seen single hole tanks with no solenoid shut-off - yes they're out there, as are 4-hole tanks without one too. All over 6 years old I reckon and not meeting any recent standards. Ebay buyers beware!

cheers, Ross K

[webber1982]

[quote="Rossko"]Well clearly webber1982 knows better than the Euro & UK safety approvals boards, and all the tank manufacturers, and the suppliers who keep letting people use these dangerous unreliable horrors

thats not what i said what i did say having been to a tank manufacturers plant is that the regulations are not as strict as u would like to think and that the manufacturers themselves will admit to u that 4 hole tanks are safer. These are not my opinions thers are facts. im not trying to scare anybody like i said there has been plenty around for many years as for 4 hole tanks with no solenoid valve integral i have fitted autogas systems for nearly 13 years and my dad for over 30 and neither of us have ever seen one whilst the lpga cop11 has been around. if u had seen the hse's own videos that i have on the many training courses ive been on then ur generalised opinions im sure would change. single hole tanks are more unreliable and in general less safe than 4 hole tanks fact. that is not to say that they dont do the job for an amount of time and in as much safety as the directives ask for. 4 hole tanks by far exceed these directives.
it all comes down to the old saying u get for what u pay. i will only fit 4 hole tanks to any job i do unless the customer specifically askes for single hole this is a policy that has worked for us for over many years and ive never had any complaints.