Propane and natural gas can be an amazing piece of science when transported right and used to warm our RVs and homes. RVs tend to use one or the other to create the combustion needed to break ourselves out of winter, or even fall’s grip. Since people have made use of their gases, we’ve also learned about the dangers of using them and made devices to test for their presence when they are not wanted.
LP Gas Detectors can start beeping for a variety of reasons. We are here to explore what this means and what to do about it.
LP gas detectors beep because they have detected unwanted gas. The gas detector can also beep because it’s dying or needs batteries. We will walk you through what to do in each situation.
Is my LP gas detector beeping because of gas?
How many times have you had a smoke or carbon monoxide detector beep incessantly when you were trying to have some peaceful sleep? Many people have experience this. However, regardless of what you were doing, it’s still possible that a beeping detector actually means you have a problem.
Here are the things you should do when your LP detector is beeping:
- Don’t light anything or do anything to cause a spark. In some cases, flipping a switch could potentially cause a spark.
- Most important! Go outside and turn off the liquid propane gas and other gasses. Leak or not, turning off the flow removes much of the possible danger.
- Open all the windows in your RV, then get out of the RV
- Wait a little while. Getting some fresh air flow might remove any actual gas leaks you have.
If it doesn’t turn off, you either have a leak or a broken detector. You should also be able to a natural gas leak if you have one.
Among possible next steps are to return to your RV. While you could check the LP detector to see if it has a specific message, you might also want to go around checking your appliances that are powered by propane or natural gas.
Also note that when reentering your RV, do not light matches or anything capable of producing a spark. Propane goes low in your RV because it’s heavier than air.
- Go back into your and turn off all your LP powered devices.
- Go back outside and slowly turn on the LP tank itself, smelling for leaks from the tank itself. Brush the fittings on the tank with soapy water too – if they bubble, you find the leak!
- Do the same test on the inside with the propane fittings for your appliance. Now that gas is flowing, they could produce results
- If you find a leak, have it fixed by a professional. Also of course if you found a leak, your LP detector did a fine job! We don’t suggest fixing brass or copper fittings with natural gas yourself because you’ll likely cause a further leak of potentially explosive gas.
Is my LP detector dying in my RV?
When woken up the sound of beeping from anything meant to detect combustible or toxic gas, the first his that the detector itself is dying or broken.
Most of the time, this thought is actually right. LP and gas detector last a few years on average. The batteries tend to last the same time or shorter.
One of the best ways to know if your detector is dying is to read the instructions and learn what the beeps and tones mean. Generally speaking, beeps tend to start slow and pick up speed as the unit is closer and closer to being non functional.
What do I do if it’s dying?
Batteries
First try to replace the batteries. Open the back cover and see if they are AA, AAA, or something else. Replacing batteries might make the beeping stop and give you a few years of peace of mind. Batteries tend to be the first issue with detectors and are an easy fix.
You do have the option in some cases to hardware a carbon monoxide detector into your electrical, or to just plug it into an outlet. If a carbon monoxide detector plugged into a working electrical outlet is beeping, the problem is not likely with power.
End of life
Detectors are designed to be sensitive to certain chemicals and smells only for so long. The detector might be nearing the end of it’s useful life. Simply replacing the detector is likely necessary if there is no propane leak and a battery replacement was not helpful.
Replacing the detector is as simple as ordering one or headed to a hardware store.
Contact the Manufacturer
It’s actually possible that the manufacturer has a guarantee for how long a detector is supposed to last. They can also walk you through troubleshooting issues to find out why it’s not working if the problem is not battery or end of life related. This can be helpful to learn how to use the detector and potentially use any warranty they have on it’s lifespan.
Propane and your RV
We also suggest driving with the propane tanks on your RV shut off. The lines on your RV being full of gas and having an accident can end quite badly, given that sparks are likely to fly and fire is possible during an accident.
Conclusion
The beeping noise from the LP detector can go from annoying to very worrisome in a moment. The biggest problem is often the unknown – is my propane leaking and potentially causing a dangerous situation or is the detector itself dying?
This moment is a good time to learn how to check for leaks and use your understanding of your current alarm system. While alarm systems can be annoying, especially in the middle of the night, they can also save you. Propane is explosive and harmful if not deadly when leaked into a spark.