Changing Propane Tanks On A Gas Range - Do I Need To 'Clear The Lines'?

Hi all,

Here's an Energy question which has foiled four consecutive customer support reps (1 from Amana, 1 from Whirlpool, and 2 from AmeriGas) so far this afternoon...cheers if anybody here knows the answer =]

We've recently purchased a new home. The home has a gas range which has been converted to propane. Due to the range being the only thing in the home that uses propane (and possibly also because we're too far out in the Styx to be worth anybody's time), none of the gas companies have been willing to sit a normal propane tank for us. Hence, we currently have an 'off-grid cabin'-type setup with the range being fueled by 20 or 30 lb. grill tanks.

I've seen folks on YT saying you should 'open the lines' in order to clear lingering gas before hooking up a new propane tank to a gas grill. This is done by turning the grill knobs without actually igniting the flame.

Is there an analogous procedure when putting a new grill tank in place for a propane-fueled range (keeping in mind that the range is inside the house, and that any gas so-cleared would be vented into the actual living space)?

Pro'ly over-worrying the matter - just coming at the situation as a newbie who's keen to understand all relevant safety protocols.

Hi Donner;
I've lived with propane appliances all my life.
I have never heard of clearing the lines, I really can not see any reason to do so.
What you will need to do is relight the pilot lights on the burners and on the oven.
It is possible your stove may not use pilots.  

a vast majority of my island lives on 20/30 pound tanks. Some I am sure have been doing this their whole life.... I have been doing it for 6 years. All we do is unhook the empty one and hook up the filled tank. Than whatever we were doing recommences. When i was in Nepal, most people lived on small move able bottles. Mostly something people could carry on their back.

I agree with Thomas and Jordan.

Since it's an indoor appliance, I would light it and keep a close eye on it for a couple of minutes in case there's a little hiccup of air that might cause the flame to snuff out -- and then gas could continue to flow without combustion. This more for luck than anything -- it's a pretty remote hazard. Any design that includes a flame sensor would of course shut down the flow immediately.

Good enough! Thanks for clueing me in, guys =D

(As my next meal literally depends on it, I highly value the input!)

Only one (small) surprise when I changed the tanks - when I realized the inside of the nozzle was reverse-threaded (up til that moment I'd been trying to break torque the wrong way, hah). There's normally a plastic coupler there (which is missing from my gas line, for some reason). I guess if the plastic coupler was where it was supposed to be, one would connect tank-to-gas line by hand-turning the coupler clockwise (righty-tighty). Without a coupler, I ended up using a crescent wrench, and the connection was formed by going in reverse (counterclockwise/LEFTY-tighty).

Performed a leak-check on the new connection & regulator, no bubbles.

For those who might never have seen one, this video shows what a propane leak looks like:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pyW1stzGDWM

I'm guessing there will be some air (not propane) in the lines when you start it up.  Just keep the knob turned on and a match or lighter going and eventually the gas will get there and ignite.  No need to vent excessively into the house.  Alternatively you can vent it into the house (without a match) until you start to smell gas. Then turn it off, wait 30 seconds and then ignite like normal.

Donner MacRae wrote:Hi all,

Here's an Energy question which has foiled four consecutive customer support reps (1 from Amana, 1 from Whirlpool, and 2 from AmeriGas) so far this afternoon...cheers if anybody here knows the answer =]

We've recently purchased a new home. The home has a gas range which has been converted to propane. Due to the range being the only thing in the home that uses propane (and possibly also because we're too far out in the Styx to be worth anybody's time), none of the gas companies have been willing to sit a normal propane tank for us. Hence, we currently have an 'off-grid cabin'-type setup with the range being fueled by 20 or 30 lb. grill tanks.

I've seen folks on YT saying you should 'open the lines' in order to clear lingering gas before hooking up a new propane tank to a gas grill. This is done by turning the grill knobs without actually igniting the flame.

Is there an analogous procedure when putting a new grill tank in place for a propane-fueled range (keeping in mind that the range is inside the house, and that any gas so-cleared would be vented into the actual living space)?

Pro'ly over-worrying the matter - just coming at the situation as a newbie who's keen to understand all relevant safety protocols.

Cleaning the lines sounds like a bad term for it. If you only have a single tank at a time then when you change the tank you will loose pressure in the house line. If you do not have it already I would suggest switching over to a trailer style dual tank regulator so you can select each tank, empty it completely switch it off then replace it loosing only the gas in the short lead. You might get a very small "pop" but nothing like having an empty hose. You also don't have to relight pilots. That is how we operated for years on smaller tanks.
something like this one: https://www.amazon.ca/Propane-Regulator-Conversion-Pressure-Trailer/dp/B09RZL3N66/ref=asc_df_B09RZL3N66/?tag=googleshopc0c-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=578924509586&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=14991287256626875351&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=1002180&hvtargid=pla-1636247162610&psc=1

cheers, David