This weekend I bought a 20 lb propane cylinder and an 8 foot hose that will connect it to my Coleman 2-burner propane stove. This should give me plenty of cook time if we lose electricity after a hurricane. My question is, do I need a regulator or can I just run the stove straight off the big cylinder? Anyone done this?

you need a regulator or else you will go through fuel way to fast and you will have a problemofblowing out yur flame with over pressure.

I've done this for years without a regulator and never had a problem. I didn't even know it was recommended to have a regulator. In fact, I bought the manifold pipe that may actually be a Coleman unit, hooked both my lantern and stove to the 20# tank with it, and have lived off it for weeks at a time. This is just a pipe with fittings.

YMMV,

Dave

Interesting question!

I have an adaptor (not a Coleman product) and it has the standard BBQ regulator on it. Works fine, though the stove runs a fair bit hotter on max. than it will from a 1-lb. bottle -- enough to turn the burner supports glowing red. The solution of course is to throttle back using the stove's control valves.

Looking at the Coleman website, it seems they sell a 5-foot bulk adaptor with attached hose or a separate bulk adaptor plus assorted splitters and hoses. There's no evidence of a standard-type regulator. I suspect there's an orifice built right into the bulk adaptor, designed to control flow and pressure to appropriate levels. So, if you're using all-Coleman components, you should be good to go. (Being wise, of course, you will test this before relying on it.)

Let us know how it works out. I may want to upgrade.

This tip is not about the regulator, but
something I learned from a fireman about propane appliances.

The stove will work just as well with the gas valve opened a crack as it will with the gas valve opened 1/4 turn or opened several turns.

If you open the valve just a crack, and there is a problem, it is easy to quickly turn off the gas.

I've never bothered with a regulator but I do use one of those mast thingies with the three connections that allow you to hook up multiple items. It works great and I don't mess with the small disposable tanks at all any more. I personally wouldn't worry about it but you could always contact Coleman and ask them.

My thermos grill works the same wa, I bought the thermos brand hose/adapter to connect to the #20 tank and it didn't have any kind of regulator. I assume the regulator is biult into the valve.

A "christmas tree"(the green stick thing that has multiple outlets) is all you need. They self regulate and allow mounting of a propane lantern on top.

I haven't heard anything back from Coleman yet but I'll try out my new setup this weekend to see how things work. I have a healthy amount of respect for propane having worked in the safety department of a propane trucking company a few years back. Nothing goes BOOM like propane...well, except for Blast that is...

Hey, even I have a healthy fear of propane, though mainly because when I was little my dad used to paint clown faces on the tanks and chase me with them while screaming gibberish...

-Blast










JOKING!!!!!

I bought one of those "bulk propane to stove" adapters directly from Coleman a year or two ago. I think it cost about $20. It appears to be a straight hose (no bulky regulator-looking thing anywhere in sight). One end fits a standard 20lb propane tank. The other end looks like the top of a normal small Coleman propane cylinder like you'd buy in a sporting goods store. The original piece from the Coleman stove that normally screws onto the sporting goods store cylinder (for lack of a better word) instead screws onto this bulk adapter hose, which in turn screws into your big 20lb propane tank. That original piece has the round flow control valve built into it, so you control your stove's hi/low setting just the same as always.

Remember, a few years back they changed the fittings on those 20lb tanks. The Coleman bulk adapter hose I bought fits the new style 20lb fittings, not the old style.

I'd just call Coleman and tell them what you have and what you want to do with it. I'm sure they'll sell you the correct adapter (they did for me). If you're questioning whether you've got a good setup now, I'd say just spring the $20 and buy what you need from Coleman. $20 isn't terribly much to spend for the extra peace of mind to not have to worry about "Should I have a regulator on this thing or not?"

We also use a hose from Coleman that works with their propane stoves, and connects directly to a 20lb tank.

This is the current version: http://www.coleman.com/coleman/colemancom/detail.asp?product_id=5470A7931T&categoryid=27400

Ours is a little older, but, essentially the same. It works fine, a little tough to regulate output as you get to where the tank is almost out of gas, but, otherwise, it saves a lot of those little cylinders.

The hose I bought is for the new style tank/fittings. Still no word from Coleman...

I just had a look at the Coleman bulk adapter in a local sporting goods store.

It was in a clear plastic package, so I was able to have a good look at it. It's not just a tube; there's a mechanism inside it (probably a flashback preventer, I suppose?) and you can't see daylight through it. This inspires confidence.

The instructions on the back say, more or less, 1) attach bulk adapter to tank, 2) attach hose between adapter and appliance, 3) check for leaks ... not with a flame, ya loony. No mention of a regulator required.

Now here's the cool part: they sell a separate Coleman regulator that attaches *downstream* of the bulk adapter. According to the package, it maintains a constant flow at 15 psi.

(I assume that would be 15 psi over atmospheric pressure; every regulator I've seen has a diaphragm on one side that's open to the air on one side. If you put your finger over that opening, the flow increases and the appliance gets hotter, fast.)

I gather from this that the regulator is not necessary, but may be a convenience (if you're barbecueing a large haunch of beast and want a constant temperature, for example).