Sister shop to Motorhome Facts
TomTom GO LIVE Camper & Caravan
The ultimate Sat Nav system for your motorhome, pre-programmed with 20,000+ POI's from the largest European Motorhoming Websites including the Motorhome Facts Campsite Database.
Welcome to Motorhomefacts, we are a thriving motorhome community (Largest in Europe). Why Not JOIN NOW and get instant access to more of the website. It costs nothing to join and only takes a few minutes. We have 200,000 different people visiting our site monthly and this amount of motorhomers in one place guarantees a fast response to any questions you may have. We also have unique facilities not found elsewhere such as our Online Logbook, stopover tracker, Motorhome directory with Ebay type feedback and the largest repository of motorhome campsites reviews found anywhere
(I originally posted this at the end of another thread but realise now that it probably needs a more prominent location to attract any interest. Apologies if you have read this before!)
We're planning our first foray into France this year.
This forum is great but I still haven't cleared up some pretty basic queries:
Firstly about gas . . . . . .
Can you get replacement cylinders in France quite easily?
If so which type? (we have two 6kg propane cylinders at the moment)
Do you have to fit a different regulator to use with French cylinders?
Or is it worth the expense of switching to a re-fillable system like Gaslow?
If you do switch are there sufficient outlets in the UK to make this a practical permanent modification?
And about electricity . . . . . .
Do all sites provide 230v? For some reason I've always thought that France used 110v.
Do you need a plug adaptor of some sort?
And what about polarity - I've read somewhere that you have to check the supply first and then use an adaptor to switch the polarity if necessary.
And is there a danger of damage if connection is inadvertently made at the wrong polarity?!
Sorry to sound so naive but it's nice to find out these things before venturing abroad!
Any comments/help would be welcomed. Thanks in advance!
Hi Bob
I cant give you much advise re gas but i know they do camping gas or similar but hopefully some others will enlighten. I have mentioned this before as others will no doubt see but a lot of people use refillable bottles now as these have many advantages over exchangable botles. they are expensive (approx £200 for a single bottle or approx £350 for a 2 bottle system) for a fully fitted system but they do pay for themselves and are more conveinient. PM me if you want further advice to save me repeating it for everyone.
Electricity - No All europe is now 230v including france. You will need a continental adaptor though which is a euro plug on one end and a caravan site socket on the other. Cost about £5 from a caravan shop. Polarity, The french have a slightly different system to ours and can result in you having no earth so when you buy your continental adaptor, but two and reverese the live and neutral in one. Keep this safe and marked up with sickers etxc saying reveresed polarity... When you go on hook up check the wiring with a safety plug. If it says the wiring is reveresed fit your rewired adaprtor. Note you can sometimes just trun the plug 180 deg but dont do this as you may not have an earth and so will electricaly less safe.
Phill
Hope this helps a bit
Phill
______________________________________________________________ Just when i found out my dad was right I had a son that thought I was wrong.....Henry winkler.
France does use 230v electricity. It is America that uses 110v.
If you want to use gas cylinders bought in say France: if you have a newish motorhome I think 2004 onwards and it has the bulkhead regulator fitted then all you need are the "pigtails" for the country you are in. (that is the rubber tube that goes from bottle to regulator).
One UK cylinder and one foreign cylinder is what some people use. However to avoid collecting cylinders from different countries some people go down the re-fillable bottle route. this is fairly expensive but will depend on whether you will get good use out of it. If only having work holidays you may not think it cost effective.
Polarity, we bought a polarity tester and tend to check the sites electricity before plugging into the motorhome. some chargers have a red light that will come on if the polarity is reversed. I have my tester attached to an adapter and check at the sites source before plugging into the motorhome.
I have a separate plug with the wires reversed (if the site has reversed polarity) and use this to correct it when attaching my hook-up cable.
I have heard it mentioned that it could affect some chargers otherwise you will find that although the appliance has been switched off it is in fact still live.
Refillable bottles have to have a 80% cut off device. At most filling stations these days they may stop you if you open the gas locker door to refill. There have been a few accidents filling un-regulated bottles and Spain has brought in legislation to prevent it. Thats why LPG stations are like hens teeth in Spain, Gaslow is OK but they fit the filler inside the locker in the UK which can cause problems re-filling 'cos you have to open the locker. You need a regulator for the type of bottle of the country you are in as each country uses different bottle pressures. Just rent a bottle and buy a regulator on your way in to the country and drop it off on the way out. Keep the regulator for your next trip,
Be careful if you decide to buy a continental cylinder that it will fit in your locker.
We have a new van - well 2007 model - and cannot find a French cylinder that will fit through the door. We supect they would fit once through the actual hole but we can't get one in. We have tried pretty well all the bottles available on the open market in normal outlets.
The difference is only a matter of a couple of centimetres but, short of cutting a bigger hole and fitting a new locker door, it can't be done. Your van might be totally different but do check first.
We carry one 6kg propane and the largest camping gaz. The latter can be exchanged anywhere on the continent but it is a more expensive option than refilling a calor bottle would be.
Can you get replacement cylinders in France quite easily?
If so which type? (we have two 6kg propane cylinders at the moment)
Hi
Just a thought about the gas, before you get too worried over your gas supply running out and investing in refillables .... how long are you planning on staying away from the UK and is this a summer time trip? and will you be staying on campsites with a hook up? ...many folk have reported that the two 6kg bottles will, if they are full when you leave and if used carefully (for just the fridge and cooking) last about a month or so ( maybe even longer?) .... anyone with experience of how long the two 6 kg Calor cylinders last in sunmmertime use care to confirm ( or otherwise )this?
Mike
______________________________________________________________ When confronted by a problem, you can solve it easily by reducing it to the question, "How would the Lone Ranger have handled this?"
hi,
I fulltime around europe ( mostly France and Spain )
I use 2 gaslow bottles with the filler in a locker. I have never been stopped from refilling in the UK and have never had any problems finding a place to refill all over Europe. They are fewer in Spain but increasing all the time because of new government policies for cleaner fuel.
Gaslow is cheaper and easier .... why make life difficult ?
Thanks folks.
Lots of good advice there - plus some good commonsense!
Please keep the advice coming- it's great to get the varied views.
The Gaslow refillable system sounds like a good all-round option. But I presume to get that fitted professionally would be a bit pricey. And a DIY job on a gas system may not be a good idea - for me anyway!
You cannot post new topics in this forum You cannot reply to topics in this forum You cannot edit your posts in this forum You cannot delete your posts in this forum You cannot vote in polls in this forum You cannot attach files in this forum You cannot download files in this forum
France
)this?
