Greenhouse heating

I have just purchased a propane heater for my greenhouse. Can i keep the cylinder in the greenhouse when in use?:flag:

 

Hi Villa. Sorry no one has replied - its will be because no one else is in exactly the same position.

I don't see any problem. People keep propane cylinders in the house if they run a gas fire off it. So why not. But I wouldn't smoke around it, just in case there was a leak. If you kept it outside the greenhouse it would be difficult to get the pipe in without leaving a draughty hole.

 

Explosion is a small issue i guess, increased humidity could be another.
I`m not too clued up on propane so i don`t know whether you`d need to vent the fumes out of the greenhouse or not. They might not generate any carbon monoxide but it would probably pay to check just to be on the safe side

 

We don't know!

I think you should contact the heater manufacturer/distributor. If it is a propper greenhouse heater you should be fine, if it's not, be careful, there can be all sorts of problems with gas emmissions (which could harm the plants or you), moisture, exposure to heat and sunlight.... etc

 

Provided your connection to the bottle is good and tight there should be no problem. Propane is heavier than air so even if there was a leakage the gas would lie at ground level and probably leak out under the door.
Propane is a good source of heat for a greenhouse if the burner is working properly as when it burns it produces water vapour and carbon dioxide though if starved of oxygen due to poor ventilation it can produce carbon monoxide and carbon too.
Keep the bottle near the door and you'll be fine.

We use propane for cooking, heating and a fridge in a motor home and it has never been a problem.

 

Just my twopenn'th, but I haven't I heard of instances of propane freezing in exceptionally cold conditions?

 

Hi. For what it's worth, I would think that there would be no real problems. IF it were kept outside, then I would say that there's a real risk of the gas freezing. As I recall, Propane has a lower freezing point than Butane, but it still isn't THAT low a freezing point, maybe -4c ? Hope this helps.

Cheers...freddy.

 

I don't think there is a problem. The freezing point of propane is -188C, which is when it goes solid. The more important one is the boiling point of -42C. Below that it stays as liquid and will not vaporise. But even in North Yorkshire, its a while since we have seen temperatures like that. :D But you are quite right Freddy about Butane, its boiling point is -0.5C, which is not very cold at all.

 

I've had a word with a friend who uses propane - it's not the gas per se, that gives the problem in exceptionally cold conditions, but rather the metal connectors at the top of the cylinder which '.. sometimes causes the gas to freeze in the pipe'. Just repeating what I was told.

 

PeterS has said it all. It's the gas not the connectors that cause the freeze and that won't happen to propane in Kent. Butane is a different kettle of fish entirely. I used to do a lot of camping and climbing in the Scottish highlands and while a small Camping Gaz (butane) stove was fine most of the year we reverted to an old fashioned, heavy,smelly, pump-up Primus in winter months.