General Category > General Discussion
very small propane leak
redrider90:
I recently received from my propane supplier that their insurance company will require checking for leaks on all tanks. I have an underground 325 gallon tank installed in 2007 that I own. So all fixes are on me. I checked the tank fittings both with a soapy mixture as well as an electronic meter. There is a long 3” pipe that comes up to ground level and then there is a screw on component that has the valves, gas level meter and pressure release valve etc. screwed onto that pipe. So I checked all fittings with an electronic meter and it shows I have a couple of leaks. 1. Leak is where the top component screws on to the 3” pipe coming up from in ground tank. The other place the meter shows a leak is where the gas tank gauge is screwed on at the very top.
This is were I it gets interesting. I spray on soapy water to the whole thing to see how strong the leaks are. It takes a couple of minutes to ever so slowly to bubble up which means I have a couple of very very small leaks. I own this tank I know they will flunk me.
If these 3 places that it leaks were significant I would be concerned but the amount of time it takes to slowly show up a few bubbles tells me these are extreme small leaks. Maybe something I would not like in my house but on the outside tank this is nothing. I last had it filled in March 2021 to 80%. It still has 38% left in it. We heated with wood all winter and this represents 15 months of cooking. We have a large full gas range and cook a lot.
So I am looking if there is a way for me to cover with a quick drying sealant that I am sure would seal it. There is very little pressure judging by the very small bubbles that even after 10 minutes are not popping nor very big. It is liking watching bread dough rise. :popcorn:
Maybe I am I crazy(so tell me if I am) that I think is not a dangerous situation. I gotta ask if any of you all have been faced with such a situation and is there a quick and fast drying sealant than might work?
I actually worked as a propane delivery driver 50 years ago but we never check for leaks!
RinkRat II:
Sorry to say rr90. there is no magic bullet. Taking it apart, cleaning the threads, use gas approved teflon tape or LaCo tite pipe sealant and never worry about it again. My $.02
Paul B :boozing:
Wayne Orwig:
Can the propane distributor pump out the tank for you?
n3303j:
Your leak is at tank pressure even though it is low volume. Whatever you try for sealant will have to withstand tank pressure. If you are lucky and get a sealant that totally bonds over the pinhole then the pressure applied to the patch is equal to the PSI in the container times the area of the pinhole in square inches. The difficulty would be in getting a sealantto set before the leak produced a bubble pushing the sealant away from the pinhole.
Can propane delivery trucks extract propane or can they only deliver it?
Kiwi_Roy:
I assume the 3" pipe is threaded.
I have been on many projects where they run 2" and 3" galvanized pipe for instrument air (galvanized to prevent rust), these are pipe fitters who spend their entire careers running pipe a 3" pipe thread is almost impossible to seal. I think I would use some form of paste sealant rather than teflon tape.
Good Luck
BTW, they often use soldered copper or welded stainless steel to get around the leak problem
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