Gas bottle location ~ legal or not?

Ship's Cat 73

Ship's Cat 73

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A potential buyer 'advised' us that our gas bottle location wouldn't pass in a survey.
There isn't a dedicated gas locker on our yacht, although a previous owner has fashioned a semi-enclosed box in which the bottle sits.
The box DOES have a drain hose coming out of the bottom from where the hose exits to the atmosphere through the transom. The transom exit is LOWER than the exit hole in the bottom of the gas bottle box.
Here's a pic of the box located at the fore end of the cockpit locker. The exit hose can't be seen in the photo, but I've drawn in a red line which represents its route with an arrow pointing towards the transom >>>
(The gas bottle in the bottom R/H corner is just an empty spare.)
Gas%20lkr_zpsn4xysxkl.jpg


So ~ is this location legal or not?
 
He is correct & non draining & nxt to the heater too.
When i sold my Contessa 16 yrs ago we did not have a draining locker either but a holder with a hole through the galley bulkhd & turned the bottle on / off every time via the hole that was a Co 32 std detail.
the new owner was made aware & accepted it. there were minor items that the survey picked up inc the gas. the cost was £1k to rectify all the issues that we split the cost 50/50
 
Legal? Are you planning to use on inland waters? the CART Boat Safety Scheme wouldn't allow it (though you could remove the gas system while the inspection took place)

Your surveyor, if you are made to have one for insurance purposes, may condemn it. But can anyone wiser than me say whether it is legal or not, as contrasted with safe or not?
 
It's not illegal, because as far as I'm aware there are no legal requirements for a private seagoing boat (the Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations specifically exempt seagoing craft). But it would be flagged up in a survey, and rightly so. Imagine that bottle leaking from a faulty O-ring - do you honestly believe it wouldn't be pissing gas into the locker and hence into the bilge? And what about whatever the other end of that short length of braided hose is attached to? The half-arsed wooden box is at best a semi-secure holder (any strap over the bottle?), it's in no sense a self-draining gas locker.

Pete
 
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It would only be illegal if you were chartering, when the boat has to meet the required "code". It would also not pass the Boat Safety Scheme requirements for use on inland waters.

However, it is bad practice, and potentially dangerous as it is. Gas lockers should drain overboard and have no direct communication with any other part of the boat; as it is, it communicates directly with locker it is in, and hence to the bilges. I'd also be worried about the gas pipe being in a locker where it could be damaged by other objects in the locker.
 
Camelia said:
How old is the boat?

My gas locked drains into the cockpit. Survey passed OK due to the age of the boat.
Click to expand...

A gas locker draining into the cockpit may be acceptable ITYWF if the cockpit drains exit above water line but not if they exit below the water line. There must also be a bridgedeck which would prevent gas draining into the cockpit from then simply flowing into the cabin.


In the OP's case it looks as though a decent , fire resistant locker sealed to above the level of the high pressure components could be fitted or constructed in place of the existing "locker"

Chapter 7 of the Boat Safety Scheme is the best, probably only, guide to what is acceptable

http://www.boatsafetyscheme.org/media/180428/bss guide 2005 complete web.pdf

however this is the 2005 edition and should be read in conjunction with changes that you will find via the BSS website http://www.boatsafetyscheme.org/
 
peter2407 said:
Mine is in the anchor locker, would that pass muster? Yes there is a drain, but no real lock for the locker.
Click to expand...

Yes, it is acceptable. Normal practice in Scandinavian boats. Not necessarily the best solution but if you have such a boat you are stuck with it.
 
Thanks Vic. I assume the do not lock while in use is an access in case of emergency thing? Fact is I have 3/4 gas turn offpoints - at the bottle, in the forepeak, behind the cooker and then the usual bits on the cooker. Given that, is there any reason not to fit some kind of locking arrangement?
 
peter2407 said:
Thanks Vic. I assume the do not lock while in use is an access in case of emergency thing? Fact is I have 3/4 gas turn offpoints - at the bottle, in the forepeak, behind the cooker and then the usual bits on the cooker. Given that, is there any reason not to fit some kind of locking arrangement?
Click to expand...

My gas locker is lockable with a small padlock and it is situated in a cockpit locker which is also lockable.
When I am on the boat the cockpit lockers are normally left unlocked and once the gas is turned on the gas bottle locker is not relocked.

I have a shut off valve near the cooker but because it is the only gas appliance on the boat it is not actually necessary. The valve on the bottle is the one which really counts and the only time I use the local one is when I realiser that I have forgotten to shut the bottle valve when I am already in bed!
 
As said, legality isn't a term that applies, best practice is probably more applicable and as the picture shows that the installation isn't elegant!
If it were mine I would fit a lid to the box with a 'draft excluder' seal round it.
The box drain, if it's of a decent diameter and protected, does the job intended of it, if that is the case, I would say it was safe and be happy going to bed onboard.
 
sailorman said:
He is correct & non draining & nxt to the heater too.
When i sold my Contessa 16 yrs ago we did not have a draining locker either but a holder with a hole through the galley bulkhd & turned the bottle on / off every time via the hole that was a Co 32 std detail.
Click to expand...

I had that arrangement on my Twister Most Twisters had it and I've never heard of any being blown up (or Contessa 32s). I always turned the gas off at the bottle after use. Then a surveyor condemned it, so it had to be moved to a purpose-built locker at the aft end of the cockpit. I still turn the gas off at the bottle after use but now I have to go out in the rain to do it. :(
 
parsifal said:
I had that arrangement on my Twister Most Twisters had it and I've never heard of any being blown up (or Contessa 32s). I always turned the gas off at the bottle after use. Then a surveyor condemned it, so it had to be moved to a purpose-built locker at the aft end of the cockpit. I still turn the gas off at the bottle after use but now I have to go out in the rain to do it. :(
Click to expand...
Our new owner had to have the cockpit hacked about to do the same, a pointless exercise as you say
 
The key to this is any gas storage must be isolated form the interior of the yacht and be self draining.
Self draining is obvious as gas is heavier than air so it needs somewhere to go. Any storage needs to be isolated from the interior because if there is a major gas leak, you don't want the gas to leak From the enclosure and into the interior of your boat.

Turning the gas off at the bottle when not in use is just good practise. (That I forget to do from time to time!). Any gas system can leak and this helps prevent potential consequences; ie how much gas may leak into your boat.

We have a gas test every year. In 8 years we have had two leaks; one a failed braided hose and another where the flame out on one of the burners failed. To me the gas test is a small price to pay for piece of mind!
 
Boat441 said:
The key to this is any gas storage must be isolated form the interior of the yacht and be self draining.
Self draining is obvious as gas is heavier than air so it needs somewhere to go. Any storage needs to be isolated from the interior because if there is a major gas leak, you don't want the gas to leak From the enclosure and into the interior of your boat.

Turning the gas off at the bottle when not in use is just good practise. (That I forget to do from time to time!). Any gas system can leak and this helps prevent potential consequences; ie how much gas may leak into your boat.

We have a gas test every year. In 8 years we have had two leaks; one a failed braided hose and another where the flame out on one of the burners failed. To me the gas test is a small price to pay for piece of mind!
Click to expand...
why braided (assumed armoured ) hoses
 
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