Thread: Stirlsilver's Disco Ute Project

Love the project.
Just trying to be helpful.
The emergency blokes and I think the LPG rules state the access to the tanks sub compartment must not be restricted by the load or body work.
The idea is that the gas tanks can be manually turned off in the tanks sub comparment in the event of a accident.( quickly.)
I know you all ready have tanks lined up at a good price.
How would you go with a very large single tank running the width of the vehicle just behind the cabin and the tray behind the tank.
There is no law that states you cannot place one tank above the other cross the vehicle behind the cabin, so long as the frame holding it all meets specs and you obiviously have the know how to work that out.
That frame could be made as one as part of the rear cabin structure.
Ron

Thanks for your advice Ron!

Originally Posted by 101 Ron

The emergency blokes and I think the LPG rules state the access to the tanks sub compartment must not be restricted by the load or body work.
The idea is that the gas tanks can be manually turned off in the tanks sub comparment in the event of a accident.( quickly.)

This is a very good point which I hadn't thought about! I went back and had a read of AS1425 and found the following:

It shall be possible to operate the service valve for the purpose of servicing, or a filler shutoff valve if fitted, in the installed position. The valve may be arranged so that it can be operated from some internal area of the vehicle.
If this is the case, the sealing of the compartment or sub-compartment shell shall be maintained by one of the following means:

(a) If a valve-actuating device passes through the shell, a gastight seal shall be provided.

(b) If the actuating handle is wholly within the shell, access shall be by a gastight captive hatch which can be opened without tools.

While it does not explicitly say you need quick access to the valves, it does say that a hatch must be able to be opened without tools. So what I will probably do is install the tanks with the valve compartments facing outwards so they can be accessed from the rear wheel wells.

Originally Posted by 101 Ron

How would you go with a very large single tank running the width of the vehicle just behind the cabin and the tray behind the tank.
There is no law that states you cannot place one tank above the other cross the vehicle behind the cabin, so long as the frame holding it all meets specs and you obiviously have the know how to work that out.
That frame could be made as one as part of the rear cabin structure.

This is another option I didn't consider and I should have when I was looking at possible arrangements. But I already have the tanks now so I am comitted to the arrangement of having the tanks longitudinally along the chassis.

Thanks for your input Ron, I appreciate it!
Stirling

Been following this project with great interest. I was starting to think something had happened to you Stirling

Isn't it a pain when work gets in the way of something more interesting that you have waiting at home...

Can't wait to see the end result, great work!

Originally Posted by bacicat2000

Been following this project with great interest. I was starting to think something had happened to you Stirling

Isn't it a pain when work gets in the way of something more interesting that you have waiting at home...

Can't wait to see the end result, great work!

Thanks Bacicat, yes terrible when work starts taking away my weekends... But it is only temporarily. I really want to get this car done, I don't want to let it drag on for too long because the longer I take the higher the chance that I could loose motivation!!

I managed to squeeze in a few hours in the workshop today actually.

I marked off the place where I was going to cut the chassis (sorry for the rubbish photos, I forgot my camera!):


So I went about continuing to cut off un-necessary brackets from the chassis, which took a hell of a lot of time! Cutting the brackets was quick, but then going at the remaining welds with an angle grinder just went on and on. But, I persisted and got there in the end. I also chopped the chassis too (getting serious now)!

All the areas you see covered in cold gal is where something was cut off.




I fitted the 11.5 x35" silverstones and started to take some dimensions of where the tyres go during flex (I took off the tyre from one side and jacked the other without the spring fitted), obviously I could never simulate the full amount of flex that would be achieved in the end with the future suspension modifications, but at least I have some ballpark figures now (the tyre moved upwards by 250mm in relation to the chassis).



And this is where it is at currently:



Now that I have the LPG tank bracket dimensions, and an idea of how high the tyres go, I can start finalizing the dimensions of the tray.

Originally Posted by stirlsilver

This is a very good point which I hadn't thought about! I went back and had a read of AS1425 and found the following:

It shall be possible to operate the service valve for the purpose of servicing, or a filler shutoff valve if fitted, in the installed position. The valve may be arranged so that it can be operated from some internal area of the vehicle.
If this is the case, the sealing of the compartment or sub-compartment shell shall be maintained by one of the following means:

(a) If a valve-actuating device passes through the shell, a gastight seal shall be provided.

(b) If the actuating handle is wholly within the shell, access shall be by a gastight captive hatch which can be opened without tools.

Hi Stirl,

I am not certain if I am reading it wrong but the reference to "gas tight" valves and hatches suggests to me that you only need them if the containers are mounted inside the vehicle or in an enclosed space. Yours are outside and so you would only need valves (e.g. cut off valves) that are easily accessed. If you are going to enclose the cylinders in a box then it must be gas tight and with, for example, marine grade hatches for access.

Alan

Yes if the tanks are under tray you dont need the sub compartment cover fiited on the tank etc.
The fact is for NSW a yearly rego check for LPG is needed and part of that check is testing to see if the excess flow valve on the tank works and this requires reasonable access to the tanks main valve to manually turn it off and on by hand.
If the the tanks valve is covered by cargo, or a screw on cover or is too hard to get at, the rego checking person has every right not to do the rego check.
Been there done that.
Emergency personal need good access to the valve too.

Originally Posted by 101 Ron

Yes if the tanks are under tray you dont need the sub compartment cover fiited on the tank etc.
The fact is for NSW a yearly rego check for LPG is needed and part of that check is testing to see if the excess flow valve on the tank works and this requires reasonable access to the tanks main valve to manually turn it off and on by hand.
If the the tanks valve is covered by cargo, or a screw on cover or is too hard to get at, the rego checking person has every right not to do the rego check.
Been there done that.
Emergency personal need good access to the valve too.

So it should be well sign posted then? The diamond LPG label I assume.

Either way, I'll try to get the valves on the tanks somewhere they can be reached. I'll probably remove the valve compartments from the tanks because I don't think they will fit between the cross braces in the tray frame... Which is a pitty because they will get covered in mud, unless I make some guards to cover them (and restricting access to the valves!)

I found that just in the articulation I achieved by simply jacking the axle up that I would have fouled on the tray I had designed... So I played around some more with a different tray concept. What are peoples thoughts?