This Is One Alarm You Should Never Ignore in Your RV

Don't play games with your life.

I had a strange but eye-opening experience during my last week in the RV. I would fall into a deep sleep, and before dusk, I wake up to the smell of gas. Sometimes, I would smell it before going to bed.

The first time it happened, I got up and checked my propane alarm. I then took my security alarm’s monoxide detector to the neighbor’s gas line to see if it would set it off. It did not. At 4 AM, I decided to turn my gas off, but I still smelled it.

“I’m pretty sure I smell gas,” I told my mom. “But if I had a gas leak, the RV alarm would go off. I’m not sure what’s going on.”

She thought maybe I was tired and just imagining it.

But one evening, I came home to the strong smell of gas. I found the neighbors on the other side standing outside while the gas company checked their property. I walked over and asked what was going on. They had a gas leak and didn’t know it, while I had been smelling it in the RV for a week.

In my case, the RV’s alarm did not go off. But it’s a good reminder to check your alarms and trust your nose. Nothing in the neighbor’s house went off either because they didn’t have a carbon monoxide alarm. If you don’t have one in your home or RV, I encourage you to rethink this. You can get detectors for under $25 online.

Similarly, many RVers turn their alarms off because they can often go off at the slightest trigger. Even rubbing alcohol sets my LP alarm off and it is LOUD. I’m surprised it wasn’t hollering all that week when I could smell gas. I think it’s because I slept with the RV windows open, so it was well-ventilated.

A neighbor in California was almost not as lucky.

When I was still RVing in California, a guy had a gas leak from his RV that almost killed his dogs. The alarm had gone off a few times, but he hadn’t thought much of it. Like I said, they are very sensitive—and for good reason. An RV only takes about 15 minutes to burn to the ground. And, in such a small space, carbon monoxide poisoning will be quick.

Finally, people around his RV started smelling the gas and his LP alarm had started going off again inside. The workers contacted him as he had dogs inside. He left work immediately and came home. They had to proceed carefully to ensure they didn’t trigger an explosion by flipping a light switch or opening the door too quickly.

Remember, it just takes a spark to go BOOM in these situations. And all it takes to spark is a little friction. He thanked the office and told them he was new to RVing and just assumed the alarm was faulty.

It was not.

What should you do if your RV propane goes off?

I’m not going to lie to you.

After four years as a full-time RVer, I know when my propane is making a fuss over nothing. It has lied to me every single time it’s gone off because I have never left the gas on or had an indoor propane leak. I also follow the RVing best practice of cracking a window while using the propane stove or the furnace.

Nevertheless, there have been a few times that were suspicious enough that I took precautions. I’m no expert on propane matters, but let me reiterate:

If your LP alarm goes off, take it seriously.

Next week, I’ll share best practices with paid subscribers. We’ll talk about what to do when the alarm goes off and some of the things that have triggered false alarms for me. See you then! 🤞🏼