# propane fire place and a propane blacksmith forge



## horseshoezach (Dec 23, 2013)

Hi all im getting my propane tank installed friday for my fireplace and im wondering if i can also run my blacksmith forge off the same tank? its a 500 gallon tank and i have already run 3/4" black iron pipe from the tank location to the fire place and to the shop where the forge will be. Now my concern is will there be enough p.s.i. to run my forge?? when i run the forge from a 20 lb bottle i have my regulator set about 12 p.s.i.     will this work or not can anyone help     thanks in advance  zach


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## FanMan (Dec 23, 2013)

A typical system is a first stage regulator on the tank to drop it to 10psi, then at the house a second regulator drops it to the 11"WC that the fireplace needs.  If your forge can run OK on 10psi you should be fine; you just won't have a secondary regulator there... dunno what code says about that kind of installation, though.


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## horseshoezach (Dec 23, 2013)

what is 11'WC??


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## horseshoezach (Dec 23, 2013)

and my forge can run good on as low as like 8 psi


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## xtrordinair (Dec 23, 2013)

i would tee of the main line coming from the tank to your forge and either go straight to the forge with 10psi .just make sure the btu's are figured in to sizing the line, according to the line length from tank to forge.


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## FanMan (Dec 24, 2013)

horseshoezach said:


> what is 11'WC??



11" water column, a measurement of low pressure; it refers to how high the pressure will push water up a tube.  1"WC = 0.036psi so 11"WC = 0.397psi, which is the standard operating pressure for most LP appliances.  High heat devices, generally for outdoor use only like turkey fryers and your forge use the higher 10psi standard.


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## horseshoezach (Dec 24, 2013)

its a vermont castings fireplace model # RUVSOD my father inlaw has the same fireplace and he says they have there own low pressure regulator built in the fireplace  could this be true ???


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## xtrordinair (Dec 24, 2013)

you still need the 2nd stage regulator on the in coming line from the tank.The regulator in the unit is not intended to replace the 2nd stage only to assist it in keeping the flow rate consistent according to manufacturer specs.


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## horseshoezach (Dec 24, 2013)

xtrordinair said:


> you still need the 2nd stage regulator on the in coming line from the tank.The regulator in the unit is not intended to replace the 2nd stage only to assist it in keeping the flow rate consistent according to manufacturer specs.



ok thanks  can the 2nd stage regulator be installed in my crawl space before it go's thru the floor to the fire place?? or does it need to be outside??


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## xtrordinair (Dec 24, 2013)

regulators must be installed out side no closer than 3 feet from any crawl space vent .the regulator has a built in vent that will purge gas  under certain conditions .


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## FanMan (Dec 25, 2013)

I believe the 2nd stage regulator can be installed inside if and only if the bonnet vent is piped outside.


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## coaly (Dec 25, 2013)

horseshoezach said:


> its a vermont castings fireplace model # RUVSOD my father inlaw has the same fireplace and he says they have there own low pressure regulator built in the fireplace  could this be true ???



Appliance regulators that are convertible between Nat. and LP cut the pressure down for Nat. (half the pressure required for propane) and are actually blocked open inside when converted to LP. So on propane, the appliance runs on the system pressure set by low pressure regulator. This should remain at least 10" WC under load. (other appliances in operation)


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## Bret Chase (Jan 6, 2014)

FanMan said:


> 11" water column, a measurement of low pressure; it refers to how high the pressure will push water up a tube.  1"WC = 0.036psi so 11"WC = 0.397psi, which is the standard operating pressure for most LP appliances.  High heat devices, generally for outdoor use only like turkey fryers and your forge use the higher 10psi standard.



we've got LPG space heaters at work that require 20PSI...  500Kbtu...  Good 'Ol Big Bertha cast iron burners... the heat they put out is astounding...


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