Flexible hose must be made of a suitable material otherwise it will rapidly deteriorate and fail. To minimise the risk of this happening all flexible gas hose must conform to one of the following
Regarding low-pressure hoses either
- BS 3212 type 2; or,
- BS EN 16436 Class 2 / Class 3; or,
- BS EN 1763-1 Class 2 / Class 3; or,
- BS EN 1763-2 Class 2 / Class 3
Regarding high-pressure hoses either
- BS 3212 type 2; or,
- BS EN 16436 Class 3; or,
- BS EN 1763-1 Class 2 / Class 3; or,
- BS EN 1763-2 Class 2 / Class 3
As all flexible gas hose has a limited life it is important to minimise the amount that is used on your boat. Hose must therefore be of minimum practicable length and not exceed 1m (3ft 3ins).
It's recommended that hoses are inspected regularly to check that they are still in good condition, i.e. no brittleness, flaws, cracking, abrasion, or kinking, as all these things could lead to failure. For this reason flexible hose used on your boat must be readily accessible so it can be easily checked.
To prevent damage from abrasion and deterioration, flexible hoses must be installed without stress or tight radius turns. Hose passing through bulkheads, partitions, deck heads or decks must also be protected from abrasion.
Loose hose connections may also be a source of gas leaks. To reduce the risk of these happening proper clamps, that are not likely to loosen over time, must be used. For low pressure applications, flexible hose must either be a pre-assembled length fitted with integral threaded metallic ends, or alternatively must be secured to nozzles by a metal crimped clamp or worm drive hose clamp. Hose clamps fixed by spring tension must not be used. Oversized or undersized hose clamp connections could cause gas leaks. To prevent these from happening hose clips and clamps must be of the correct size for the hose and at least 8mm (0.3ins) in width. Flexible hose must not be used where it could be subjected to temperatures above 50°C. [7.13]
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After enjoying an evening's fishing from their small cabin cruiser, two friends called it a night when the gas ran out in their camping lantern. One of them removed the gas cartridge from the lantern and discarded it into the cabin's waste bin. The next morning one of the men lit up a cigarette and there was an explosion, leading to both men being hospitalised. The explosion was caused by ignition of the residual gas in the lantern cartridge leaking out throughout the night, and because the gas is heavier than air, it had no means of escape from the confines of the boat. [7.15] |