Camco 40590 Double Propane Tank Lock for RVs

Propane tanks are one of the easiest things to walk off with at a campground. They sit right out front on the A-frame, they're worth real money, and a thief can have a pair off your rig in under a minute. The Camco 40590 double propane tank locking device puts a stop to the grab-and-go. It's a zinc plated steel assembly that seats down over both of your RV or camper mounted tanks and locks them to the mounting rod, so nobody's lifting them clear without the combination.

Here's how it works. Your tanks already sit on a tray with a threaded rod running up through the middle and a wing nut on top holding everything down. This locking device replaces that top hardware with steel top plates and a lock plate that seat over the tank collars. Thread it onto the rod, drop the lock plate in place, and snap the included combination padlock through it. Now the wing nut can't be spun off and the tanks can't be lifted out. One unit secures two tanks at once, which covers the standard dual-tank front rack you'll find on most travel trailers and fifth wheels.

Fitment is the part people get wrong, so let's be clear. The 40590 fits both 3/8 inch and 1/2 inch threaded rods. It ships with a 1/2 inch top plate and a 3/8 inch top plate, so you use whichever one matches the rod diameter on your tank tray. Measure your existing rod before you assume, because both sizes turn up depending on the trailer and the year it was built. If you've got a standard vertical mounting rod through a dual tank rack, this is made for it.

The combination lock is the quiet advantage here. There's no key to lose, no key to leave at home, no key to fumble for in the dark when you're setting up camp after a long haul. You set the code and you remember it. That matters more than it sounds like it should, because the tanks that get stolen are usually the ones where the owner never got around to locking them. A combination is one less excuse to skip it.

It's built from zinc plated steel, which is what you want for something that lives outside in the weather all year. Rain, road spray, sun, the odd hard winter. The zinc plating slows down surface rust so the mechanism keeps working season after season. The whole assembly measures 6-13/16 inches long by 3-11/16 inches wide by 2-5/16 inches tall, so it's compact enough that it stays out of the way when you go to swap or refill a tank.

Let's be straight about what a lock like this does and doesn't do. It's a deterrent, and a good one. It stops the opportunist, the walk-by grab, the person looking for the easy target two sites down. A determined thief with the right tools and enough time can get past almost any lock, and this one's no different. But most propane theft is opportunistic, and a visible steel locking plate sends that person looking for an easier mark. That's the whole game with campground security. You don't have to be impossible to rob, you just have to be more trouble than the rig parked next to you.

This one's for RV and camper owners who leave the tanks out of sight for a while. Long-term campground stays, storage lots, a driveway on a busy street. If you've ever walked back to your trailer and had that quick moment of checking everything's still there, this takes the propane off that list. Install takes a couple of minutes with nothing but your own hands, and once it's on, it stays on.