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Co2, Nitrogen or welding shop air tank?

camok5

camok5

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So my welding friend can get me either a co2 tank or a nitrogen tank and I want to know what to get? I know alot of people run co2 but how much more can it fill than a same sized nitrogen tank and why cant I just use a welding co2 tank as apposed to a "power tank co2" one? The other thing I heard is that it could be better to run a co2 tank from a welding shop because they are D.O.T. approved and will fill the bottle all the way up and not just part way like a power tank bottle.
 
Well, I'm not usually one to say this, but you should probably search. We beat the hell out of this a while back.

I don't know enough about Nitrogen to answer most of your questions appropriately, but off the top of my head, I'm going to guess it doesn't have the same work capacity as CO2.

I'm also not a welder. However I've never seen welding bottles smaller than an 'A' tank. Uhh the four or five foot ones, we called them 100 or 150 pounders. That is a great reason not to carry in the truck though! I'm assuming you must be talking about smaller tanks that I've never seen.

However you are right, you don't have to use a 'Powertank' one. And I personally wouldn't suggest using one, or using the draught ones either, as they are not as structurally sound as say a fire extinguisher bottle.

Any size bottle can be filled to capacity. To properly fill bottles enough time must be provided to allow the gas and cylinder to cool, before topping up.

I'm not entirely certain of DOT regs. either as we don't use the same ones up here, but CO2 extinguishers are a common item on rigs, and certainly emergency vehicles, so likely they are DOT approved given appropriate bracketry.

Hope that helps somewhat.
 
i've been hearing that the co2 bottles that resturants use are the best(cheapest). but i've also heard that co2 expands in the tire, and might possibly pop it. I guess nitrogen doesnt do this. the welding tanks are freakin heavy, so I wouldnt' call that an option unless youre gonna leave it on the towrig.
 
I look at it this way, I was on the road again while you guys were at the gas station "filling-up". Its also good to have air/gas of some sort when you can't get to a "gas station".:D
 
I just read an article on a tire website about the difference between co2 and N. I will have to look for it. Not enough of a difference for my rig to even notice. I have a co2 tank from a resturant and one from the welding shop that I use on my mig welder. I just need to remember to throw one in when I go :o . I would grab a co2 tank. I am not sure how many tire each tank will fill up that would be one consideration to look at. Another is if you have a regulator allready, the regulator that came with my welder would not support co2 (it would freeze up) I had to buy one specifically for co2.
 
CO2 will give you three times the energy of Nitrogen in a given tank size. Having one tank of CO2 is like carrying three tanks of nitrogen. This makes it more economical and means that you'll have the power when you need it all in one small tank.
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jms said:
Lotsa hearsay in this post...
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I guess I'm slighted by this comment but, my comments do come from experience. As a firefighter, Hazmat tech, and user of CO2 'powertanks'.

I only really wanted to point this out, because while info you gain here is a good start, you really must do the footwork and ensure that the info you have is accurate.

Nitrogen is no safer than CO2. And keep in mind that they are compressed gasses in a confined space. That IS dangerous. I beat the hell out of the safety aspect in an earlier post so I won't do it all over again. But truly, you must learn what you are getting into. If you have any questions PM.

Liquid CO2 cannot be released from the bottle. Only under pressure, is CO2 liquid, the atmospheric pressure won't allow this. However the risk of frostbite and tissue damage still exists, wear gloves.

If you do go this route, around here I find a fire extinguisher company will refill cheaper than a welding supply shop. It might be the same for you.
 
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fireplug said:
If you do go this route, around here I find an fire extinguisher company will refill cheaper than a welding supply shop. It might be the same for you.
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I get my 10 lbs. CO2 for $16 from an extinguisher shop.
 
I use nitrogen and I really like it. It is sooooo much faster than my Quickair to fill up my tires, and it only costs me $20 to exchange for a full one. BTW, I'm using a 150 psi fixed regulator from hyperflo
 
FWIW CO2, depending on ambient temp, is roughly 800psi in the tank while N2 is 2500 psi. This graph might be helpful, dunno.
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jms said:
No intention to slight. Sorry for not using smilies. The post right above mine stated a lot about hearing tis'n'dat...




Yes, it can, when it turns to gas depends on the speed of the release, length of the hose, etc. I have a machine in my lab that does just that; the purpose is to make dry ice (i.e. solid CO2, to be used as cooling/freezing agent, temps are somewhere between -45C to -60C). We order CO2 in a container that has a special siphon down to the bottom so that it'll draw liquid CO2, not gas. Of course, at atmospheric pressure, the liquid turns to gas instantly. That expansion process draws energy, so it cools the gas down to the point where is turns into a solid, hence the 'snow' of dry ice flakes. Dry ice in a tire wouldn't be good, either...
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No harm done :D:D:D. There lots of smilies to go round.

So for my own knowledge, according to what you're saying (I think) is yes the liquid portion of the bottle can be used, however it turns to gas (or solid) as it enters atmospheric pressure?
 
Cool yep I just wanted to see if we were on the same page or not. Maybe learn something new.

And yes we still use CO2 extinguishers, they are good for electrical fires, underground electrical vaults and chimney fires (shoot the CO2 up the chimney from the fireplace).
 
Thank you for the replies sorry my computer has been down for a few days, I just have a few more questions. I got the 15 lb. co2 bottle from a welding supply shop because it was free. The guy there told me that they can only fill up the bottles to the specified amount stamped on the bottle, so do Powertanks have these numbers on them? What can I do for a regulator that wont break the bank, the one at the welding shop was $140 bucks and he didnt know much about the flow of it? Also about how many fills can I get out of this bottle if I have 38'' tires?
 
I saw those because a friend of mine has one of there setups but I was thinking about using a beverage co2 regulator. They seem to be cheaper and still come with an adjustable regulator. Does anyone know how well it might work and what the flow differance might be?
 
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