garage saftey warning : please read

[sweetk30]

please check your valves / hoses / fittings on your gas items such as cutting torch's / welder regulators / and other items .

this is a common missed maintenance item we all prob need to do a little more .

i was in my shop for just a few min tonight to install the new c-25 mix bottle on my welder . shop was dead quiet nothing on except the led lights .

i opened the valve and noticed a hissing sound real small but there . i gave the regulator nut a big thump on the wrench and half of it was gone .

so i closed off 1 valve at a time on my gas splitter Y unit . ( feeding 2 welders )

i got the 1st one shut and no change . closed the second one and it slowly stopped . i found a loose hose fitting on my y-splitter thankfully and NOT a bad valve inside the welder .

yes it was just inert non-flammable gas . . . .but this could have been a flammable gas and let the shop go BOOM .

so please go in your shop next time . get the shop dead quiet and check for leaks .

this is all for the psa notice to all the great members here on ck5.com

 

[Cntymnty77]

please check your valves / hoses / fittings on your gas items such as cutting torch's / welder regulators / and other items .

this is a common missed maintenance item we all prob need to do a little more .

i was in my shop for just a few min tonight to install the new c-25 mix bottle on my welder . shop was dead quiet nothing on except the led lights .

i opened the valve and noticed a hissing sound real small but there . i gave the regulator nut a big thump on the wrench and half of it was gone .

so i closed off 1 valve at a time on my gas splitter Y unit . ( feeding 2 welders )

i got the 1st one shut and no change . closed the second one and it slowly stopped . i found a loose hose fitting on my y-splitter thankfully and NOT a bad valve inside the welder .

yes it was just inert non-flammable gas . . . .but this could have been a flammable gas and let the shop go BOOM .

so please go in your shop next time . get the shop dead quiet and check for leaks . or if you cant get a soapy water bottle and look for bubbles .

this is all for the psa notice to all the great members here on ck5.com

That’s how I lost half of my full-size Argon for my tig. Put it in storage when I moved and found out after I got a house that it was all gone.. I still haven’t brought myself to buy a new bottle for $200. But I need to, I have to many projects to do.

 

[FOR MUD]

Good info. I disconnect and cap every bottle after every use. I also shut valves off if I know I'm not going to be using gas for a half hour or so.

 

[diesel4me]

I shut off the tank valves right after I use the torch,even if I need to pick it right back up 2 minutes later to use it again..I'm a bit paranoid about forgetting to shut them off,and re-check them twice before I leave the garage after I've used the torches..

I'm also paranoid about pieces of slag and sparks in the shop,they seem to always go to the most innacessible spot with flammable materials nearby..I often linger in my garage quite a while after cutting anything in there ,just in case..but things can smoulder for hours before catching fire..

I try to do my cutting outside,preferable when the ground is wet or has snow on it..I've set the wooded area beside the garage ablaze once cutting steel,leaves were dry and went up like gasoline..luckily I had a garden hose handy and was able to douse it quickly..
Nothing like laying under a vehicle cutting something off,or welding,with a face shield or mask on,then crawling out to see a fire 10 feet away!....

An older friend I knew in my hometown had a battery shop--back in the 50's he actually made car batteries in a large commercial brick building..one morning there was a heavy snow,and he went to the shop,opened the walk in door,reached inside to grab a snow shovel to clear a path to the door..
--when he flipped the light switch,there was a huge explosion,and he was blown into a snowbank about 20 feet away..the flat roof on the building rose up off the bricks,then collapsed...the place was burning too,there was several batteries on a charger,the fire dept. investigated the cause after the fire was put out--they found the acetalyne torches valves were not closed,he forgot to shut them off the night before,evidently..the hydrogen gas from the charging batteries only increased the amount of force the explosion had...

He escaped with cuts and bruises,and a scorched face...when he related this story to me,you could see the terror in his eyes..said it was months before he was able to scrape enough cash up to repair the building,his insurance told him "too bad",after it was determined that he was "at fault" for leaving the tanks "on"..

I have several batteries charging in my garage right now..I'm always apprehensive when I open the door and turn on the lights,but my lights are way at the peak of the roof..

 

[sweetk30]

That’s how I lost half of my full-size Argon for my tig. Put it in storage when I moved and found out after I got a house that it was all gone.. I still haven’t brought myself to buy a new bottle for $200. But I need to, I have to many projects to do.

i dont get why you need to spend 200 on a new bottle ?

there swapped out for refills . maybe a bit more if out of date hydro . i just got this one swapped and hydro tested for just over 100 bucks .

 

[ryoken]

depending on where you are, some gas companies can be VERY funny about taking in other companies bottles for refill...

 

[Cntymnty77]

i dont get why you need to spend 200 on a new bottle ?

there swapped out for refills . maybe a bit more if out of date hydro . i just got this one swapped and hydro tested for just over 100 bucks .

depending on where you are, some gas companies can be VERY funny about taking in other companies bottles for refill...

Just like Ryoken said, I got the gas and bottle from one company several hundred miles away over 15 years ago. I guess that company got bought out a while back and no one in the KC area will swap with the company that is stamped on the side of the tank. Now I have a worthless, empty, 4’ tank.

 

[diesel4me]

The welding gas suppliers around here are anal about used tanks too--either they refuse to fill one unless they send it out to be hydro-tested,or they simply say "sorry--you want to buy gas or oxogen here,you must open an account and lease our tanks"..

I'm pissed that the place I was going that was less than 2 miles away has now moved 15 miles away....talk about inconvenience..they also started closing up on saturdays about a year ago,now they are only open 8 to 4 weekdays only..
Last time I had my tanks filled at the old location I had them fill my large O2 tank and the two 20 cubic foot dinky ones I own outright,so at least I'll have some back up..it was over $125 just to fill those 3 tanks and buy a new oxy propane cutting tip (which doesnt cut for beans compared to the other one I had)..
I used to get the big tank filled for $20 and the dinky ones were $18..never understood that either..glad I have propane instead of acetelyne,that costs over $60 a tank now..