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Old C02 tank

woodchk502

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I found this tank in my Father-in-Laws (rip Mike) last summer and drug it home with hope of either filling and using or as a tank in an OBA setup. Do these need to be inspected before filling?

so I guess:

1-does it need inspected?
1a-how much to inspect
1b-how much to fill

2-if used in OBA
2a-does a York setup need a tank
2b-it is a bit bulky so how would YOU use it?






jim

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Filling last time I did one was about $20 bucks.
York doesn't have to have a tank but it helps. The york won't build up a ton of pressure. Where if you fill it to pressure with CO2 you will get a lot of use out of it.

They do need to be inspected, They won't fill them unless they are within a certain amount of time since last inspection, but some places don't care.

I would mount it somewhere and run a hose. Check out www.powertank.com for info on accessories. You can check with some of the welding supply companies or fire extinguisher companies for filling and inspection. I thought about on board air but CO2 is easier to deal with and lasts longer for me.
 
I used to fill those a few years ago. They need to be inspected every 7-10 years I believe. There should be a date stamped somewhere on the neck of the bottle by the fill valve. The reason they need to be inspected is because CO2 is slightly corrosive and it can leak out of the valve and cause bad stuff to happen.

If you get it inspected, they can test the bottle and put in a new valve assembly before they fill it and you'll likely be under $100. Small price to pay for being safe.
 
Anyone have any other thoughts on using as a tank for oba?

I like what I see here, I was thinking outside. but tucked away like that would keep it clean and out of harms way...:waytogo:

 
Just an FYI if you mount it sideways, you will need an "Anti siphon" iirc tube added to the valve.

It will thread into the valve and then bend up inside the tank. Mount it with the tube pointing up, then you will not suck liquid co2, and just gas.
 
If you use it as an onboard tank for air, it won't hold much.

Martin
 
Locally they don't even fill. They just exchange them. If it's outside of the inspection period, they normally charge an extra fee for that, but you still get back another tank.

I've been using the hell out of my CO2 tank the last year or so, I'm on the initial fill and I've aired up the the trucks 33x10.5R15's at least 5 times (from 20 to 35-40PSI each time) plus used it pretty extensively with an air nozzle to blow dust and dirt off a bunch of things, and its STILL got 2-3lbs of CO2 in it. (FYI, the tank should have a tare weight on it. Weigh the tank, subtract the tare from that weight, that's how much CO2 is left)

My only complaint is that the pressure relief (got the regulator and tank for $60 IIRC) vents at about 130PSI. I would at least like to try it with higher pressure to decrease fill times, but haven't been able to find a valve that is cost effective and rated for higher pressure. Most all of these are for Kegerator setups, and apparently the beverage industry runs setups no higher than 120PSI, thus the valve limits.

I'm guessing from that tank stamping it was put into service in 1977, reinspected in 1985, unless you see a later year stamp elsewhere.

For space, a 5lb tank would be ideal, but I've not seen one of those being sold locally. Certainly not for the price you can find these 10lb'ers for.
 
Kegs run around 10 psi give or take. 120 is excessive already for a kegorator.

Martin
 
On powertanks website, my tank which is the 20lb IIRC, says it will fill a 33x12.5 tire from 10psi to 30 psi 24 times.
 
Kegs run around 10 psi give or take. 120 is excessive already for a kegorator.

Martin

Figuring I could either shim the spring in the bypass, or just take it out and plug it. I don't travel with the regulator attached, if it vents when I have it attached it would be no big deal.

"I" because I won't suggest someone else do it if they don't feel it's worth whatever risk there is.
 
Locally they don't even fill. They just exchange them. If it's outside of the inspection period, they normally charge an extra fee for that, but you still get back another tank.

I've been using the hell out of my CO2 tank the last year or so, I'm on the initial fill and I've aired up the the trucks 33x10.5R15's at least 5 times (from 20 to 35-40PSI each time) plus used it pretty extensively with an air nozzle to blow dust and dirt off a bunch of things, and its STILL got 2-3lbs of CO2 in it. (FYI, the tank should have a tare weight on it. Weigh the tank, subtract the tare from that weight, that's how much CO2 is left)

My only complaint is that the pressure relief (got the regulator and tank for $60 IIRC) vents at about 130PSI. I would at least like to try it with higher pressure to decrease fill times, but haven't been able to find a valve that is cost effective and rated for higher pressure. Most all of these are for Kegerator setups, and apparently the beverage industry runs setups no higher than 120PSI, thus the valve limits.

I'm guessing from that tank stamping it was put into service in 1977, reinspected in 1985, unless you see a later year stamp elsewhere.

For space, a 5lb tank would be ideal, but I've not seen one of those being sold locally. Certainly not for the price you can find these 10lb'ers for.

85 is the latest stamp I see, so the local place may not even want it as a core. :dunno:

Which if true puts me back at square one. Trying to find time to setup one of the Yorks that I have. If that happens, would this even be worth the effort of converting to a tank for it? Thinking size of tank for time/cost involve with converting, mounting, plumbing. Thoughts??
 
They don't typically care how old the tanks are from what I've seen. You should pay the same price if it was last done in '85 or '65.

Yorks are cool, don't get me wrong, but air *storage* is another story. Size-wise, it's nothing like what you get with CO2, so while it might work as air storage, it's not going to hold much. If all you are doing 99% of the time is airing tires up, CO2 to me seems like the better choice. The 10lb tanks are a bit bulky, but you've already got one, I say try it. Did you get a regulator with it?
 
OK, a few items:
I worked with CO2 tanks for years at the local soda plant. That looks like a standard 20# tank. I have handled literally thousands of them over the years.
First of all, notice the nut on the back side of the valve. DO NOT FOOL WITH THAT NUT!!
I assure you your life may well depend on it.
Inside that nut is a disc, usually copper. It is calibrated to rupture before the bottle does in case of an overfill or overheat situation.
You will notice some small holes drilled in that nut to vent the gas when the disc ruptures.
With that hose you have on it, you need to be careful. Depending on temperature, you will get somewhere between 1500 and 2000 PSI out that hose when you crack that valve.
And it will be coming out at about -78F. Frostbite can occur if you are not careful. And that much pressure can drive stuff right through your skin like a hypo. Or rip parts off.

I have used hoses like that, but its tricky.

Popoff valves below the regulator........They are set to 120 for a reason. If its used in a Postmix fountain soft drink system, the carbonator, which makes carbonated water takes 90 PSI to work.
There is usually a second set of regulators past that the restrict the pressure to either 40PSI or maybe even 5.
The hoses used in that industry are usually rated at about 200PSI, but some are higher.
If you are going to try to use it for fairly high volume outputs, such as air tools or airing up large tires, any beverage regulators will not work.

They are setup for low flow, and will not pass a lot of volume. Plus they will freeze up if you draw on them hard.
There are companies who make high flow regulators just for your type of use. I'm sure someone here knows where to get them.

As for refilling it, I would not do so. If you have a local beverage company, such as Coca-Cola or Pepsi, you should be able to just drive up and say you need a refill. They sell from dozens to hundreds of bottles of the stuff per week, and are not going to look twice at yours.
They will just grab yours, hand you a full one and charge you for the gas. It looks like it may be made out of aluminum judging by the picture. They all used to be made out of steel, but the light one are slowly taking over.
You probably not be able to specify which you get as a replacement. If yours is aluminum, and they hand you a steel one, it will weight a lot more. If you want the aluminum, you can say something like, " man I hate those heavy ones, you got an aluminum one I could have?"

Like I say, odds are the guy you are dealing with does not care. He is just selling CO2.

Personally, I think I trust the steel ones a little more that the others, but there is no reason to. Its just what I am used to.
I do like handling the light ones. And they will thaw out faster if you draw on them hard and they freeze up.

Couple of other things:
That brass valve is fairly fragile. That cover is more than just a handle. If you knock it over, and it hits a curb or something, that handle will usually protect the valve. Otherwise it may snap off and turn the tank into a rocket.

So, if you mount it in the truck, protect the valve and make darn sure its secure. You do not want it shooting around at 100 mph inside the cab.

Don't forget that there is many many times more volume of CO2 in that tank than there is breathable air in your truck.
If something fails, and its not vented to the outside, you could find yourself trying to breath pure CO2 in a matter of seconds.

And you could pass out from that in less than 30 seconds.

When I say I don't recommend refilling it unless its been inspected, trust me. I have seen exactly one explode, and that was enough!

I may have some other suggestions later.

Meanwhile, here is some other reading.......

https://ck5.com/forums/threads/co2-tales.285389/
 
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I had a 5 lb bottle fly across the room, hit the wall and take a chunk out of said concrete wall before the damn thing came flying at me hitting me and breaking my elbow. So what fordum said about the valve being fragile is VERY accurate. :doah:
 
1-does it need inspected?

It might vary state to state, but here in CO definitely. In my experience, they look at it for a few seconds to make sure it isn't damaged and put a new sticker on it.

2a-does a York setup need a tank

WAY too small to be used with a York. The York compresses air, and they work well, but a tank this small is not worth messing with for that.

The reason that little tanks like this work is because they store liquid CO2, the York is compressing vapor-air. The liquid is MUCH more dense. When filled with liquid CO2, they hold enough "air" to fill many tires, many times. As an extra tank to help the York (with compressed vapor air), they'll keep load off of the compressor for seconds.
 
Thanks for all the input and info guys. I have a buddy that reps Coke, but I would not want to drop a bottle on them that could be defective so I may just see if they will inspect and fill for me. If not I will check into getting it done right and then filled. Hopefully it serves me well until I can get into the York setup.

As for the hose, it has no end on it, so is there anything special about the hose or fittings I should know?
 
You really should put a regulator on it. Mine is fixed regulator IIRC it is a 120 psi regulator.


It filled my tires and then my cousins 38s after dunes and the reg just started to frost on the last 2 of his tires. It was really hot and humid too.
 
Yeah, unless you are trying to reseat tires or blow dirt out of a radiator, you do not want full bottle pressure.
2000PSI will hurt you, and heaven help you if you were to hook it to a tire and try to put that much pressure in there........

When you get a regulator, you need to look inside the nut that screws on the tank. There will be a flat piece that butts up against the output of the tank.

There is no taper or anything to cause a seal in the parts, just two flat pieces of brass.

Therefore, no matter how tight you get that nut, its going to leak. To prevent that, historically you used a thick fiber or cardboard washer.
Later they went to a plastic washer.
This would often fall out when changing the tank, and then I would get a service call about a leaky tank.

Some of the newer ones have an O ring embedded in the part on the regulator. If your regulator has that, the washer is not needed.
Those type made my life a little easier, but sooner or later that ring would get damaged and then the leaks returned.

If your regulator does not have the ring when you get it, request spare washer when you buy it.
Most of the time they will throw them in free if you ask.

As for the Coke plant, there is often two different plants in a given area. In my setup, we were both companies.
We did the bottles and cans, and also what was known as the fountain division, which handled the syrup and gas.
Since in most parts of the country those are actually two different divisions of the parent company, sometimes they are split at the local level too.

Check with your friend to see if his place handles the syrup sales. If so, I would not be too worried about the age of the bottle.
Many plants outsource the refilling of the bottles. Whoever does it darn well better be checking the quality and dates on the bottles.
That is their job.
You could tell him that its old, and he could flag it if he wants, but if they are the fountain division reps, selling CO2 is their job, so he should be fine with selling you the gas.
That reminds me of another funny story about those bottles that I don't think I have told here yet.
I will add it to the link I posted so as to not derail this thread.......
 
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