expensive welding gas

[37chief]

I exceeded my oxygen and acetylene tanks yesterday. The Oxygen wasn't too bad at 30.00 It was a tall tank. The acetylene was the killer at 119.00. The tank was a little larger, but still a lot. Then 16.00 hazardous fee, and 4.00 exchange fee. Is that what you pay? My uncle made his own acetylene back in the 50's. How did he do it? Stan

 

[Richard G.]

I exceeded my oxygen and acetylene tanks yesterday. The Oxygen wasn't too bad at 30.00 It was a tall tank. The acetylene was the killer at 119.00. The tank was a little larger, but still a lot. Then 16.00 hazardous fee, and 4.00 exchange fee. Is that what you pay? My uncle made his own acetylene back in the 50's. How did he do it? Stan

Carbide and water makes acetylene.
Old miner's lamps made it that way.
Houses were lit with it also.

 

[marloweg]

I exceeded my oxygen and acetylene tanks yesterday. The Oxygen wasn't too bad at 30.00 It was a tall tank. The acetylene was the killer at 119.00. The tank was a little larger, but still a lot. Then 16.00 hazardous fee, and 4.00 exchange fee. Is that what you pay? My uncle made his own acetylene back in the 50's. How did he do it? Stan

that's why i use LPG

 

[old]

Carbide and water makes acetylene.
Old miner's lamps made it that way.
Houses were lit with it also.

Those lamps where also used when exploring caves. Spent many hours with one on the hard hat we wore when exploring caves

 

[BarnyardEngineering]

that's why i use LPG

It's real easy to switch. Just unscrew the acetylene tank, screw on the LPG tank, swap to a propane tip, and start torching.

I've read that you should buy new hoses too, but so far, no problems... I figure if you're thinking about bottling your own acetylene, you should have no problem using your acetylene hose with propane.

 

[BarnyardEngineering]

Carbide and water makes acetylene.
Old miner's lamps made it that way.
Houses were lit with it also.

I'm betting he put a measured amount of calcium carbide in a tank, added a measured amount of water, and screwed the cap on. The gas formed in the tank, pressurized the tank, and voila, bottled acetylene gas for your torch. You can buy calcium carbide by the pound on Amazon.

The problem with acetylene gas is that it becomes unstable at 15PSI, and "spontaneously" combusts when introduced to oxygen. The tanks you get from the welding supply have some kind of honeycomb in them and the acetylene is dissolved in acetone to keep it from going "boom."

No doubt that home brewed acetylene tank from the 1950's was sketchy by today's standards.

 

[plattman]

I exceeded my oxygen and acetylene tanks yesterday. The Oxygen wasn't too bad at 30.00 It was a tall tank. The acetylene was the killer at 119.00. The tank was a little larger, but still a lot. Then 16.00 hazardous fee, and 4.00 exchange fee. Is that what you pay? My uncle made his own acetylene back in the 50's. How did he do it?W

When I bought the farm, it had an acetylene generator they used for their welding/ cutting gas. It was a squat tank about 80 gallons with some kind of metering device on top. Also came with a drum of carbide. Folks selling the farm warned me to never use it as it was old then and probably dangerous. I took the good advice and scrapped it.

 

[jhwis]

When I bought the farm, it had an acetylene generator they used for their welding/ cutting gas. It was a squat tank about 80 gallons with some kind of metering device on top. Also came with a drum of carbide. Folks selling the farm warned me to never use it as it was old then and probably dangerous. I took the good advice and scrapped it.

You had me worried how you started this reply off considering the topic...

 

[Jim.ME]

To go along with Barnyard's mention of changing hoses, here is hose info (borrowed from ATL Welding Supplies to save typing) for using different fuel gasses.

Grade R

It is designed & recommended for acetylene gas & oxygen. Up until 15 years ago or so it was the only grade of twin welding hose available. It is not recommended for use with lp, propane, natural gas or propylene. The reason it is not recommended for propane is that the oils in propane will eventually dry rot the hose. This generally takes about 1 year to happen. The hose will appear cracked on the surface & lose pliability. This can be a very unsafe situation that requires immediate replacement of the hose. It's not like the Grade R hose will be unsafe from the start but its' life will be shorter. The longevity of the hose matters to some cutters & welders while to others it doesn't. Grade R twin welding hose is less expensive & that makes all the difference for some users. Their hose often doesn't last a year regardless of the grade.

Grade T

Grade T twin welding hose is specially designed for alternate fuels such as lp, propane, natural gas & propylene. However it can also be used with acetylene. It is more expensive than Grade R because it is made to resist the effects of the oils in propane. Although Grade T can be used for "All Fuel Gases", it is recommended to change the hose when switching between acetylene and alternate fuel gases. This is because of the residual oils from the propane lodge themselves into the pores of the hose.

 

[roy prins]

I know of an older fella that went fishing with carbide.. He would put some in a pop bottle with a tight cap - put in a little water and cork it and sink it -- in about 30 seconds -- BOOM ! fish for supper !

 

[Absent Minded Farmer]

I exceeded my oxygen and acetylene tanks yesterday. The Oxygen wasn't too bad at 30.00 It was a tall tank. The acetylene was the killer at 119.00. The tank was a little larger, but still a lot. Then 16.00 hazardous fee, and 4.00 exchange fee. Is that what you pay? My uncle made his own acetylene back in the 50's. How did he do it? Stan

My grandparents had a carbide to water acetylene generator that was the first lighting system on the farm. There were smaller units to generate gas for cutting.

Here's a link for more info:

Carbide Generators....

Mike

 

[Absent Minded Farmer]

You had me worried how you started this reply off considering the topic...

Uh huh.... there's been a few people that bought the farm with those generators.

Mike

 

[DoubleO7]

My welding mentor had a sight feed acetylene generator on his welding cart just like the first picture.
Used regularly since WW2 up until 2005 or so when sold.
The second picture is new ones sold today. New Generators
Note that the Operating pressure is up to 15 psi

 

[M-MAN]

I swapped out 2 mc bottles of acetylene a month ago. $60. That's about $20 higher than than they were 20 years ago. Not bad considering.

 

[caterpillar guy]

I switched to propane 20 years ago never looked back never changed hoses and have not had a problem with the hoses. I suppose I will have need to change hoses in the future though not right away. If I changed them now and they lasted as long as the ones on there now I might not need nor care by the time these has rolled around on them. I'd be 85 then.

 

[Absent Minded Farmer]

My welding mentor had a sight feed acetylene generator on his welding cart just like the first picture.
Used regularly since WW2 up until 2005 or so when sold.
The second picture is new ones sold today. New Generators
Note that the Operating pressure is up to 15 psi

View attachment 76035View attachment 76037

I couldn't think of the company name, yesterday & didn't want to call it that "light hose lookin' thing". That & the search engines are about as useful as a straight boomerang.

Mike

 

[Duner Wi]

#3 acetylene cost 65$ in 2023 up from 24$ in 1999.

 

[560Dennis]

I think the acetylene B tank is 38 dollars last time.

 

[Stan Coryell]

I exceeded my oxygen and acetylene tanks yesterday. The Oxygen wasn't too bad at 30.00 It was a tall tank. The acetylene was the killer at 119.00. The tank was a little larger, but still a lot. Then 16.00 hazardous fee, and 4.00 exchange fee. Is that what you pay? My uncle made his own acetylene back in the 50's. How did he do it? Stan

We go by Cu/Ft here (outside Philadelphia). For 330 Cu/Ft of Oxygen, we pay about $28 without the cylinder rental. I'm not sure about the acetylene. $120 sounds right for 250 Cu/Ft though.

Rental is about $7 a month. At day work, we usually have a 100 or so. At night school, we have around 35.

LP has always been a lot cheaper than acetylene. The first contractor I worked for used this stuff called "Appache". Some kind of LP.

I think the hose types are nonsense. For how many years was Typ R the only choice?

 

[JMOR]

I was told by welder that does use LP for cutting, that it doesn't work well for gas welding or brazing.