Gas Bottle, What to do?

[Partickpebbles]

Hi, I have this Gas Bottle

Just wondered if any one knows its use, BBQ, Stove etc?

And where do I fill it?

Or what to do with it?

Thanks

 

[nunzionuk]

Can be used for loads of different things, most common is BBQ and Caravans/Stoves.

To fill it take it to a local camping suppliers, if they dont fill them (or exchange them for a new one) then they should know where you can go.

Other things to do with it... turn it into a log burner, or make a bbq out of it.

 

[spandit]

If you do decide to make it into something, unscrew the valve & fill it with water. Do this a couple of times before attempting to cut it!

 

[Partickpebbles]

I'd like to use it, but cant find any stockists! Any ideas??

 

[nunzionuk]

Petrol stations?

http://www.calor.co.uk/find-a-stockist/

They will exchange your old bottle for a new filled one. Not many places refill old bottles onsite any more.

http://www.flogas.co.uk/32/flogas-stockists

Flogas are shell gas.

 

[shaggystu]

I'd like to use it, but cant find any stockists! Any ideas??

http://www.yell.com/s/bottled+gas+and+equipment-south+milford-leeds.html

 

[swright81076]

If you have a go outdoors nearby, they exchange them, most camp sites and camping/caravan supplies. I think b&q do them in some stores too.
If you can though, I'd try and swap if for a red propane tank. The water vapour in the butane will freeze when its below zero. Propane doesn't. Otherwise if your not planning on using it in these temps then butane will be fine.
You will also need to buy the correct regulator for the size of bottle. Think its a clip on for the 13kg bottles.


Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2

 

[mrcharly]

If you can though, I'd try and swap if for a red propane tank. The water vapour in the butane will freeze when its below zero. Propane doesn't. Otherwise if your not planning on using it in these temps then butane will be fine.

It's not the water vapour, it is the butane itself that freezes.

When you live on a narrowboat and return home after two days to find the gas frozen, this isn't much fun.

 

[ged]

Butane doesn't freeze at any temperature you're likely to experience. Its freezing point is almost 140 degrees C below zero.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Butane

Most bottled fuel gas is supplied in liquid form. It is kept in the liquid form purely by the pressure that it's under in the container. The trouble is that gas usually comes out of the container that it's in because of that same pressure that's keeping it liquid in the container. If there's no pressure in the container keeping it liquid, it won't come out. When a liquid turns into a gas it's called boiling, just like boiling water turns it into a gas (which we happen to call 'steam', but we could equally call it gaseous water as opposed to liquid water).

Different liquids have different boiling points, which may be higher or lower than that of water. The boiling points are very different at different pressures, so we usually talk about the boiling point at one standard atmosphere of pressure. For example liquid octane boils at about 125 C above zero, liquid helium boils at about 269 C below zero at standard atmospheric pressure. At higher pressures the boiling points are increased, at lower pressures the boiling points are reduced. You already know this about water, because you know that you can't make a decent cup of tea on top of Everest. Other liquids behave in a similar way.

At normal atmospheric pressure, liquid butane boils at about half a degree C below zero. So at any temperature lower than about half a degree C it will be a liquid at atmospheric pressure and it will stay a liquid. If it doesn't boil in the container it won't come out of the pipe as a gas that you can burn.

Propane on the other hand boils at about 42 degrees C below zero, so you have to be in really arctic conditions for it not to boil in the container.

Sometimes they mix propane and butane so that it boils at lower temperatures and you can use it with less problems in winter:

http://www.engineeringtoolbox.com/propane-butane-mix-d_1043.html

There can be a little bit of water in the gas and it can cause frost in the pipes. Because making a gas from a liquid generally means that heat is absorbed by the liquid the container and the pipes will be cooled when the gas boils. You can sometimes see condensation or even frost form on the outside of a gas bottle up to the level of gas in the container for this reason. It's a useful (if rough) indication of the amount of gas left in the container.

Frost in pipes rarely causes problems but it might do in very cold climates if the frost doesn't ever melt and just keeps building up over time.

 

[ged]

Hi, I have this Gas Bottle

Just wondered if any one knows its use, BBQ, Stove etc?

And where do I fill it?

Or what to do with it?

That kind of bottle is often owned by the gas supplier. It might say on the bottle somewhere who owns it. If so, they will be the people to ask about filling it. There are quite a few suppliers and many of them use different connectors for connecting the pressure regulator to the bottle, sometimes the fittings which connect the pipe to the regulator are different too. You can sometimes get the regulator for nothing from the suppliers, they're more interested in keeping the customer (selling you the gas and renting the bottles) and giving you a regulator is a pretty good way of keeping you as a customer.

Bottled gas is a relatively expensive way of buying energy but it can be more convenient than many other fuels in some circumstances.

Make sure to get hold of the safety sheet from the supplier and have a good read of it, any bottled gas is dangerous if used without the proper precautions.

 

[Silverhill]

Hi, I have this Gas Bottle

Just wondered if any one knows its use, BBQ, Stove etc?

And where do I fill it?

Or what to do with it?

Thanks

That's a 13kg (Butane) cylinder, with a 20 or 21 mm valve for use with the likes of portable gas heaters, barbecues and the like. The chances are, the black stickers '12.3' on the front refers to the tare weight of the bottle, whilst the embossed '94' shows the year of manufacture. My first job out of uni was for Flogas, helping them get their cylinder refurbishment plant up and running, and the 13kg's were the first to be re-branded. Needless to say, there are so many out there, they still haven't painted them all!!

I'd strongly recommend you return it to the nearest depot for an exchange (if required). The bottle, despite being labelled as Shell, is owned by Flogas and still has another two years life left in it before it is re-valved, tested and recorded (although none of the gas companies have an inventory of every cylinder in existence, so an 'alternative' use of the cylinder may not raise suspicions, should you decide to go down the routes suggested above ).

 

[swright81076]

I was once told a good trick about gas bottles. If you ever want to know how much gas is left inside, simply poor boiling water down the side and feel the cylinder. Where its hot its empty. Where cold, that's the level of the gas.
We have one for the cadac when we have bbqs at home. Now those things are brilliant but far too heavy to lug about.

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2

 

[Chiseller]

I was once told a good trick about gas bottles. If you ever want to know how much gas is left inside, simply poor boiling water down the side and feel the cylinder. Where its hot its empty. Where cold, that's the level of the gas.
We have one for the cadac when we have bbqs at home. Now those things are brilliant but far too heavy to lug about.

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2

Good tip squire :thumbup:

Sent from my HTC Explorer using Tapatalk

 

[swright81076]

Thanks. Clears throat and straightens tie. How was the trip?

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2

 

[Partickpebbles]

That's a 13kg (Butane) cylinder, with a 20 or 21 mm valve for use with the likes of portable gas heaters, barbecues and the like. The chances are, the black stickers '12.3' on the front refers to the tare weight of the bottle, whilst the embossed '94' shows the year of manufacture. My first job out of uni was for Flogas, helping them get their cylinder refurbishment plant up and running, and the 13kg's were the first to be re-branded. Needless to say, there are so many out there, they still haven't painted them all!!

I'd strongly recommend you return it to the nearest depot for an exchange (if required). The bottle, despite being labelled as Shell, is owned by Flogas and still has another two years life left in it before it is re-valved, tested and recorded (although none of the gas companies have an inventory of every cylinder in existence, so an 'alternative' use of the cylinder may not raise suspicions, should you decide to go down the routes suggested above ).

All great advise thank you very much! Much appreciated!

 

[mrcharly]

Butane doesn't freeze at any temperature you're likely to experience. Its freezing point is almost 140 degrees C below zero.

That's the melting point.

Point taken, it doesn't freeze at normal temperatures.

However, it won't change from liquid to a gas at temperatures below -1.1, as you've noted.

The effect is the the same - your stove/water heater/cooker won't work.

 

[ged]

Butane doesn't freeze at any temperature you're likely to experience. Its freezing point is almost 140 degrees C below zero. ...

That's the melting point. ...

The freezing point and the melting point are different names for the same thing.

Freezing = liquid turning to solid at some temperature.
Melting = solid turning to liquid at the SAME temperature.

Although the temperature of a solid at the melting/freezing point and a liquid at the freezing/melting point are the same, the energy content is different. The difference is called the latent heat of fusion.
In the case of water for example, to turn one gramme of ice at its melting/freezing point into one gramme of water at its freezing/melting point you have to put about 330 Joules into the ice.
This is enough energy to heat one gramme of water by about 80 C (so using fuel to melt snow for water for cooking could be a terribly inefficient use of the fuel).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Latent_heat#Table_of_latent_heats