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Propane tank issues

JamesnTN

I've been using one of those tanks for grills for my bench source annealer. Today I went to fire it up to anneal brass and I have no pressure. The tank is half full but no pressure. Is there a fix or do I just swap it out?

I don't have any sort of pressure Guage on it or regulator but never had a problem until now.
 
How do you know it is 1/2 full? What is the temp.? Float valve my be stuck shut. You could have butane instead of propane, butane does not like low temps.
 
JamesnTN said:
I've been using one of those tanks for grills for my bench source annealer. Today I went to fire it up to anneal brass and I have no pressure. The tank is half full but no pressure. Is there a fix or do I just swap it out?

I don't have any sort of pressure Guage on it or regulator but never had a problem until now.
Click to expand...

As above, but if you ARE sure its 1/2 full, I had a tank that would, for lack of a better word, "lock out" if the device I had it hooked up to turned off suddenly. Had something to do with the Overfill Prevention Device (OPD) that is a safety feature. There was a tool that you could screw into the (internal) threads that relieved the pressure in the headspace that had activated the "lock-out". Sometimes it would lock out if the valve was opened too quickly. However, if it is indeed locking out because of overpressure in the tank, you'd want to get that looked at.

Drew
 
Last edited:
skiutah02 said:
As above, but if you ARE sure its 1/2 full, I had a tank that would, for lack of a better word, "lock out" if the device I had it hooked up to turned off suddenly. Had something to do with the Overfill Prevention Device (OPD) that is a safety feature. There was a tool that you could screw into the (internal) threads that relieved the pressure in the headspace and that had activated the "lock-out". Sometimes it would lock out if the valve was opened too quickly. However, if it is indeed locking out because of overpressure in the tank, you'd want to get that looked at.

Drew
Click to expand...


I'll just swap it out and thanks. I get a flame if you call it that just no pressure behind it
 
JamesnTN said:
I'll just swap it out and thanks. I get a flame if you call it that just no pressure behind it
Click to expand...
My mentor would weigh the bottles, when they were down to 1/2 full, he'd switch them out in order to maintain the desired flame. Now he uses a 20# refillable bottle w/gauge and it's much more user friendly....always a good thing.
 
JamesnTN said:
I've been using one of those tanks for grills for my bench source annealer. Today I went to fire it up to anneal brass and I have no pressure. The tank is half full but no pressure. Is there a fix or do I just swap it out?

I don't have any sort of pressure Guage on it or regulator but never had a problem until now.[

I suspect the lines are blocked with an oil like substance.
Close the main valve, take it loose at the main valve, open both valves on the burners and hold it up so it can drain the oil out over night.

DJ

DJ's Brass Service
205-461-4680
Click to expand...
 
I don't know exactly how your annealer is set up, but here's what happened to my BBQ grill not long ago. I had a half full 20# tank and, like you, it produced only enough gas for a low flame. I even bought and installed a new regulator; no joy.

I found out that there is a safety device built into the tank OPD. My grill burners were off, as usual, before I opened the valve on the tank, as usual. But I didn't realize that the side burner was on when I opened the tank valve. The safety device detects that situation and won't allow full flow. The answer was to turn off ALL the valves before opening the tank valve. The OPD then detects a pressure build up downstream of the tank valve and allows full flow once you open a burner valve. Without that pressure build up, you may not get full flow.

So, be sure your annealing machine valve is off and that you have no leaks. Then open the tank valve, and finally the annealing machine valve and light the flame. See if that doesn't give you full flow.

I've been using propane for many years, but I never realized that the new OPD valves had such a provision.
 
If you are using a propane torch with the bottle fitting it, it has a built in regulator. The torch I use has the bottle end removed and replaced with a barbed hose fitting. I have a propane regulator at the tank and set the flame for the correct temp.

john
Mims, Fl
 
You can't have your old tank, the feds have decided that we aren't smart enough to use them. So they are saving us from ourselves.
 
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