[TheForge] old propane tanks

[Dan Brewer]

I have done this numerous times.  I cut the safety ring off the tank with a
4 1/2 inch grinder.  Then I clamp the tank to my vise with a chain.  I use a
14 inch pipe wrench to remove the valve.  The tank will have a residue of
parafin and metacarpi (sp) the oderent used in propane in the tank.  I then
tip the tank over in a pan for a few days out side to let any of the crud in
the tank drain out.   I fill the tank with a mixture of boiling water and
soap.  The soap cuts the residue in the tank.  When cold I drain the tank
and use a 4 1/2 inch grinder with a cutting blade on it to open the tank.
If you are careful it will only take one blade to do all of the cuts on the
tank for a forge.

Dan in Auburn

On Mon, Sep 26, 2011 at 11:00 AM, Mike Spencer <mspencer at tallships.ca>wrote:

>
> > I'm scared of things that can potentially go "BOOM" so I wouldn't trust
> > just washing it out with water.
>
> Same here.  After removing the valve and washing, I do as Ron said:
> fill with water nearly to the threads and then torch out the
> valve. Then I wash it again and let it stand (dry/empty) for a week.
> Then fill water and cut with an abrasive wheel or a sabre saw.
>
> > A friend of mine set an old acetylene tank in his band saw, turned
> > it on and left the shop. Nothing exploded so we don't know if this
> > was a safe procedure or luck...
>
> In my only slightly humble opinion, *nothing* to do with acetylene is
> a "safe procedure". Did you know that acetylene bubbled through a
> copper sulphate ("bluestone") solution will precipitate out tiny
> particles of copper acetylide, a compound that's highly explosive and
> very impact sensitive?  In the days of water/carbide acetylene
> generators, they sometimes made the tank from copper. Copper acetylide
> would accumulate in the seams. If the tank developed a leak, it would
> go to the tinsmith for repairs.  The tinsmith (if he didn't know about
> this) would try to hammer up the seams to tighten them and **BLAM!!**
> Seam turns into razor-edged moderny metal sculpture with unpredictable
> collateral effects on tinsmith.
>
> Similar can happen with some other metals.
>
> FWIW,
> - Mike
>
> --
> Michael Spencer                  Nova Scotia, Canada       .~.
>                                                           /V\
> mspencer at tallships.ca                                     /( )\
> http://home.tallships.ca/mspencer/                        ^^-^^
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