Oxygen Transportation

[funksizzle]

How do you transport your oxygen tanks safely? Do you have some sort of safety feature hooked up to your ride to prevent rolling, chains/blankets or in case of accident? Any input appreciated, besides taking short safe driving course provided by your insurance company?

[cc_bob]

The high pressure tanks are quite safe as long as the cap is on. When I haul mine I ratchet strap them together so they are not clanging around. In a wreck I would be more worried about it smashing you than blowing up.

[ReLo442]

I lay mine down in the bed of the truck and strap them to the siderails. I always face them valve to the front and push them all the way to the front of teh bed. that way if I have to hit the brakes they arent sliding.

[drew1492]

I just fold down one of my seats on the the smaller side and slide it through the back of my car and it doesnt roll to much. But i dont haul tanks anymore

[l33t:weasel]

i usually throw a spare tire in between mine to keep them from banging around.
if im feeling lazy i let them bang around.. sometime they hit hard enough around corners to put my truck sideways just a tiny bit.

don't be like me.. but you don't gotta get all crazy with the safety either.
ratchet strap or cinch strap to the side-rail is wise.

and like bob said -in an accident they are more likely to crush you than to explode. so getting rear ended or driving straight into something is what you really want to avoid.

[rockstar glassworks]

I live about 5 minutes from my oxygen supplier. When I'm between liquids I slide in the back of my volvo wagon and use rubber tire blocks to wedge them in.

[BrassMonkey]

the DOT is all over I95 pulling trucks, mine rides shotgun with a sheet over it. lol

Transportation

*

Cylinder caps--metal housings over the valve--must be in place during transportation. Cylinders must be stored securely in an upright position when transported. Place high pressure gas cylinders so any discharge from the pressure relief valve system is into open air. Relief valves on tanks containing flammable materials must ventilate upward. The tank's service pressure, manufacturer and serial number must be stamped on the cylinder. The chemical analysis of the materials in the tank along with code numbers is required for tanks containing any materials. Records of the requalification are also required for tanks that have undergone that process.

[innervision]

I load them in the bed of the truck. I used to rope the down, but then I took 15 min and designed a 2x12 piece of pine. So I can put down 2x T size tanks, take this board and wedge it between the wheel wells.Quick, easy so you can get back to glass blowing.

[B.C. Creations]

always get mine delivered. then theres no fucking around with strapn tanks down or anything like that.

[Greymatter Glass]

I put mine in the back loose, and let 'em roll... seriously. Sometimes I strap them together to minimize rolling... but otherwise they're free to roam. Free Range tanks, I guess. I don't move high pressure cylinders that often tho.

most of the oxygen we use is moved like this:

http://a8.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/19456_581488091157_11608675_33566335_1081692_n.jpg

[Forche]

I moved to liquid years ago and move it like doug ^ but with no forklift :bummed: just muscle it up there now. However when I first started I had a couple tanks i threw in the back of my truck and let em roll for the first 6 months... then I noticed I was fuckin up my wheel wells so I started strapin em in.

[B-Rye-oNeR]

Nice Taco,( I got the Blk one.) Yeah you cant put liquid on it's side or it will vent out, but k tanks are pretty forgiving. I always strap them down tho, more for the crushing factor, or possibly breaking a window. When I had a car I used to throw them in the back, or front seat. It will fuck your car up real quick tho.

[B-Rye-oNeR]

Yeah when a k tanks slides from the tailgate to the cab of your truck its is loud and scary. Gotta make sure you strap em so the cant roll, or it will come undone.

[Emmett's Glass]

I own 5 k tanks, the back of my truck holds 4. I have a few pieces of wood that fit in the holes that stop them from moving a lot.
E

[funksizzle]

Cool beans, thanks for all the tips. If an impact occured, you be more worried about getting hit by tanks, interesting, puts my mind at ease a little more.

[$Y$TM]

I moved to liquid years ago and move it like doug ^ but with no forklift :bummed: just muscle it up there now.

How much do those things weigh? Sounds like a hernia waiting to happen...

[Greymatter Glass]

180L full is about 800# give or take (180L of liquid = 452.8 lbs). Tank is 350 empty. Look for a "TARE" weight on the tanks tags.

[derekg0]

Ok, so i found these things, and even the guys at the oxy place never heard of them... So i'm assuming not many folks have found em, my 280CF tank fits perfect in the curved side, then they have square sides to hold things in place too if you are moving stuff.

I think they are worth it for sure, so much easier then ratchet straps, and i've hauled around some corners with these things and the tanks don't move. They have a rubber strip that sticks them in place and they fit into standard bed liner grooves.


I think i bought them from this place, i got 2 sets, to make sure the length of the tank is supported
http://www.truckoutfittersplus.com/store/bed_bug.htm

peace,
D

Edit: ok, looks like most places are saying discontinued or out of stock... got an email into the manufacturer to see what's up... I was going to be buying another set soon, so I'm kinda bummed now.

[l33t:weasel]

count your blessings .. firewood and tires will always be around.

[Simeon]

just build a teleporter.

[BLOB]

High pressures should be hauled upright and strapped to a headache rack in a truck.
I won't haul a liquid either. For one thing, there too heavy for me. I also don't like the idea of a cryogenic bomb strapped to my car. I'd rather pay the few hundo a year for delivery.

[l33t:weasel]

^that is all fine and good until your delivery driver accidentally drops one off the back of the truck right outside your shop door. - like central welding did at my friends shop. it didn't blow, but everyone said they about shit themselves.

if you get gas from those guys it might be safer to haul yourself :)

[Greymatter Glass]

It's not a cryogenic bomb. What on Earth would make you think that? In terms of explosive decompression it's _MUCH_ safer than a high pressure cylinder.

Oxygen is not flammable, so no problem there.

I think about it all the time while I am driving... the worst thing that's likely to happen is the tank would come loose, fall off the truck, and rupture. Then is would just vent all it's liquid into the street ... something you'd want to stand back from, sure... 30 feet or so would be more than enough....

but explosive? You high ninja.


Also, yeah it's heavy ... hence the forklift. We use a tank about ever 8-10 days, sometimes less... delivery is like $40 + the wait... we can run out of oxygen and have it full an hour later.

[BLOB]

Hey Weas,
I've heard about your Central issues. Lucky for me I have not had any issues with them. (Yet) Almost ten years with them.
Ok maybe not a bomb. Still sketchy in my book. I had one catch fire once. It didn't blow up but what a fire show! You can see pics on GP.Org/bradandsara.

[Forche]

^^thats scary...I've heard rumors about a dewar blowing up when it fell off a truck. They say it broke open and reacted with the sparks from the rollin metal. Probably justa rumor tho...

[l33t:weasel]

blob: yeah, i dealt with those guys for the better part of a decade. they always hated me after i started going their heads to the owners son whenever they screwed up my account.

Forche: i hear asphalt (or any other high hydrocarbon paving) is the main problem in that scenario, the lox dissolves the (oil) in the the asphalt. then u have a pool of liquid oxy-oil. which we all know is no good.

i had seen pics from this accident before but never read the report.
http://www.elcosh.org/en/document/607/d000585/liquid-oxygen-cylinder-explosion.html

what went wrong?
1) the pressure release had been defeated.
2) the tank didn't have a functional vacuum.

[Julian]

Certainly a collision involving a vehicle transporting a liquid tank has the potential to be extremely dangerous. While it's not explosive or flammable, oxygen is, obviously, an extremely potent combustion accelerant. Combining liquid oxygen with a mixture of hot metal, gasoline, oil, pavement, kinetic energy and people doesn't sound very safe.

[Forche]

HOLY SHIT weasel maybe not a rumor..

[Bugzy1972]

I have 2 K tanks that i load up in the back seat of my chrysler 300, they fit in there perfect. The guys at the welding shop give me a hard time but it saves me $20 on delivery

[menty666]

I strap mine to the tie downs in the back of my SUV to keep them partially in place.

I worry more carrying the 20# LP tank back from Home Depot than I do the K tanks, though I still tend not to allow passengers when I do it.

My supplier just made me sign a waiver when I got the account saying I acknowledge it's not a good idea but I'm going to do it anyway.

[l33t:weasel]

i had a 20# propane tank blow off in the back of my truck one time. it was a hot day and i handled it kinda rough. don't remember if it stayed upright or not.

after i decided it wasn't going to stop anytime soon i went into the cloud to shut it off. which was easily accomplished by turning the valve into the "off" position.

i still don't understand exactly what happened. but yeah be gentle with full propane tanks when its hot out.

in the end there was a pool of about 2 gallons of chilled liquid in the low spot in the bed of my truck and the tank was still more than half full.

[sleepingpeople]

i haul ONE K tank at a time in my 2 door 99 honda civic. it barely fits and my backseat doesnt fold up right anymore, and my trunk is dented. i need a new car lol

[l33t:weasel]

i can get 3 and a passenger in my 97 accord. srsly

[Greymatter Glass]

Jury-rigging fill connections, the first attempt to fill the cylinder resulted in rapid venting through the Pressure Relief Device (PRD)The PRDs were removed and plugged


It didn't fall off the truck, they MADE it into a pressure bomb. The explosive depressurization caused it to explode. A secondary fire started after that, fed by the oxygen.

People. Liquid oxygen is safe, as long as it's in the tank, and the tank is functional. if it actually falls off the truck... yeah... get as far away as possible.