Rhrocker Posted February 26, 2011 Share Posted February 26, 2011 Perhaps of greater concern to a lot of us "non-commercial smiths": If something happens and your homeowners insurance company can determine that you were not following code they can and will disallow any payment on the incident! Car transportation, I have seen heard and smelled BBQ sized propane tanks venting in a closed car one summer in a supermarket parking lot. It's easy to make it much safer though: simply remove the battery and alternator from the car before placing the tank inside. Cars tend to have a lot of make and break electrical contacts, not a good thing around possibly explosive gas-air mixtures. Thomas, that's a question I was intending ask this guy also. Again, this is based on Texas law, but maybe there's someone on the forums that may be interested enough in their own state to check out their regs also. I don't know about your question, it's more for the insurance companies than the Railroad commission I think, but I will say this, that if there's a way for an insurance company to get out of paying a claim, you can bet that they'll use it generally. This question though is really one that each smith needs to be checking on themselves, in their town, State, and their own set-up. However I'll sure try and see if my guy will commit to some generalities about it. Off all the gas explosions I ever recall seeing on the news on TV, seemed to all revolve around natural gas. Occationally they'll show a mobile home with the roof gone, and the four sides laying out in the lawn like they were hinged to the floor, and those are sometimes LP, but I have no facts to back anything up with. Robert Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mikey98118 Posted March 3, 2011 Share Posted March 3, 2011 Corin, welcome to IFI, and thanks for the great information! One question regarding higher temps. You mentioned "high gas pressures". How high is high? I usually run around 8 psi for normal forging, and don't feel I get enough heat for effective welding, but have been reluctant to crank up the pressure too high. My forge is very similiar to yours, single burner, shell made from 20# tank, 2 inches of dura-blanket plus reflective coating (ITC100). Also, on a different note, there has been a lot of interest in ribbon burners as of late. Can you comment on any experience you have had with those? Very interesting thread!! Running "high" gas pressure doesn't always mean using lots of fuel. If you feel that your burner isn't doing a good job with the gas pressure you're using, a smaller gas orifice diameter can allow you to provide a stronger gas stream from higher pressures (to draw in more air)with the same amount of total fuel use. I believe Corin covered that with his comments on drilling small gas jet holes, and increasing their size untill you find one that works best in your burner. Most of my larger burner designs (3/4" and up)just start running well at 8 PSI. Michael Porter Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rhrocker Posted March 5, 2011 Share Posted March 5, 2011 Still waiting for my Railroad Commission Inspector to get back with me. Just wanted you guys to know that my inquiry is still on the front burner (so to speak). I'll jog his memory a bit this coming week. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rhrocker Posted March 10, 2011 Share Posted March 10, 2011 Still waiting for my Railroad Commission Inspector to get back with me. Just wanted you guys to know that my inquiry is still on the front burner (so to speak). I'll jog his memory a bit this coming week. I talked briefly with my RR agent and learned that: It is illegal to use propane from a bottle located inside a business or home. I guess a smithy or shed is subject to interpretation. The bottle(s) must be outside, and come through the wall then to the device (forge). This is all he could tell me for now. I told him I was interested the the actual code and code book so that I may have a copy. I asked about storing inside, and that's apparently not an issue for the smaller bottles. The big tanks thought, that's another thing. May need to have the blow-off valve vented to the outside, he's checking on that. I asked about fines. I he were to walk into a business like mine where there's a small forge that I'm using to make a living or other, what would the fine be. He'll get back to me on that also, but indicated that it could be pretty still. I'm still way away from learning what I wanted to know about this, and will stay on it until I get answers. I just don't want to be blind-sided by a govt. agency and fined whatever amount for having a bottle of propane sittin;g in my shop. He mentioned again that it's not so much getting "caught", as it is being out of code should a accident happen involving LPG because of a tank inside the building. This still leaves a grey area, but maybe we're learning something anyway. I'll keep reporting as I learn anything, and please remember, this is Texas law, so your milage blah blah blah. I'd encourage any of you to check with your RR Commission LPG agent and get the rules and regs for your area. Roabert Hensarling Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jack Evers Posted March 10, 2011 Share Posted March 10, 2011 Just in case some are wondering what in blazes the Railroad Commission has to do with propane, early problems in Texas with hydrocarbon fuels often involved transportation of such and in 1917, the fuels area was given to the RR commission. In 1930 or so the East Texas Oil Field was discovered and a small agency became quite powerful. Today the Feds control RRs but the commission has never changed it's name. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Corin Posted March 11, 2011 Author Share Posted March 11, 2011 Just in case some are wondering what in blazes the Railroad Commission has to do with propane, early problems in Texas with hydrocarbon fuels often involved transportation of such and in 1917, the fuels area was given to the RR commission. In 1930 or so the East Texas Oil Field was discovered and a small agency became quite powerful. Today the Feds control RRs but the commission has never changed it's name. Thanks Jack I was wondering! :blink: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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