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I Forge Iron

Acetylene Heating Tip


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I'm new to using a oxy fuel . I bought a  MIller Smith medium duty kit with a 120lb oxy and 80lb Ace tank. based on the 1/7 rule I'm good cutting with smith tips for up to 5" which is more than I'll prob ever need. But I'd really like to use the heating attachments which according to Smith even the smallest draws 28 SCFH meaning i'd need 200lb ace tank to use even the smallest tip - anything bigger and you're manifolding tanks which is expensive and a bit more than i bargained for.  

question - what happens if were to draw gas at more than the recommended rate - is it dangerous? 

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It can draw the acetone out of the tank instead of the acetylene. If you are going to do much heating you will be better off switching to propane for your fuel. It is much cheaper and does not have any limit to how much you can use. A 20# propane tank is pretty inexpensive and can be traded for a full tank most anywhere. You will have to get a propane regulator and a propane heating tip but the cost savings of using propane will pay for those in short order if you use it much.

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What happens?  You'll start seeing the flame have white streaks in it.  The acetone then gets in the regulator, hose and torch.  That stuff turns into a black gunk and clogs things up causing backfires and flame outs.  It will also ruin the equipment.  I've had full #4 tanks that have thrown acetone on a small heating tip, those tanks are borderline to small.  It's good to see someone paying attention to the 1/7 rule.  That rules slides, if you have a 100cf cylinder you can only use 1/7 of it per hour.  If you've used half of the tank and now have 50 cf in it, you can only use 1/7 of the current content.

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  • 5 months later...
22 hours ago, ThomasPowers said:

Regulators marked for all fuel gasses work with both propane and acetylene.  Ones just marked acetylene may not.  (internal seals may not take it)

Pretty sure you have that backwards. 

Propane regulators can be destroyed by ace but not vice-versa. This is what my has found, but I am open to proof otherwise. 

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Just what I was taught way back in the semi-dark ages.  The not using a propane regulator for acetylene seems to be more about pressures than seals and acetone.  Acetylene is nasty stuff being able to "exothermically disassociate" even without the presence of Oxygen.  Propane is just a fuel gas...

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