pnut Posted November 1, 2020 Share Posted November 1, 2020 I'm about to go buy a propane tank that will be used outside and it gets a little cold in the winter here. Not usually below zero but below freezing for a few months. I know a little grill tank isn't suitable but would there be much of a difference between a thirty and forty pound tank regarding slush and freeze up? I'll be using a two burner forge for basic hobby blacksmithing and occasional forge welding. I usually run my solid fuel forge for a couple hours at a time if that's pertinent to answering my question. Thanks Pnut Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Irondragon Forge ClayWorks Posted November 1, 2020 Share Posted November 1, 2020 I would definitely go with the 40 pound tank for a single tank install. If I remember a 30 pound tank holds 8 gallons of propane, while a 40 pound holds almost 10 gallons. The 40 pound has more expansion room so it freezes up less but is still portable. The other option would be 2 30 pounders connected with a manifold. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted November 1, 2020 Share Posted November 1, 2020 The larger the tank the longer it takes to start to freeze up. I have a 100 lb. in my shop and can slush it up when weather's like it is today, 5f. The 100 gal. tank feeding the house doesn't have any trouble at -30f. We heat with oil but cook with propane, not nearly the same draw but you don't see many folks running propane heat on 100lb. tanks. Frosty The Lucky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pnut Posted November 2, 2020 Author Share Posted November 2, 2020 Thanks. After pricing them there's no reason not to spend twenty more dollars for a forty pound tank versus a thirty pounder. It usually doesn't get below twenty degrees Fahrenheit here. So now I just have to get to TSC and pick it up. I'm off Wednesday so I'll do it then I suppose. Pnut Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Glenn Posted November 2, 2020 Share Posted November 2, 2020 The 40 pound tank is 1-1/3 larger than the 30 pound tank so you are forging 1/3 times longer. Your travel at the $0.50 a mile, your time, etc etc. does not take long to add up. What is the TOTAL cost of making that trip to town? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pnut Posted November 2, 2020 Author Share Posted November 2, 2020 TSC is five minutes away. I'm more concerned with freeze up. I went and looked at their tanks today. Forty pound tank filled costs $121USD. I'll definitely be going with that one versus the thirty pound tank. It's only ten dollars more for the forty pound tank empty than the thirty so it doesn't make sense to not spend the extra ten bucks for the larger. They have a hundred pound tank too but I don't think the landlord would go for it. I haven't mentioned it to her yet. Pnut Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted November 2, 2020 Share Posted November 2, 2020 That price looks like a refill on a 40 gallon tank; not a 40 pound tank. Typo? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Glenn Posted November 2, 2020 Share Posted November 2, 2020 TSC website lists their propane tanks in pounds. 40 lb. propane tank holds 9.2 gallons of propane. They list 20, 40 pounds (9.2 gallons), and 100 pounds (25 gallons) tanks. Propane is sold by the gallon, $3.09 TSC only charges for the fuel we put in your tank. Get as much (or as little) as you need. No hidden fees. No minimum amount. No flat fee. No purge fee. Refilling your propane tank is a better value than an exchange. You keep your tank, we fill to the maximum legal limit and we only charge for the number of gallons we fill. Exchange tanks are not filled to the maximum legal limit, 20 lb. tanks often contain only 15 lb. of fuel. With exchange, you lose any fuel left in the tank Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted November 2, 2020 Share Posted November 2, 2020 Which would NOT be US$121 to fill! Or perhaps he meant buying a new tank already filled? About right for a filled 40# tank. I guess I didn't consider " Forty pound tank filled" to be the same as a "filled forty pound tank"...my bad. My main shop tank is a 100# tank which is the largest I can manage without too much effort these days. I also have a stack of BBQ sized tanks for travel. They fit in plastic milk crates nicely. Early fall is supposed to be a dip in propane pricing; but with the price of gasoline now I would hope propane would be down as well; I haven't bought any lately though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ac160 Posted November 2, 2020 Share Posted November 2, 2020 21 minutes ago, ThomasPowers said: Early fall is supposed to be a dip in propane pricing; but with the price of gasoline now I would hope propane would be down as well; I haven't bought any lately though. I can't comment size of the propane tank, but the latest propane price for me was $1.25/gal delivered. I have 500 gal tank for the furnace in my house. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted November 2, 2020 Share Posted November 2, 2020 Our house has a propane tank too; but it only runs the kitchen stove. My wife went to a larger tank and deliveries as she can't manage the 100# tank we started with and it seems she always ran out when I was 200 miles away working in Mexico. (She gave me the 100# tank for my forge, with propane in it so we're both happy!) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Irondragon Forge ClayWorks Posted November 2, 2020 Share Posted November 2, 2020 As of yesterday, it was $1.49 a gallon here, just went up from $1.29. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pnut Posted December 10, 2020 Author Share Posted December 10, 2020 What a difference a month and a half makes. I paid over three bucks a gallon yesterday at TSC. Pnut Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mikey98118 Posted December 10, 2020 Share Posted December 10, 2020 "Freezing up" is a matter of tank size, and amount of fluid in the tank. But, only because the amount of fluid that contacts the tank walls decreases as the amount of fluid decreases. Slushy fluid can be further warned in metal gas lines within your shop, and less so in the hoses. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pnut Posted December 10, 2020 Author Share Posted December 10, 2020 On 11/2/2020 at 2:36 PM, ThomasPowers said: Which would NOT be US$121 to fill! Or perhaps he meant buying a new tank already filled? About right for a filled 40# tank. I guess I didn't consider " Forty pound tank filled" to be the same as a "filled forty pound tank"...my bad. Yeah, I meant for a new cylinder plus the cost of filling it. According to the receipt the 40Lb cylinder was $89.99 plus $28.43 to fill it at $3.09 per gallon. Pnut Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Welshj Posted December 10, 2020 Share Posted December 10, 2020 It cost me $50 us to have my 100lb tank filled. I put it in the truck, and drive to the propane place near my home. Ive never tried tsc or a store yet. Today, I froze up my 100lber for the first time ever. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted December 10, 2020 Share Posted December 10, 2020 Call around and ask prices and go to the cheapest one! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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