Question about my C25 shielding gas tank

[dcbridgwater]

Hello all,

I just bought my first welder, a Hobart Handler 140. I have little experiance with welding and I was wondering if the tank containing my C25 Sheilding gas mix has to be used with the tank in the vertical position or can the tank be used laying on its side? The reason I ask is that I have a heavy duty metal cart I would like to use as a welding table and the tank is too tall to fit standing up so I was wondering if it is OK to lay it on the side on the bottom shelf if it is anchored well and the valve and regulator are protected.

Thanks in advance, I am sure I will have more questions to ask as I teach my self to weld.

Dale

[SundownIII]

dc,

C25, being a gas, can be used in a horizontal position.

Storing in a vertical position is generally preferred since it's easier to protect the valve and flowmeter from damage.

Depending on the type flowmeter you use (dual gauge or floating ball) will determine if it's viable for your situation. The floating ball type needs to be as near vertical as possible, even if the tank is laid on it's side.

[Roger]

Their is no liquid in your gas cylinder to limit cylinder orientation.

Gases that change to liquid inside gas cylinders at storage pressure have specified cylinder orientation. CO2 and Propane are gases that do this and are used for welding. Max cylinder pressure of gas inside your cylinder is high enough to have 100% CO2 inside as a liquid but CO2 partial pressure is only 25% of that pressure so CO2 isn't liquid at max cylinder pressure unless it is really cold.

Acetylene cylinders must be used in vertical position because Acetylene is stored dissolved in acetone when at pressures above 15 psi to prevent explosions.

Gas Cylinder side walls are a little thinner than bottom. Some what like aluminium coke can which has much greater difference.

[epjohnso]

As Roger says, Carbon Dioxide stored in a tank is in a liquid form, but because of the partial pressure of CO2, it will never be seen as a liquid. When it's pressure is reduced, coming from the tank it immediately becomes gas - or as "dry ice" the solid state. The caution about putting any 100% CO2 tank on it's side, is it may freeze the regulator. And of course, when using 100% CO2, you should use a regulator designed for use with 100% CO2, because it can freeze the regulator - even in the vertical position. Hobart mentions this in their documentation for Sheilding Gas:

DO NOT use Argon/Mixed gas regulator/flowmeter
with CO2 shielding gas. See Parts List for optional
CO2 gas regulator/flowmeter.

Regarding the Acetylene tank, if you use it on it's side, you would get the liquid Acetone out of the tank. If you transport or store the Acetylene tank on it's side, your suppose to stand the tank vertical, and wait 1 hour for the Acetone to settle before using. ( I've seen 15 minutes to 1 hour in the literature)

[SidecarFlip]

My greatest fear is that any bottle in a horizontal position is more likely to have the valve end damaged or knocked off....with disastrous results.

There is enough pressure in even a partially filled bottle to make it a guided missle...or unguided as the case may be.

[Ericlone]

Thanks for the info,that is really help.