Safety with Hothead and bulk!!!...scary rant

[Rockpooljewels]

Ooops, I feel like I have opened a can of worms here...still better to discuss the relevant points, then people can make their own decisions based on knowledge rather than assumptions!

This guy in the article obviously will not be converted on the old Hothead/Bulk theory, but I am totally happy that if so many lampworkers use this system safely, then I can too.

Still it's worth this being out there for newbies to read, because assuming something is safe doesn't mean it is, and the more we can learn regarding correct operating pressures, safety features, good storage etc the less chance of accidents!

So wishing you all continued happy and safe torching

Mandyx

[Steampunkglass]

I notice someone commented on his thread, pointing out that after this technology being around for 13 years no reports (touch wood!) of anyone blowing themselves up in the US.
Far better to remind people not to run with scissors.

[Rockpooljewels]

 

Good tip

[Redhotsal]

This is quite a well known piece from Mike Aurelius. There's a couple of things you have to bear in mind when reading that article:

First - Mike's business is safety - he sells his own safety specs and so on. He's going to be safety minded.

Second - Mike lives in the US - there are different "Codes" and standards in the States which aren't necessarily the same here. For example - their propane regulations are different to ours. To take what someone is saying in the US and apply it to the UK isn't necessarily going to work. Lampworking has been historically more popular in the US than here so we have inherited a lot of US style lampworking rules, tools and lore over here. An obvious example is that  propane fittings are all clockwise in the States whereas over here they are anticlockwise - so we always have the ridiculous situation where your torch (which is American) starts off with right hands threads at the hot end and ends up with left hand threads at the gas end. Confuses the heck out of most beginners.

Third - I think the point he's making is that having a large propane bottle in your house is not the safest option. But he doesn't exactly say that in his article. This is true of course - but then, why pick on the hothead - if you have a dual gas surface mix torch in the house with your propane in the house it's just as unsafe. Maybe even more unsafe.

Fourth - As Mary says - we don't know what "bulk propane" means to Mike. He is PROBABLY referring to running the hohead straight off a propane tank - no regulator and no flashback arrestor. If that is the case I would agree. It seems to me that it is just as safe running a hothead via a flashback arrestor and 0-4 bar regulator as it is running any other torch.

Common sense: you are going to be safer in your beadmaking environment where everything is nicely set up and doesn't get bashed/knocked about than the guy who is fixing your flat roof running a bitumen torch off a 20Kg propane cylinder which is perched perilously on the roof guttering.

What IS unsafe is to not bother checking anything. If you change your propane cylinder - check for leaks. Do it every time you change something. Dont' rely on your nose. Use a gas leak detector and spread it liberally round all the fittings to see visually if you have leaks.

Do a visual check on all your hoses - hothead or dual gas torch. After a while the plasticiser in the hoses will degrade and the hoses will start to go brittle. If you see little cracks in the hosing CHANGE the hosing. If there is any kind of damage to the hose - a chaffed or cracked area, CHANGE the hosing.

[turquoise]

I keep my gas bottle inside too and have had no problems.

[sea-thistle]

Good sound advice Sally!! 

[lemon kitten]

Yep Sal good sound advice.  I use my set up in my spare room upstairs in my house.  The guy would have a FIT if he saw my set up!  Having said that I DO check everything on a regular basis.  He's just being a bit of a knob!

Janey x

[Rockpooljewels]

rofl@janey........too funny

[Mary]

The unusual danger with Propane is that it's heavy, it pools rather than dissipates. That's what makes it iffy indoors, it can seep under your floorboards and sit there without you noticing. Just bear that in mind when deciding where to site your cylinder.

[amewat]

so wats the difference between bulk an propane? i thought u got a propane cannistter to go bulk lol arghh

[Redhotsal]

The difference is just size. You can get Mapp gas in 1lb bottles which are about 12 inches long and about 4 inches diameter. You can also get this size in propane but it is not used with the hothead.

"Bulk" refers to a bottle or canister of propane which is much bigger than the 1lb bottles. Ideally you want Mapp in a big quantity but you can't get Mapp in anything bigger than 1lb cans in this country so the next best thing is propane. Propane works better with the hothead when it is used as a large bottle than when it is in 1lb cannister form.

Bulk propane (and this is a term used only in bead making - if you go and ask for a "bulk" bottle of propane you'll get funny looks) - comes in many bottle sizes. 3.9kg is the smallest, 6kg is usual and you can go up to 20 kg. I prefer to use 6kg as they are easy to transport and incidentally the same price as the little 3.9kg. You can get these from all manner of places - B+Q, Morrisons petrol station, tool hire places, calar gas centres, Texaco. garden centres - anywhere where you see that little cage of blue and orange bottles.

Propane is sold in orange bottles. Butane is sold in blue bottles. Avoid the butane as it won't burn right for your hothead.

Choose a cylinder where the gas outlet comes out at the side. If you go for one where the outlet comes straight up vertically you won't be able to get your regulator to fit on the bottle properly.

Hope this helps - if you are in any more doubt you may want to check out my new DVD which tells you all about it.
www.redhotsal.co.uk (Outrageous plug!) 

[turnedlight]

Sal, the place where I normally get my propane refills told me I couldn't go bigger than the 6kg because of differing screw sizes of the outlet where you screw in the regulator. I thought it sounded like nonsense.. is it? The place is a garden centre, nearest I can find. Maybe they were on about the ones where the outlet is straight up..

[Lush!]

Hope this helps - if you are in any more doubt you may want to check out my new DVD which tells you all about it.
www.redhotsal.co.uk (Outrageous plug!) 

Love the new sign off, Sal!   

Kathryn, I usually have 2 bottles, a 6kg and an 11kg - both have exactly the same screw thread thingy.

[Les]

Sal, the place where I normally get my propane refills told me I couldn't go bigger than the 6kg because of differing screw sizes of the outlet where you screw in the regulator. I thought it sounded like nonsense.. is it? The place is a garden centre, nearest I can find. Maybe they were on about the ones where the outlet is straight up..

I've always used 13KG bottles... bog standard bottles with the outlet to the side, and had no problems with my regulator fitting Kathryn

[sea-thistle]

I've got the same as you Les! 13kg bottle got it from a garden centre /builders merchants a local family business