Where is the best place to keep gas?

[Esmé]

Hello everyone,

I'm not sure if this is the right place to ask this.  I am new to lampworking.  Well, new is an understatement, I haven't even got my kit yet!  Haha.  I'm hoping that Santa will bring me one of Tuffnells starter kits.  I'm hoping to use bulk propane and am wondering where is the best place to keep it.  I'm lucky enough to have a utility room which I'll be refitting as a studio but I understand its not best to keep the gas in the same room?  Would I be ok to store the gas outside and run the pipe in through an open window?  Or is it best to store the gas inside (say in the hallway?) and run the pipe out through the door?

I hope I'm making myself understood.  I'm itching to start but have a million questions buzzing through my head.

[helenfc]

Hi Esme, I know a few people keep their propane inside, but mine is outside and I have a quick release connector from Tuffnells which means I just chuck the pipe from my torch out the window and connect it to the pipe from the propane bottle at the start of each session, and once i have 'bled' the pipe from propane at the end of the session i pull it back in. I keep the propane tank under an upturned bin due to rain and snow, and so it doesnt get nicked 
I just dont like the idea of having the propane tank in the house, but each to their own, im maybe a bit over cautious. If you search 'propane' or 'bulk fuel' in the search box from the frit happens home page you will get much discussion, debate and ideas on the subject!!
Hope that helps
Helen xx

[hollergrafik]

I keep mine outside, its under the barbeque so out of direct weather. If you driil it through the wall drill the hole high and run the hose upwards, that way any rain will drip off the hose and not run down to the wall and stopping any damp issues

[Billie]

Better out than in, as my husband would say  

[MangoBeads]

Out with a quick release sounds perfect for you .....

[Fruddy]

Better out than in, as my husband would say  

;

I have my set up in our brick outhouse, but it is totally separate from the house and completely self contained.   I would be wary about having it in the house, but some people do it happily.  I think it all depends on how worried you are about a fire breaking out.  

[Hazer]

Out with a quick release sounds perfect for you .....

I can't decide whether you're replying to the original poster, or Billie's husband with this comment....

[MangoBeads]

Out with a quick release sounds perfect for you .....

I can't decide whether you're replying to the original poster, or Billie's husband with this comment....

 

[cbeadies]

I keep the propane canister outside and use the quick release from Tuffnells too.  I work in part of my garage, which is built on to the side of the house as part of an extension. I'm not sure if there are any insurance issues regarding keeping the propane in the house?

[Fruddy]

I keep the propane canister outside and use the quick release from Tuffnells too.  I work in part of my garage, which is built on to the side of the house as part of an extension. I'm not sure if there are any insurance issues regarding keeping the propane in the house?

Quite possibly, but you would more than likely only realise this if there was a fire in your house and a bottle of propane blew the roof off! If the insurers found out that you were keeping propane, they might use it as an exclusion clause not to indemnify.

[ScarletLeonard]

I do know that the council will happily let you store any propane bottle under 24kg in any part of the house and you are covered under their insurance.

I do keep mine inside. Make sure you have ventilation at floor level if you do keep inside as propane sinks and will happily sit on a floor and fill a room like water without drainage. Check your pipes and connections regularly and if you are unsure about any of it have your gas supplier check/connect everything.
The bottles are surprisingly resilient to fire and if the worst does happen you just have to tell the nice firemen that you have a large bottle of propane in there.

My view was that the gas is more likely to be pinched than I would try and burn down the house. No room here to have a secure cage and since the coal goes walkies the gas would too.

[Billie]

Depending on your torch, you could also consider switching to butane...  That's allowed indoors without any insurance issues, isn't it  (I know when Ray Skene set up his studio, under the terms of the lease he wasn't allowed to store propane on the premises over night, but was allowed to store butane).  I use butane with my torch, rather than propane and it is stored inside.  Additionally, being out in the country, we run our hob from butane like everyone else in the village, so a canister also sits in a cuboard in the kitchen. 

[Pat from Canvey]

There are propane gas heaters for homes that have tanks inside, see
http://homegasheater.com/product/26622444-HEATER-Gas_heater-mobile_gas_heater-home_gas_heater.html
I keep my propane indoors, have done for the last 4 years. To me there is no more risk than having a gas heater inside the home which lots of people seem to do. In my experience there is more risk in having an electrical appliance in the home yet we all have TV's etc. My next door neighbour had a fire when a TV set on standby malfunctioned while she wasn't at home. I've also been in 2 fires, neither of which was caused by me or propane so I have experience of fire. Weigh up the odds and then make an informed decision.

[Kalorlo]

I'd say best would be outside and have quick releases on the hose running through the window (or wall if you'd prefer a hole).

I've got mine inside but only because I don't have an option.

[stuwaudby]

Check out the FAQ here: http://www.frit-happens.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=20013.0

Propane should only be used inside a house temporarily. In the event of a fire it poses a huge risk, you would be very foolish to store a bottle in the house where your family sleeps.

I store my bottle outside, the flexible pipe goes through a hole drilled in the wall and the bottle and regulator are protected from rain by a BBQ cover. The bottle is turned off at the bottle tap when I have finished a session. There is very little benifit from venting down your pipes after a session.

Think about drilling thorugh your wall or windows frame to leave the pipe permamently connected.