careful about what you pack in your trunk!

[Jim Shooz]

An oldtimer I worked with used to describe how for lunchtime entertainment they would fill a balloon with acetylene, wrap the balloon in several sheets of newspaper, light the paper and run like H*11. In those days you didn't get the full treatment from the cops and the bomb squad. The local cop would roll up on his bicycle, give you a boot up the a*se and go back and finish his lunch.

 

[ghenges]

Acetylene balloons, oh what fun, thought we youngsters. Never had the remotest thought of the danger.

In the 1950's we kids probably exploded thousands of them. Even filled inner-tubes on special occasions.
We graduated to acetylene and oxygen looking for a bigger bang than carbide in a milk can bombs.

The first time we learned the awesome power of a simple acetylene balloon was when we fitted 6 elongated balloons in the top of a 16 gallon grease barrel. Laid a piece of newspaper for a fuse on top, lit it and run.
Even though the top was open, the upper two thirds of the grease barrel tore into about 8 inch somewhat roughly round pieces of shrapnel.
The bottom one third section remained on the ground intact, looked like it had been cut off at the rolling ring with a saw.
Fortunately no one got sliced by the shrapnel, myself not liking the shock wave pounding my ear drums, hid behind a bulldozer. Here's a video of a mild explosion of this type.

Still set off a few balloons on the fourth of July for the grandchildren. Wrap them is a piece of newspaper and light it with a long stick.
The balloons look so innocuous that the first time the kids don't expect the bang to come. You'll hear a couple of "HOLY FAQ's" from the boys, the girls normally just run.

Often think of repeating that barrel explosion on a YouTube video to demonstrate the destructive power that these balloons actually possess.

 

[ghenges]

Somewhere I have pictures of a Chevy pickup with the cab peeled open like a can opener. Kids were inflation balloons with acetylene and then blowing them up with fireworks. One of them pulled a balloon out of the truck, it rubbed across the headliner, and created static. Big boom!

 

[Jim in ICT]

That's it!

 

[flyerdan]

...Often think of repeating that barrel explosion on a YouTube video to demonstrate...

Might want to be careful about what you post on Youtube, 'Chaz' Napolitano will likely put you on a terrorist watchlist and hit you with a felony IED charge.

 

[deereman75]

I remember seeing pictures of a toyota suv that had all the windows blown out, and the roof bent. I recall the guy leaving an acetylene tank in it over lunch, and when he unlocked the doors (power locks), the gas that had escaped from the leaking valve blew it to bits.

 

[CNC Dan]

I remember seeing pictures of a toyota suv that had all the windows blown out, and the roof bent. I recall the guy leaving an acetylene tank in it over lunch, and when he unlocked the doors (power locks), the gas that had escaped from the leaking valve blew it to bits.

As I recall, acetylene tanks have a fuseable plug in the valve that melts at a relatively low temperature. The heat inside a car parked in the sun might do it.

 

[IslandTractor]

I don't know how much is actually law, but OSHA has always said never transport flammable gas in a confined space.

Reasonable but hard to comply with if you don't have an open truck or trailer. Garages are also confined spaces. I transport my oxyfuel set up in an SUV, not much choice, and in the winter it is isn't pleasant to leave windows cracked.

Sounds to me like either a maintenance issue (valve leak) or failure to shut the tank off with the valve and just stopping flow with the torch. Dumb mistake if that was the case.

This happened in the next town over from me. Lucky no one was hurt.

 

[bigdeano]

I had an oxygen tank start hissing in the trunk of my car once after I hit a bump. The clowns who fill them sometimes don't shut them off tightly. Ever since that happened I take off the caps and turn them off tight and smell for any acetylene leak before I start home. It didn't take much imagination to figure what could have happened if the other tank had leaked instead.

 

[Travelover]

When I was a kid we filled a garbage bag with acetylene and oxygen and used two nails pushed through a Brillo pad into the end of a 100 foot extension cord to light it off. Big mistake. It was like a stick of dynamite.