oxygen regulator

   / oxygen regulator #1  

yellowdogsvc

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When using my oxy/acetylene setup yesterday, my oxygen regulator started hissing. There is a small hole on the regulator where the O2 is coming from. The hole is supposed to be there but the bleed-off doesn't appear to be normal.
The brand is "fire...something" I don't use it very often and I was using the torch yesterday. Everything was working okay and then it started hissing from that hole on the O2 regulator. I tried adjusting the pressure and nothing helped.
Thanks for any info.
 
   / oxygen regulator #2  
Sounds dangerous to me, like perhaps a diaphram is leaking oxygen under pressure.
I suggest you get that checked by a shop qualified to do so.
Better safe than sorry.
 
   / oxygen regulator #3  
Sounds dangerous to me, like perhaps a diaphram is leaking oxygen under pressure.
I suggest you get that checked by a shop qualified to do so.
Better safe than sorry.

Agreed, leaking regulators can be bad.

I would get them both rebuilt or replaced at the same time.
 
   / oxygen regulator #5  
Yep. A micro piece of dirt got into your seat. makes the diaphram leak out of the safety hole in the bonnet. Or a worn diaphram. The bonnet will unscrew if you want to try to clean the seat and re assemble. Hardly anything in there. If it still leaks after you clean it, Junk it out. You can buy new regulators for less than what it costs to rebuild. If yours are not Victor 350 or 450 regs, No sense rebuilding them.
 
   / oxygen regulator #6  
Not trying to hijack this thread but I would like to know if anybody on our forum knows where to purchase repair kits for regulators? Not sure which direction I will take. Also does anybody know, and will share, where I can purchase cost effective regulators. Thank you very much! KK
 
   / oxygen regulator #7  
Be careful if you are considering rebuilding anything for use with pressurized oxygen. This is not something you want to make a mistake with; there is a whole complicated procedure for cleaning / certifying equipment for use with oxygen under pressure and you will not have the cleaning and analytical equipment required to do this. Any oil residue or hydrocarbon contamination can cause an explosion.

Caution: shops may say they can rebuild these and they may do it all the time but they may not be aware of proper way to clean it.

I received training on O2 cleaning from the US Air Force (Pensecola FL) and worked on re-engineering the process for Canada DND when freon was phased out.
I suggest that you just buy a replacement gauge rather than do it yourself. Just be aware of what you are getting into if you plan to service it yourself and stay safe!
 
   / oxygen regulator #8  
Most companies and manufacturers used to sell rebuild parts and it was fairly simple to replace the few parts involved. Now due to the Sue happy world we live in, No-one offers repair parts. You must pay new price to have a regulator repaired because they do not " repair " , They totally re-build to spare themselves from lawsuits. Just replace your regs and save the trouble.
 
   / oxygen regulator #9  
take it off the bottle, give it a couple of sharp cracks against something solid, put it back on.

the key is for it to pass a leakdown test... i'm guessing the hissing puts a damper on that. don't look at the guage when you open the valve on the bottle.

if it still leaks check for loose fittings including the hose and hose to gauge adapter fitting as well as the hose itself, try backing off the regulator pressure screw, otherwise replace.

regulators should always be stored with the pressure adjusting screw backed off.
 
   / oxygen regulator
  • Thread Starter
#10  
take it off the bottle, give it a couple of sharp cracks against something solid, put it back on.

the key is for it to pass a leakdown test... i'm guessing the hissing puts a damper on that. don't look at the guage when you open the valve on the bottle.

if it still leaks check for loose fittings including the hose and hose to gauge adapter fitting as well as the hose itself, try backing off the regulator pressure screw, otherwise replace.

regulators should always be stored with the pressure adjusting screw backed off.

the rubber diaphragm inside the regulator was misshapen. I am going to junk it and replace with a heavier duty regulator.

I appreciate the advice and comments.

I am just getting back into "trying to learn to weld". Have a Miller 225 Bobcat an 02 bottle and Acetylene and a lot of scrap to practice on. Thanks again.. I'll have more questions!
 
 
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