Does welding gas go bad?

   / Does welding gas go bad? #11  
Only time I heard of gas going bad was from the guy behind the counter trying to sell me some ,"new".
 
   / Does welding gas go bad? #12  
Just swapped out tanks on my c25 that was last filled in 2005. So 10 years on one 125cf of mixed and it went bad when the tank pressure was too low to keep up with the flow meter. :) There was about 3 years where my feeder was broken I didn't use or move the welder at all. Never affected anything when I brought it back in service.

They don't come out of solution. Someone's trying to get another fill out of you.

My O/A tanks haven't been filled since 2007. I only use the rosebud for getting bolts unstuck these days, and that's few and far between anymore.
 
   / Does welding gas go bad? #13  
Acetylene is not a blend of gasses. It is a pure compound that polymerizes under high pressure and forms an explosive material that is sensitive to shock. To make it safe in bottles the bottles contain calcium carbonate as a porous filler and acetone (liquid) in which acetylene is very soluble. When you open the tank you are drawing off the gas phase of acetylene which is at a safe low pressure. Opening a bottle that is laying down could draw off the liquid acetone. Correct me if any parts of this is incorrect.
 
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   / Does welding gas go bad? #14  
In welding school... the teacher has a display of what happens drawing acetylene from a cylinder lying flat... it exploded.
 
   / Does welding gas go bad? #16  
I have a tank of Mapp gas I bought in the 1970's. It still burns just fine. I never used it much because it sucks compared to acetylene for cutting. It works good for heating though.
 
   / Does welding gas go bad? #17  
They quit selling Mapp gas, didn't they?
 
   / Does welding gas go bad? #18  
Did they? I thought you could still get it in the little 1#er's?
 
   / Does welding gas go bad? #20  
Back in welding school in the late 70's MAPP was very popular... come to think about it... it's been years since I've heard anyone talk about it.
 

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