Filling Propane

It is this time of the year when itching for ice fishing gets you in the preparation mode. Looking at 1lb propane prices going up from, 3-4$ to almost 7$ each this year I have been trying to fill my empty ones from a 20lb cylinder. I used a ShNozzle adapter and have had mixed degree of success. For some bottles, as soon as the gas valve is opened, vigorous flow of gas begins and they fill up to 70% in less than 30 sec. Then I fill the other 30% by venting the bottles. However for some bottles the flow is not as strong and even after 15 min less than 20% is filled. I examined both bottles and they look identical, chilled some in freezer but no difference.
Anyone else facing the same problem and finding a solution?

Thanks,

so what i do is take needle nose and pull the pressure valve (have the tank up)
this is why you can only fill to 70%
make sure you use a scale and dont over fill if you do bleed it of with the valve
make sure that the valve dosnt stick listen for no hiss sometimes you have to play with it to get it to seat good
i have been filling my tanks for couple years now with no problem and saves lots o money

a video thats should help




[YOUTUBE]https://youtu.be/fD1CmorB_qM[/YOUTUBE]

Thanks. The issue is that some bottles fill Ok some dont even get to 20% no matter if I pull the release valve or leave the gas flowing for 2 h. Its like some bottles fill no problem and some dont even partially fill. I could not find out why no matter what I tried. The only suspicion I have is those not recieving gas may have a clogged valve or something but when I press on they valve the release whatever is in them NP. So puzzled. More than half of bottles (used 1-2 times before) act wierd.

Honestly I think the best way to go are the 5lb propane tanks. $50-60 at Crappy Tire. Refills 2.70 at Costo. Best thing I ever did.

Moonman

Agree if i could hook it up to my little buddy heater but it feed off 1lb tanks only. Wanted to upgrade to a big buddy heater but they are not as good outside huts (cuz of wind) and take more space.

the days when the ice is safe and i take the bike that would be good but when its not safe for bike i walk and i pack as light as i can then 1lbs heater is much better then

you can release some of the air trapped in there when its almost full just make sure its upright the propane goes to the bottom and you bleed off the air and then you can add more propane

If it's the same tanks giving trouble each time, I would be chucking them.

Not an option with my propane auger.

I've ran into the same issues with filling the 1lb bottles. Some fill with no issues and some just won't take more than 20% no matter bleeding, freezing them or not. Those I just get rid of.

I also find that I can only get about 4 maybe 5 1lb bottles refilled form a full 20lb tank. After that there seems to not be enough pressure or something from the 20lb tank to fill effectively. but that might just be me or something.

I also ran into issues with the pressure release valve on the 1lb bottles to be very fragile. very soft and easy to damage. So I do not bleed from there anymore. I disconnect the 1lb tank from the 20lb, take off the refill adapter and screw it on the 1lb tank standing straight up. The adapter does not have a check valve and air/pressure will release from the adapter. Then repeat the filling process.

Exact same issues here. Some bottles just dont fill no matter what, which is strange! And you are right, a 20lb cylider does not give more than a handful of small ones, I am suspecting at the filling station they don't put in 20 lb, maybe 6-8 lb. next time I am going to weight my empty 20lb cylinder before and after filling and find out!

When filling the 20lb tanks they go by the tare weight stamped on the handle of the tank not the actual weight of the tank they are filling. If the weight does not match the tare weight when the tank is empty you are not going to get 20lbs.

4-5 refills is about right as a 20lb tank will generally hold roughly 4.5 gallons of propane.

They are deemed single use cylinders for a reason and Canadian code prohibits them being refilled.(B149.2-15).

A 5 lb tank and a 20 foot hose may work for u and give more consistent results..

There are a number of gas laws at work here, boyles, Charles, perfect gas laws.

The 10 cent relief valve is the only thing stopping a catastrophic failure in the event of over pressure. Probably shouldn't mess with it.