Quote:
Originally Posted by Kitty
Hey-
I just purchased a nortel minor and got hose, regulators and flashback arrestors from Wale.
...
So, I worked today for about 3.5 hrs and the oxygen ran out. I was using a
20 lb tank. So I either went through that much oxygen because I was using my torch incorrectly or there was a leak or a 20 lb tank doesn't last very long???
...
Thanks for any suggestions.
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As Dale said, an oxygen cylinder is measured by capacity... how many cubic foot (CF) of oxygen (at normal temp/pressure) that it can hold. Yours holds 20 CF?
The marvelous thing about the Nortel Minor is that it can be a itty bitty torch or a flame thrower. Usually, a bead maker will use about 5 cubic foot of oxygen per hour (CFH), but the minor can be cranked up with a very large flame and use upwards of 50 CFH. All controlled by how far the torch's oxygen valve is opened.
So a 20 CF cylinder could last about 4 hours at 5 CFH... or just under 24 minutes at 50 CFH... all depending on how high the oxygen is turned up at the torch.
So what to do... hmmmm
... 1) Get a bigger cylinder; or 2) get an oxycon.
An oxycon is a machine that extracts oxygen from the air and produces 85-95% pure oxygen. The
basic machines produce about 10 CFH. It runs on electricity, so your only cost is the cost for the machine and electricity.
A 10 CFH oxycon (more frequently referred to as a 5 LPM oxycon) costs from $140-$400, depending on the seller, warranty, used "mileage" etc.. A lot of bead makers find this is better, cost and simplicity-wise, than uisng "tanked" oxygen. The cost of the electricity is less than the gasoline used to drive to get another tank of oxygen. So while it's not "free", it's reasonable.
There are oxycon sellers that advertise on Lampworketc.
Me