Welding Gas Bottle Policy? Airgas and others?

[rwm]

I typically use Airgas to supply my Argon. I recently exchanged a bottle with no issue. They are not charging a lease fee. I think I may have owned the original bottle although my current bottle says Airgas on the neck. I have another small bottle that is a slick neck.
I would like to get an Oxygen bottle for brazing. Is anyone familiar with the lease/own gas bottle arrangements? Will I need to buy a bottle and then get it filled? What has your recent experience been? I will be a low volume customer as a hobbyist so leasing looks like it would be prohibitively expensive.

 

[benmychree]

always best to own your bottle.

 

[Latinrascalrg1]

The local store wants you to "Buy" the bottle, yet when you bring it in for a fill they will only exchange! You always get a different tank so its more like buying a timeshare, you own it but dont really own it!

 

[Holescreek]

I just went through this after my 15 year lease with a local company ran out. Airgas bought the local company and was required to honor the original lease. My original 15 year lease for a large acetylene and 125 oxygen cylinder was $280. Airgas sent me a bill for $390 to lease the tanks for just 5 years.
I returned the cylinders (oxygen still had 1500 pounds in it) and the desk dude told me he'd sell me the $125 oxy tank for $284 plus fill and tax. He said he couldn't sell me the Acetylene cylinder because it was too large, but could sell me a smaller tank, the two together came to $500. I left him with both tanks so I could figure out the direction I wanted to take. Any of the cylinders he'd sell me would be traded in for a full tank for the cost of the fill. He also said that they do not do exchanges on some privately owned tanks, something to do with a code on the tank.

I could buy Oxy cylinders on Craigslist for $250 but had no way of knowing if Airgas would fill.exchange them.

I decided to change my torch rig to oxygen/propane and bought the 125 oxy from Airgas. I had to buy a couple new tips for my smith torch and an adapter to fit my regulator to the propane tank.

 

[Cadillac]

Gosh it’s been a loong time since I got all the cylinders I have. I have two places I have to go to for the 5 tanks I have. Air gas and praxair both places I purchased the tanks and exchange them when need refilling no problems whatever. Have had the accounts for 20 plus years never a recurring lease fees. Personal account filling 2argons, 75/25 for the mig and ox/acy tanks. I do know one place won’t take another places bottle and I would think a no name would be the same scenario. Being your own you’d have to get it pressure tested every so often and the big companies arnt gonna take the change of some old tank.

 

[pontiac428]

Let's see, I've got 2x Oxygen, 2x Acetylene, 2x Argon, 2x 75/25, 1x CO2, 1x Stargold... The suppliers call these COCs, or customer owned containers. You pay a different rate for gas based on the expense of renewing the tanks than you would on a leased tank. I used to swap cylinders that were out of hydro without an extra charge, now they charge a few bucks for that. I recently bought a new 25 lb CO2 tank that cost $150 with a fill, and now I pay $50 each time I fill it for the gas. I think my big Stargold bottle cost under $200, but it's the biggest cylinder in the lineup. It's always been easier to exchange, because my bottles may have been in my garage for (sometimes) years but when I exchange I get a clean bottle with a new valve and a fresh coat of paint.

 

[rwm]

I'm still confused about this. If I have a bottle that says Airgas on the neck, how do they know if I own it? I originally went in with my own tank and exchanged for an Airgas tank. Do they just go by what my account says? Right now my account says I have 0 tanks, I assume that means I own them?
Robert

 

[pontiac428]

Usually lease tanks are marked. Airgas may have been the original owner of that tank (assuming it says airgas on the collar) but they turn their lease tank inventory over and old ones become COCs. If you bring in a supplier-owned tank, they'll tell you. Those guys know what their leased tanks look like. They usually have a lease life of 10 years, so if your tank is older than that by the stamps on the shoulder, it's likely a COC free and clear.

 

[Cadillac]

I would think if it says airgas on the bottle and u bring it there you will have no problems. I always say I’m a cash account if that means anything. Pontiac is right they know their tanks and colors. And yes athey do have different rates for different accounts. My argon is half the price at airgas than prax.

 

[Joeman77]

In this area the biggest tank you can ""Own" in shielding or Oxygen is 80 cubic foot, I've also heard them called a "Q", the Acetylene mate to them is a #2. They let you "Own" those or anything smaller. You can take any of those and swap them out anywhere that sells welding gas, I've even crossed a state line or 2 for swap when need be. The Q's run about $200 on Ebay, #2 Acetylene about the same, I've bought several of the smaller ones MC's, B's, 40 Cubes etc at rummage sales for a few bucks. My tanks are marked by Everybody, depending where they were filled last. I found out the hard-way, in this area anyway, anything bigger than that "Without Papers" is a very expensive paper-weight or door-stop.
And I agree with Pontiac428, buy or collect them in pairs (at minimum), they alway tend to run out on Saturday, Sunday or a holiday weekend when you're down till at least Monday. Alway keep a fall-back, even if it's a smaller size, never know when you'll need to finish out a job.