Hi,
I hope I'm in the right place here. I'm a hobbyist welder, restoring a 66 mustang in my garage. I was using a flux-cored wire feed that I borrowed from a friend, and I finally decided to get my own MIG setup. I bought a Hobart Handler 140 and a 60cu.ft. Argon/C02 Tank. My concern is where my "shop" is.
I have a split-level home, it is all above ground. My 2-car garage is on the lower left side of the home. Just fyi, I have a forced-air gas furnace as well as gas water heater that are on the same level as the garage, but in the middle of the home which is a finished living space. Above my garage are two bedrooms.
My question - is it safe to store my shielding gas cylinder in the garage? My concern is if the tank would leak all that argon out, and essentially snuff out the oxygen in the house. BTW, the garage is not heated and seems pretty drafty.
I appreciate any advice. Thank you!
I'm no expert, but I can say that your little gas cylinder would not be a hazard when stored in the garage. In order to displace the oxygen from your home (or even just from the garage) it would take a lot of gas, much more than what is in your cylinder. Good luck with the restoration project!
Besides the volume issue pointed out by weldingfool, remember that Argon is heavier than atmospheric air combinations. Thus, the upstairs will be safe from oxygen displacement unless you introduced a great volume of Argon.
Question: how is it that you think the Argon tank may "leak"? If you have a leaking tank I would return it immediately and get a fresh one on economic principles alone.
He Is In Control, Have a Great Day, Brent
Argon is 25% heavier, so I agree elevation is your friend. Any lost Argon would sink to the lowest elevation.
Let's see, a room measures 15 x 15 x 7 feet. The volume is 1575 cubic feet. The bottle of gas is 60 cubic feet, so if completely emptied, the percentage of argon in the air, were it to mix completely, would increase by about 0.04% (by volume). I read somewhere that the air we breath contains about 3% argon.
I would not loose any sleep over this.
Al