gas bottle

Tip hot water down the side and you will see a condensation mark indicating where the liquid level is.

I was shown by my late father in law 25 years ago how to gauge how much gas is left in the bottle and it works for me. Pick up the bottle and open the valve slightly to let a small amout of gas escape and tilt the bottle on it's side until white liquid escapes, take note of the angle of the bottle imagining you have a bottle of liquid, if it is horizantal and liquid escapes it is roughly half full more or less and you can guesstemate. Another option is have two bottles and when one is empty use the other one, then when you have a chance fill that one for the next run out.
Wazzaaaaa

The bottle should have a Tare weight stamped around the top somewhere, so if you had scales that were accurate enough, weigh it and take that number off will tell you how much is in it. My 9kg bottle weighs 8kg by that.

Not much help, but I used to work at a rural supplies place and did filling. We would weigh the bottle, fill it, then weigh it again and only charge by the kg which was handy if you were only after a top-up. Not many places do that any more.

Wazza,

I'm afraid that I have to tell you that the method described is dangerous. People do get away with it, but on the odd occasion they get burnt, badly burnt.

The reason is that LPG in a gas bottle is liquid. Inside the bottle is a short dip tube. It's not long enough to go into the liquid, but if you tip the bottle and liquid does then enter the dip tube, it can get trapped in the dip tube by vapour locking.

The next time you come to use the gas stove, you get a slug of liquid propane coming out. That liquid propane goes into the burner and expands at a great rate ( I can't remember the exact expansion factor but I think it's 60 times for propane). We'll say 60 times for this discussion. So instead of a whisp of gas at the burner you get about 60 times that whisp.

AND WHOOMPAH. It blows up in yer face.

My mate's wife got caught just like this on a Gibb River Road trip. They never did complete thier trip around Oz as she spent 2 weeks in hospital and several months with skin grafts.

This is the reason it is illegal to carry an LPG bottle in any other position except UPRIGHT.

Acetylene bottles are OK to ship on thier sides as they are not liquid but merely compressed gas. Same with oxygen.

Take care,

Bilbo

Instead of a 9kg. bottle carry two 4.5 kg. bottles.When the first is empty you go onto the second and have the first one filled whenever you can.That way you are using all the gas you pay for and also is a bit of peace of mind if one bottle has a leak or other problem.

I'd have to say that all these methods are simply fantastic, but i really think that the simplest and most surefire way to know how much is in your gas bottle, is to, wait for it, buy a GAUGE!!

Dags

In my experience the best way to gauge the remaining volume in a cylinder is to ignore the problem until the gas runs out at the most inconvenient moment.

Usually, well adjusted people learn a lesson from this. I happen to be an exception!

Regards

Kim

I seem to remember that you could be right about the acetone is acetylene bottles,,,,,,

I haven't used oxy/acet for a long time.

Anyway - don't tilt LPG bottles.

Gettin' old.

Bilbo

thanks for your help i would buy a gauge if i could transfer from one bottle to the other, i have 5 bottles for different applications when we go camping 4 weeks at a time double island fraser etc. most gauges are inline not like a tyre gauge where you check at various stages any way thanks dags

aussie disposals sell a device that magnetically sticks to the side of the bottle and can be transferred from bottle to bottle as needed. Been gonna get one and try it but now you have reminded me to go get it. Cost was about 6 bucks.