Startlling experience with torch -- anybody else had this?


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Posted by Sherman in Idaho [72.47.153.112] on Sunday, January 19, 2014 at 22:37:52 :

I was in the basement cutting out old steam pipes this evening, using a medium-sized torch set I picked up at a flea market a couple years ago and never used before. I was being real careful because I was cutting up near the floor joists and I didn't want to set the building on fire. Made sure everything flammable was out of the way on the floor, tanks a good 10 feet back, etc. I'm cutting away, sparks going all over the place and I hear a muffled "whoomp". I look over at the tanks and there's a flame coming out around the acetylene valve. This is the kind of tank that has a collar up around the top and a square shaft for the acetylene valve that you have to turn with a T-handle wrench.

It's a pretty good sized flame and it's burning right under and around the regulator. I could see how this could get a lot worse really quickly. Nobody else is in the building. The fire sprinklers don't work. I reach in and turn off the valve, and fortunately it seals and the fire goes out. The valve is built into the acetylene bottle. Don't they check this at the welding place where they refill them? Has anyone else encountered this?

I'm stingy enough that I hate to replace a nearly-full bottle, but I'm also somewhat leery of fire, explosion, death, or serious injury. I might be tempted to just set the bottle further away and only open the valve far enough to get just barely enough gas pressure, although it still leaks some. Or maybe I'll relegate it to outdoor use only. I suppose acetylene settles to the floor, so it's not a good situation with sparks falling to the floor too.



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