Co2 : Using 2 KG Fire extinguishers

Mike1981 · Jul 28, 2015

hi, Do many people on here use these as their co2 supply? ive read that some people invert the bottles because of the dip tube, which avoids drawing liquid co2 into your regulator, but others dont bother and just leave it stood the correct way up. Whats everyones experience or recommendations with this?

simon12 · Jul 28, 2015

From what I have read (I use a pub bottle) the dip tube dispenses liquid CO2 which can damage the regulator, guys who service fire extinguishers can remove the dip tube or using it upside down fixes this. Others seem to ignore the issue without problem but its a risk.

McMullan · Jul 28, 2015

I know a lot of people use them, but I wouldn't. For beverage carbonation the CO2 bottle should be certified inert on the inside and fit for purpose. Just saying...

mickthetrick · Jul 28, 2015

co2 is co2.
fella i get some off told me they fill their extinguishers from the same tank as the others. he laughed when i asked if it was different

McMullan · Jul 28, 2015

mickthetrick said:
co2 is co2.
fella i get some off told me they fill their extinguishers from the same tank as the others. he laughed when i asked if it was different

Just saying. CO2 is CO2. Are the cylinders/bottles fit for purpose, is what I am asking.

ManseMasher · Jul 28, 2015

McMullan said:
Just saying. CO2 is CO2. Are the cylinders/bottles fit for purpose, is what I am asking.

There have been quite a few discussions on various hb sites about 'food safe' co2. From what I have gleaned, yes co2 is co2. It's what they do with the cylinders apparently - cylinders that provide something that will end up inside us are cleaned inside, whereas cylinders for industrial use aren't. As an aside, when I asked BOC about getting co2 they asked if I wanted liquid or vapour. For our purposes, I believe it's vapour.

DrTerror · Jul 29, 2015

I come from a fish keeping/planted tank background and can confirm without a doubt CO2 is CO2!,I use a large 'ish' bottle on my tank (about 4 ft tall,weighs a ton when full!) and when that runs out i shove a small fire extinguisher on it till I get it refilled at an welding supply company,via a hydroponic shop,at around ÃÂ£15 per refill.: cheers:

mickthetrick · Jul 29, 2015

think the only difference from liquid and vapour were these are concerned is the dip tube. a pub bottle has no dip tube hence no liquid co2 is drawn up were as the fire ex. has dip tube and draws it up from the bottom. its all liquid in there really just with no dip tube the gas vapour comes off instead of liquid..a pub bottle is the same principle as a propane bottle but the propane type isn't under pressure . hope that makes sence lol.
turning the fire ex. upside down is said to do the trick.

Mike1981 · Jul 29, 2015

Thats what ive heard too mick, turn the bottle upside down and it then draws gas rather than liquid. Reading on the web, some welders do this too to avoid drawing liquid.

mike-os · Jul 29, 2015

welding bottles are gas draw off, dip/liquid bottles are special use such as fire systems and pipe freezing, or where it is desirable to invert the bottle... but thats rare outside HVAC ime

just ask for the right bottle... it will probably only have been used for CO2 as mixed gasses are generally at much higher pressures... and i dont think any of the generally available mixes are actually harmful, but argon, helium, nitrogen etc may not be good for the beer.. tho nitrogen/CO2 is used in commercial pub gas mixes as it gives a finer bubble i believe?

mike-os · Jul 29, 2015

using commercial co2 bottles ... what kind of pressure are you using in the keg?

Mike1981 · Jul 29, 2015

only 10-15 psi would be going into the keg. But speaking to the guy i got the extinguisher off he said he will discharge keg and remove dip tube. But also turning upside down wouldnt be an issue as the gas would be getting drawn, if I were to use it in the mean time. As ive said before looking on the web it is common for people to use these but i personally havn't, but get mixed views everywhere i look. Some are saying theyve used them for years, sitting the correct way up and with dip tube still in. I dont fancy putting liquid co2 into my reg, just to be on the safe side so will probably turn it upside down.

McMullan · Jul 31, 2015

http://www.foodsafetymagazine.com/m...rage-technologists-carbon-dioxide-guidelines/

Searching on google, I find many suppliers of beverage/food safe CO2. Some include food safe cylinders, too.

McMullan · Aug 1, 2015

McMullan said:
http://www.foodsafetymagazine.com/m...rage-technologists-carbon-dioxide-guidelines/

Searching on google, I find many suppliers of beverage/food safe CO2. Some include food safe cylinders, too.

We need to look out for ourselves, chaps. I've used standard industrial co2. Made the mistake of emptying the thing. Anyone else done that? Not nice. Bit of a wake up call, actually. One of the few beers I've dumped... without regret.

Chippy_Tea · Aug 2, 2015

McMullan said:
We need to look out for ourselves, chaps. I've used standard industrial co2. Made the mistake of emptying the thing. Anyone else done that? Not nice. Bit of a wake up call, actually. One of the few beers I've dumped... without regret.

Good call, looks like it wasn't a mistake after all.

colliefish · Aug 5, 2015

I use my extinguisher upside down to draw the gas off. But I would have thought it is only liquid under extreme pressure. Once in your keg and at a low pressure it would revert to gas again. But there is the issue of liquid co2 being extremely cold and possibly causing damage to the pipe work. I'm not saying it would as I have no experience of using the extinguisher upright. Just a logical possibility. May be someone has had experience of this.

EssexBrewing · Aug 6, 2015

A full bottle of CO2 is a bottle of liquid, if it's a fire extinguisher with a dip tube it will come out as liquid into a regulator which might freeze the regulator, that's not ideal.
Some suppliers will remove the dip tube for you.
Both the gas and the bottles are the same though, the difference is the colour they are painted.

ManseMasher · Aug 6, 2015

http://www.boconline.co.uk/en/produ...nert-gases/carbon-dioxide/carbon-dioxide.html

EssexBrewing said:
A full bottle of CO2 is a bottle of liquid, if it's a fire extinguisher with a dip tube it will come out as liquid into a regulator which might freeze the regulator, that's not ideal.
Some suppliers will remove the dip tube for you.
Both the gas and the bottles are the same though, the difference is the colour they are painted.

They can supply cylinders of either liquid or gaseous co2....

EssexBrewing · Aug 6, 2015

ManseMasher said:
http://www.boconline.co.uk/en/produ...nert-gases/carbon-dioxide/carbon-dioxide.html

They can supply cylinders of either liquid or gaseous co2....

Really, I don't know anyone that would supply CO2 as a gas, you would need massive cylinders to hold the equivalent amount.

2kg of CO2 as a liquid has a volume of approx 2 Litres. ( that's how I buy mine)
2kg of CO2 as a gas has a volume of 1,000 Litres. ( that wouldn't fit in the car)

Why would anyone want to buy it as a gas.

ManseMasher · Aug 6, 2015

EssexBrewing said:
Really, I don't know anyone that would supply CO2 as a gas, you would need massive cylinders to hold the equivalent amount.

2kg of CO2 as a liquid has a volume of approx 2 Litres. ( that's how I buy mine)
2kg of CO2 as a gas has a volume of 1,000 Litres. ( that wouldn't fit in the car)

Why would anyone want to buy it as a gas.

Look at the link. BOC supply it as a gas. It's supplied under pressure, that's why it can fit into cylinders. Compressed air for divers, for instance....

Co2 : Using 2 KG Fire extinguishers

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