C02 tank filled/refilled

[Fremont Brewer]

Hello everyone.

I just got my first keging setup in the mail. The C02 tank doesn't come filled. I've called around a few places and it seems like most places only exchange out the tank. I don't really want to do that since I just got this thing. It is still all new and shiny. I know they have to be recertified every so often. Does anyone know how long they are good for?

Does anyone have any advise to give on this subject. I am sure that after my first fill, I won't care about it being shiny new. Am I being silly about this? What do you guys do?

Thanks,
John

[codewritinfool]

I take mine to a local popcorn sales place. They handle all kinds of carnival-type stuff and fill it for about $12 while I wait.

There are no clowns around or I wouldn't go there.

[siwelwerd]

Local welding shop is happy to fill my shiny aluminum tank for me. Most people there swap them out as it is quicker (I usually have to leave it for a day unless I show up in the morning while they are filling others), but I'm not swapping out a shiny tank for an ugly one.

Code--is that $12 for 20 lbs? CeeKay is always more like $20-25 for my 20 lb bottle.

[spiderwrangler]

Yeah, if you know people in the area that have kegerators, ask around and see where they are getting them filled. My local place is a gas company that does helium balloon tanks and a bunch of other gases. Unfortunately, I don't have the setup where I need to use them yet.

[Whitebeard_Brewer]

Also, check your local fire extinguisher place....that's where I get mine filled.

[ajdelange]

Somewhere on the shoulder of the bottle you will find month and year figures stamped. On an aluminum bottle of mine, for example, the stamp says 07C05 which means the bottle's last hydro was 7/05. They are not to be refilled beyond 5 years past the date of the last hydro.

[spiderwrangler]

If you aren't familiar with the term, hydro testing is where they fill the tank with water to a pressure above the rated psi of your tank to ensure that it can hold it without leaking or rupturing. The test will also be able to check to make sure that the tank doesn't expand too much under pressure as well. They then stamp it as aj said. I'm assuming that it is essentially the same as the testing done for dive tanks.

[Bugeater]

I generally have mine refilled at a fire extinguisher place. When I have a tank close to needing re-certification, I take it to another place for an exchange. The exchange costs $2 more, but that is certainly cheaper than paying to get it re-certified. I even took in a tank once that was 5 years out of date (found out by a dumpster) and they swapped it out no questions asked. I thought $16 was a decent price for a full 20# tank with a fresh cert.

Wayne