bfullmer

Member
Have a small tank of welding gas from TSC-would like to upgrade to larger tank but TSC says no -you have to buy new tank outright-called customer service and they said that is there new policy from the welding supply company ? Can I just spray a tank from an auction and take it back to TSC ?? They are close by and open on weekends so TSC is handy but this makes it hard to deal with them.
 
Somebody s name is either stamped in the shoulder or printed on the neck ring of the tank. If the names match you will be good to go,other wise it will depend on which high school kid trades out the tank. The smaller tanks are considered customer owned by most welding suppliers. Some will just trade them, others will fill them for you.
 
As long as you can prove you own the tank they should take it. Their tank prices seem really high in my area. About double the LWS when buying outright.
 
A good relationship with an actual welding gas supplier is a nice thing to have. I recently had a customer give me two old 'rental sized' bottles from a place that is no longer in business. I took them both to my local supplier and he happily traded me those two tanks for two customer owned tanks. I got what I needed, and they got two more tanks to add to their rental department, so it was a win, win for everyone.

Before getting the spare tanks, I would often trade a mixed gas for an oxygen, an acetylene for a nitrogen, or whatever. As long as they got a tank and I got a tank, what was in it, has never mattered.
 
The place I use to fill my tanks told me, many years ago, I can only own a 3 ft tall tank. Bigger tanks I have to rent, can't own. I also bought the bottle for my mig instead of renting.
 
Ditto on the relationship. Attitude is everything, from the customer and the business standpoint. I bought a large set of bottles in 1978 (sorry, can't remember the exact sizes...). Since then that company changed hands four times before going completely out of business. Like most welding supply outfits, when customer owned bottles are "refilled" you usually get another bottle in exchange. This can be good or bad, depending on several things. No more than I use mine I try and get friendly with the supplier and make sure I get a new bottle with the longest date possible. Nearly every time I needed more oxygen my trade in was out of date. I still have copies of my original bill of sale (very important to have one time when inspections were popular here). If the business is working strictly by the book you will have to wait until they hydrotest your old bottle before filling if there is any indication it's needed. I have not had to do that yet.

Texas DOT will also nail you if you transport a bottle with the regulator on it instead of the cap. A no brainer for most, but it's pretty amazing how many I have seen whizzing down the road with those things up in the air. Guess they have never seen one broken off.
 
(quoted from post at 14:22:09 04/20/15) Have a small tank of welding gas from TSC-would like to upgrade to larger tank but TSC says no -you have to buy new tank outright-called customer service and they said that is there new policy from the welding supply company ? Can I just spray a tank from an auction and take it back to TSC ?? They are close by and open on weekends so TSC is handy but this makes it hard to deal with them.

Keep the small one and refill it. Buy the larger one. Now you have 2 tanks. You'll never run out right in the middle of a job.
 
I agree much better to deal with a real welding/gas supply company like Roberts than TSC on something like this,the way TSC operates they could just quit the tank business all together then you be up a creek.
 
(quoted from post at 05:17:28 04/21/15)
Keep the small one and refill it. Buy the larger one. Now you have 2 tanks. You'll never run out right in the middle of a job.

Years ago I bought a pigtail that I use to transfer oxygen from one tank to another. I have 2 smaller tanks that no-one will fill.
The place I get my gas charges the same to lease a large tank or a small tank so I lease the large tank. I always transfer into the smaller tanks for use on my cart, much handier to move around. Like rusty says I never run out of oxygen.

By the way I don't think you can safely transfer acetelene so I use propane.
 
Confused. When I wanted tanks I bought them at auction. Not much left in them so I ran out quick. Took them to the welding supply to get filled and they said "nope, we give you another set" and they kept mine. This was a long time ago but it has worked that way since. So I guess I bought my tanks, but I don't really own them because they take them and give me someone elses and I just assume one tank is as good as another. Probably a good plan. Fella down SW of here was blown up in his shed when a tank leaked.
 
My experience with TSC, if it's farm related they are either out of stock or don't carry it. Now if it's something to do with horses it's stacked to the ceilings. They need to change their name the Horsey Supply Company.
 
Dave those tanks have to be tested every so often. Like national welders will honor several brand name tanks because they own them and some name brands they want except because they dont own them. So you got a good deal because where ever you take them excepts that name brand tank. And you do actually own them because your not paying tank rental your just paying for the gas.
 
I worked at TSC for 3 months about 8 years ago.
Actually, it was dog food we never ran out of. But boots were a different story. We apparently were supposed to stock 1 pair of each size. If we sold a pair, we would be out 'til the whole shipment came next week.

To keep this on topic, I was told that I should inform the customers who wanted oxygen or acetyline that we could take in their old tanks, but the local National Welders would not take TSC's tanks. TSC's tanks were Gaspony or some such back then. Anyone else have this problem?
 
TSC had those small bins with all kinds of fastners, that was a nice place to find those odd ones. There are gone.
 
Yesterday I went to TSC to get hydraulic couplers. I could not find the right department, many employees went by looking busy, no one asked to help. I finally found someone to ask. They only had one in 3/4" . I had to get one in 1/2" tried to find adapters. Forget it, all out, I will have to go to hardware store.
 
Years back we had Agway stores here that had everything, they went to birdseed & pet food. Lucky if the person behind the counter knows what a shovel handle looks like now...............
 
I ending up buying the small tanks from the welding supply for my oxygen, acetylene, and argon. When they run out I just take them down and exchange them. So the tanks are technically mine on paper, but they get swapped out every time it is time to refill.
 
I have a set of the large tanks with my cutting torch. Bought them at a flea market. I have had them refilled several times with no problems - or should I say exchanged. That has been the policy in my area for a long time.
If you need gas right away, they exchange the tanks. Apparently, regardless of size.
If you want yours refilled, they have to be sent out, tested, and certified as necessary. Then they are filled and returned to you - sometimes 3 weeks later.
I'll gladly take the exchange. It is quicker and a lot less expensive.
 
You cannot transfer acetylene because it is not just gas in the tank. It is actually charged up with water and calcium carbide, and generates the gas as you use it. It is only under pressure from the reaction of the chemicals.
 

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