What happens to retired gas bottles?

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I have a 26" Uhaul which is my shop and space is quickly becoming very valuable and my 60 gal air compressor is taking up quite a lot of it.Under the truck I have a lot of room and have been thinking about mounting cylinders for air storage so I can get the tank out of the truck. I could probably fit something up to 10"-12" diameter without effecting ground clearance. I was thinking about making tanks but then I started wondering if I could get my hands on something cheap and already made. Large gas cylinders would be about perfect. I have been meaning to ask the LWS if they have any but haven't gotten around to it yet. Would they regularly have them available? Any other places I could find them?I'm sure there must be tanks that don't qualify for the 1k to 2k psi but would be perfectly fine for 100-200 psi.
Reply:You might be able to get "dead" tanks from a hydro shop. Most of the time they are kind of picky about giving (or selling) tanks that failed hydro for liability reasons. We used to get a few from the hydro shop, we used to make displays from, when I worked at the dive shop. They didn't have issues with us because they knew we wouldn't use the tanks, but would cut them up.Note however it will take several, probably 8 or 10 minimum to equal that 60 gal tank. Add in all the required fittings to plumb all those tanks, the fact there is no good way to drain them and I seriously doubt they are worth the hassle.I've managed to get a couple of air tanks used for air brakes, from heavy trucks to mount under service bodies, so we could do away with the bed mounted tank for space reasons. Some tanks are decent sized, others are quite small. A good heavy truck/equipment yard should have a decent selection, most already with fittings and bleeds..No government ever voluntarily reduces itself in size. Government programs, once launched, never disappear. Actually, a government bureau is the nearest thing to eternal life we'll ever see on this earth! Ronald Reagan
Reply:Gas cylinders are heavy, lack mounting points, have limited plumbing options, and no condensate drain. I second DSW's truck air tank idea.As for retired cylinders, I knew a scrap processor who used to get a batch of a few hundred cylinders every once in a while. Following some safety precautions, they would be torch cut for scrap.Good Luck
Reply:Listen to Denrep - they are damned heavy for your purpose!But if you find a source for them (cheap/free), consider flushing them out and whacking off the bottom.  Skin the paint off, attach a clapper and sell them as gongs.  Then you can buy the extra air storage tanks that WILL work.
Reply:Originally Posted by DSWI've managed to get a couple of air tanks used for air brakes, from heavy trucks to mount under service bodies, so we could do away with the bed mounted tank for space reasons. Some tanks are decent sized, others are quite small. A good heavy truck/equipment yard should have a decent selection, most already with fittings and bleeds.
Reply:I want to say the pressure relief on the tanks was set at 150 psi. We were only using single stage compressors making about 125psi and they were fine. If your compressor is a two stage making 175psi you might have to reset the unit to shut off early or look into this a bit closer. I remember the tanks having a tag on them, but don't remember if it listed max pressure or not.We used to have a valve and QD on the tank on our Mack. That way we could air up the tires in the backhoe in a pinch if we picked up a nail on a job.Last edited by DSW; 11-20-2009 at 11:18 PM..No government ever voluntarily reduces itself in size. Government programs, once launched, never disappear. Actually, a government bureau is the nearest thing to eternal life we'll ever see on this earth! Ronald Reagan