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Choosing Welding Gas Regulators
All compressed gases are dangerous, some more than others, so the correct Welding Gas Regulator is essential.
Gas Regulator Construction
Gas Regulators vary in construction, depending on the gas they’re intended for. Probably the most obvious difference is the screw threads. Regulators for combustible gases (Acetylene, Propane, Propylene etc), usually have Left Hand Threads. The left hand thread is indicated by little cuts in the flats of the Hexagon.
Regulators for non combustible gases (Oxygen, Argon, Co2 etc), usually have Right hand Threads and as such do not have the cuts on the Hexagon.
Another important difference can be the material used to manufacture internal components. For example, internal Acetylene Regulator components are manufactured from different material to Propane Regulators. It’s therefore important that the correct regulator is used as failure to do so can be extremely dangerous.
In the example outlined above, Propane will corrode the internal components of an Acetylene Regulator, inevitably leading to failure and leaking!
ALWAYS use the correct regulator for the gas!
Oxygen Regulators
The most common type of Oxygen Regulator has a 0-10 bar outlet. However, as Gas Welding Torches typically only require around 0.2 bar, a Regulator capable of delivering up to 10 bar is going to be difficult to adjust accurately at such a low pressure.
To overcome this, 0-4 bar Oxygen Regulators are also available. These are much easier to adjust at the low pressures required for most Gas Welding & Brazing torches. Even Cutting Guns can be used with nozzles up to 1/16″.
0-10 bar Oxygen Regulators are for where larger Nozzles are going to be used.
I would also recommend not considering a regulator with less than a 300 bar input rating as 300 bar cylinders are becoming more common and are likely to become the norm in future.
Acetylene Regulator
Acetylene becomes unstable and explosive if compressed to a high pressure. Because of this, Acetylene is dissolved in a filler material and solvent. Because of the low pressure nature of Acetylene cylinders, the Gas Regulator for Acetylene has a different internal set up. Most Acetylene Regulators have a maximum delivery pressure of 1.5 bar.
Propane Regulators
Propane Regulators are commonly supplied with, or without gauges. As discussed earlier, Acetylene and Propane Regulators should never be used with any other gas than that which they are designed for, although Propane Regulators can be used for Propylene, which is made up of around 50% Propane.
Argon and Argon/Co2 Regulator
Argon Gas Regulators are much the same as Oxygen Regulators. However, a key thing to look out for is the Delivery Gauge (usually the right hand gauge).
On an Oxygen Regulator the delivery Gauge normally shows Pressure in Psi and Bar. Argon Regulators normally show Gas Flow Rate in Litres Per Minute and Cubic Feet Per Hour. It’s important to make sure the Delivery Gauge reads Flow Rate as most Mig and Tig Welders will quote a recommended gas delivery in Litres per Minute.
An Argon Regulator should also be used for Argon/Co2 Mixed gases.
CO2 Regulator
Most of a Co2 Regulator is the same as an Argon Regulator.
The one BIG difference is the Cylinder Fitting, which is Female.
All the other Regulators we have discussed have a Male thread to go into a Female Fitting on the cylinder. Co2 Cylinders have a Male thread, so the Regulator has to have a Female fitting.
Regulators for Disposable Gas Cylinders
Regulators for Disposable Gas Cylinders do the same thing as their refillable cylinder counterparts, except the fitting onto the Cylinder is completely different.
Disposable Cylinders are filled to a lower pressure.
For these reasons, Disposable Cylinder Regulators are not compatible with refillable cylinders.
Regulators for use with Disposable Cylinder can have no Gauges, 1 Gauge and 2 Gauges.
I hope you’ve found this article useful, you can find more Gas Equipment related information in our Knowledge Zone and in other articles of my blog.
Please let me know what you thought of this article by leaving a comment. Don’t worry, your email address won’t be added to a database or shared and you won’t receive any unsolicited email.
Cheers
Graham
19 responses to “Choosing Welding Gas Regulators”
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This is a very helpful article for choosing gas regulators. Thanks for sharing such an informative article.
Thanks for the comment Caleb, glad you found the article useful.
Regards
Graham
Excellent Writeup, Thanks
Thanks Dave, glad you found it useful.
Regards
Graham
Can I use a argon regulator for a pure helium mix?
Hi Mason
Thanks for the question.
The short answer is Yes, as Argon and Helium Regulators are technically the same, apart from labelling.
The longer answer is that we would not recommend it if the Regulator has already been used for Argon, also, as the Argon Regulator is labelled “Argon”, using it for Helium could cause Insurance or Health and Safety issues in the event of any problems.
Hope this helps
Regards Graham
OK…silly me. Didn’t do enough research and saw some regulators at a yard sale. Picked them up and find I have one that is likely Argon and the other Oxygen (I’m pretty sure.) I want to use them for an oxy-acetylene set-up for jewelry making. I looked up the Harris Model # and it said Argon but gauges are marked in psi. The other Victor model is for Oxygen. Lesson learned…do your research first. I had no idea there were so many possibilities!
Hi Kim
I hope the lesson was not too expensive! To be honest, I wouldn’t buy used Regulators as I don’t think the risk is worth it, given the relatively low cost of new. If you consider that an Oxygen cylinder can have over 4000psi of pressure in it, you don’t want a Regulator failing on you with that kind of pressure behind it!!! BCGA (British Compressed Gases Association) recomends routinely replacing Regulators after 5 Years.
Cheers
Graham
Really useful article to help people to have better understanding about gas regulator!
Thanks for the comment Jason, glad you found it useful.
Regards
Graham
Good morning Sir;
I want to know the kinds oxygen CO2 gauge that reduces the flow of air on a patient? I worked at the ELWA Hospital Liberia. Whenever I place oxygen on a patient, it takes 2 to 3 hours and the bottle gets entry. What can I do to reduce flow?
Thanks
Joshua
Hi Joshua
I regret we do not offer Medical Regulators and so could not offer advice for Medical applications. Can I suggest you contact the supplier of your Medical Gas Equipment for advice.
Kind Regards
Graham
My oxygen regulator is broken, and I have just placed an order for the new one.
I have the Ar regulator in my lab. Is it possible to use the Ar regulator for oxygen regulator temporarily?
Thank you.
Some makes of Argon Regulator are exactly the same as Oxygen, other than labelling and calibration of the delivery gauge. In this case, yes you can use an Argon Regulator for Oxygen. BUT, I can only speak for our Regulators, you would need to double check with your Argon Regulators manufacturer to be sure. Did you order the replacement from us? If so it will be on its way and I can check when it will be delivered. Use the Contact Us page of our website to let me know your order ref.
Hope I’ve helped.
Graham
can you tell me what pressure in psi or bar the argon flow rate relates to as I need to have the gauge calibrated.I have a gauge that reads 0-55 litres per minute
Thanks
Thanks for the question Dave
Unfortunately, I don’t know the answer to converting PSI/Bar to Litres per Minute.
There may well be conversion tables Online (try searching), but changing the Regulator for one that does show Gas Pressure rather than Flow is the only sure way of knowing it’s right for the job.
Sorry i couldn’t help further.
Regards Graham
Thanks, great info..was confusing before.
Glad you found it useful - Cheers Graham
Excellent easy to understand information