I take a lot of calls regarding using Oxygen + Propane or Oxygen + Propylene instead of Acetylene + Oxygen.

Well the short answer to the Title question is, “Yes” and “No”.

Sorry its ambiguous, but it all depends what you want to do!  Let me explain!

Fuel Gas Options

Oxygen + Fuel Gas kits used to be simple, you had Oxygen + Acetylene!  However, the waters are now muddied by a number of factors.

• Acetylene can be hard, and expensive, to obtain.
• Cylinder Rental for Acetylene Cylinders has shot up in price.
• Acetylene often rings alarm bells with Health & Safety conscious officials because of its combustibility and unstable nature!

Unfortunately, Oxy/Acetylene is still the best all purpose gas combo, but there are viable alternatives, as long as you know what you want to be able to do and you choose carefully.

Oxy Propane

Propane is the easiest fuel gas alternative to Acetylene to obtain and is normally supplied in cylinders on a Deposit basis, rather than rented (as is usually the case with Acetylene).

For most users, Propane works out cheaper, especially for infrequent users of Oxygen + Fuel kits. The only real downside to using Oxy/Propane is that it can’t be used for actual Welding.  Oxygen and Propane fuelled kits are however, ideal for Silver Solder, Brazing, Cutting and Heating.  So as long as you don’t want to Weld, Oxygen and Propane is a great way to go! Oxygen + Propane produces a flame temperature of around 1800⁰C.

Oxy Propylene

Propylene is a blend of gases, including Propane and available in a number of throwaway canister Brands, Gasex, Mapp & Turbo Gas to name but three, it’s also available in larger, refillable cylinders.  An Oxygen/Propylene mix burns quite a bit hotter than Oxygen and Propane, typically around  3100⁰C and could, therefore, be considered better as jobs will reach operating temperature quicker.

Unfortunately, like Propane, Propylene is not suitable for fusion welding.  You will find people out there who will tell you it can be used to weld, but in tests that I’ve carried out, the welds it’s produced have been fairly brittle, so I certainly would be doing anything structural or that my Life depended on with it!!!

Oxygen + Propylene is however excellent for Silver Solder, Brazing & Heating.

Oxygen + Propane equipment should also be used for Oxygen + Propylene.

The Welders Warehouse offers a number of excellent Kits, please take a look at our Oxy Propane/Propylene Kits Page to see the range!

Oxy Propane/Propylene Torch

Whilst a standard Oxy Acetylene Torch can be used for Oxy Propane/Propylene, it’s far from ideal.  Propane & Propylene are slower burning gases.

Propane & Propylene also travel through the system as a vapour, not a gas, not actually turning into a gas until they meet air.

The Welders Warehouse has developed two special Multi-Jet Torches for Oxygen + Propane & Propylene.

Lightweight Oxy Propane/Propylene Torch

Heavy Duty Oxy Propane/Propylene Torch

Both use our own, specially designed Multi-Jet Nozzle, which is a lot easier to light and a less likely to blow out, compared to an Oxy/Acetylene Nozzle.

Conclusions

With the right equipment, Propane or Propylene, when mixed with Oxygen, are a viable alternative to Oxy Acetylene for most applications, except fusion welding.

Hope you found this article useful.

You might also find my article “Swapping from Oxy Acetylene to Oxy Propane or Propylene” useful.

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

Visit our Online Shop to view our Welding Gases

I’ve already written an article Titled Can I use Propane or Propylene Instead of Acetylene so I won’t go over that ground again here.

Instead I want to concentrate on the equipment differences and what you need to change when swapping from Oxy Acetylene to Oxy Propane or Propylene.

Gas Welding Equipment

OK, so you already have an Oxygen Regulator, Flash Arrestor and Hose, along with a Torch. There’s no reason why you can’t continue to use these, although there is another option that I’ll come to later!

Here’s the rub, you CANNOT use Acetylene Equipment for Propane or Propylene! Sorry about that, but the internal materials are different and Propane will corrode the internal materials that Acetylene equipment is made of (Propylene is around 50% Propane).

So swapping from Oxy Acetylene to Oxy Propane or Propylene will require some new Gas Equipment.

The least you’ll need

• You WILL need to change your Acetylene Regulator to a Propane type (including for Propylene).
• You WILL need to change your Acetylene Hose to a Propane Hose (including for Propylene).
• You will need to check the label on your Flash Arrestor, if it says “Fuel”, it’s OK to use with Propane & Propylene. If it says “Acetylene” you will need to change it for a “Fuel” type.
• Your Torch SHOULD be OK for Acetylene, Propane or Propylene, ours certainly are, but if in doubt, you should check with the manufacturer. DON’T TAKE RISKS WITH GAS!!!!

Another Option

Now I mentioned earlier that there was another option.

Depending on the condition of your Oxy Acetylene kit, you may find it doesn’t cost a great deal extra to sell your existing kit (as a complete kit), then buy a complete NEW Oxy Propane/Propylene Kit.

The advantages of this option are:

1. You have all new kit, with a warranty
2. You’re not mixing old kit with new

Other Benefits

If you buy a new kit from The Welders Warehouse, you’ll not only get a Propane Regulator with Gauges (most have no gauges), but you’ll also get one of our EXCELLENT, purpose designed Multi-Jet Torches.

Relevant Product Options

View our range of Oxy Propane or Propylene Kits

View our Range of Hoses

View our Propane/Propylene Regulator

View our Fuel Flash Arrestor

View our Oxy Propane/Propylene Torches

I hope you found this blog article about swapping from Oxy Acetylene to Oxy Propane or Propylene useful.

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

Visit our Online Shop to view our Welding Gases

Is Propane any good?

YES! It’s a great gas!

• It’s versatile
• Can be used with or without Oxygen (with correct Torch)
• It’s cheap, compared to Acetylene
• It’s readily available
• It’s available without Cylinder Rental

The only real downside to Propane is that you can’t weld with it.

Pretty much everything else can be done.

With the right Torch, Oxy/Propane is great for Heating, Brazing, Silver Soldering etc.

How Propane Works in practice

Propane is a liquified gas and is stored in a cylinder with a void above the liquid.

The Liquid turns into a vapour, which fills the void until a certain pressure is reached, this pressure will depend on ambient temperature.  The colder the cylinder/liquid is, the lower the vapour pressure will be.

It is the vapour that is drawn off and travels through the Regulator, Flash Arrestor, Hose and Torch, until it meets air.  When the vapour meets air it turns into a gas, which then burns.

As vapour is drawn from the cylinder, more liquid turns into vapour, until the cylinder is empty.

Propane Problems

I’ve only ever really spoken to customers about 2 possible problems with Propane.

1. In cold conditions, for example, the cylinder is stored in an unheated area during Winter.  The temperature of the liquid can drop so low that the Torch/Flame draws vapour off faster than the liquid in the cylinder can become more vapour.  This means the flame starts to get smaller and ultimately, goes out, giving the impression that either the cylinder has run out, or the Regulator is faulty, when in fact, neither is the case.  The only real solution to this problem is to ensure the cylinder is at room temperature when in use.
2. If used with an Oxy/Acetylene Torch, Oxy/Propane tends to spit and fart quite a bit and the flame can easily blow out, especially when lighting.  A Torch designed for
3. Oxy/Propane will perform FAR better and be much easier to use. Apologies for the shameless plug of our Multi-Jet LD and Multi-Jet HD Oxy/Propane Guns, but they are very, very good! Please watch the video demonstration via the “Video” tab on the pages (same video on both pages).

I hope you found this blog article useful, if things work out well for you, please feel free to post some pictures of your achievements on our Facebook Page

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

Visit our Online Shop to view our Welding Gases