'20lb' tank not a 20lb tank?

JamesShort · **Posted:** Tue Jul 27, 2010 6:22 pm

A few weeks ago I was grilling and ran out of gas and had my wife run to lowes for a swap. I usually go to True Value and have my two old 20 lb tanks (net weight 17 lbs) to get filled. When you see gas spewing out the overflow safety valve you know the tank is filled so I trust this method.

Anyway the blue rhino tank says 15 lbs net weight.....no wonder the price seemed cheaper than I would have expected. And who knows if those things are full. I think I just need to get more lump coal and use the other grill instead

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Kind of like cereal net weights going down but the box staying the same

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RodneyWright · **Posted:** Tue Jul 27, 2010 7:41 pm

I was told they put in less gas from a safety and pressure standpoint. I keep my tanks and get them filled at a local place that sells propane. I've heard some of the rental tanks can't be refilled by the mom and pop places because of pressure restrictions on the rental tanks.

I actually need another tank if anyone has one for sale. One of mine finally dated out and it can't be filled anymore.

Dustin Fredrickson · **Posted:** Tue Jul 27, 2010 9:08 pm

RodneyWright wrote:

I actually need another tank if anyone has one for sale. One of mine finally dated out and it can't be filled anymore.

BJ's sells the empty tanks for something like $20, and refills them for <$15 last time I checked - not worth buying used IMO.

MikeWhitney · **Joined:** Wed Aug 20, 2003 9:15 pm **Posts:** 4724

RodneyWright wrote:

I was told they put in less gas from a safety and pressure standpoint. I keep my tanks and get them filled at a local place that sells propane. I've heard some of the rental tanks can't be refilled by the mom and pop places because of pressure restrictions on the rental tanks.

I actually need another tank if anyone has one for sale. One of mine finally dated out and it can't be filled anymore.

Rodney I have a spare I don't want, you can have it for $5 less than anywhere else you find. Or just bring beer. It's a blue rhino.

RodneyWright · **Posted:** Wed Jul 28, 2010 11:01 am

MikeWhitney wrote:

RodneyWright wrote:

I was told they put in less gas from a safety and pressure standpoint. I keep my tanks and get them filled at a local place that sells propane. I've heard some of the rental tanks can't be refilled by the mom and pop places because of pressure restrictions on the rental tanks.

I actually need another tank if anyone has one for sale. One of mine finally dated out and it can't be filled anymore.

Rodney I have a spare I don't want, you can have it for $5 less than anywhere else you find. Or just bring beer. It's a blue rhino.

I appreciate the offer Mike, but those are typically the tanks that are hard to refill. Have you had it refilled before or just swapped it out for another tank?

BretLuter · **Posted:** Wed Jul 28, 2010 1:41 pm

No LEGAL propane tank should be harder or easier to fill than any other.

They are all supposed to have the overfill valves that keeps them from being, you got it, overfilled..... The capacity of the tank should not matter, there should be no problem filling a blue rhino tank or any other "rental" or "exchange" tank.

FWIW, if you go to a full-service propane place, they can swap out the old valve for the new valve if the tank is in good shape- for a small fee of course. I think they are supposed to make sure the tank is not older than a certain number of years (or I think it needs to be pressure tested), but the guy at the place we took ours too did not seem to care.

But, if you can get a new tank for ~$15-20, then that's hard to beat.

Scott Lusted · **Joined:** Tue Oct 27, 2009 9:52 am **Posts:** 215

As an avid rver, we know propane tanks like Hank Hill. Blue rhino has a "safety valve" with is more like a rip off valve which prevents another distributor from filling the bottle. You will know you have one if it has a triangle shaped indention on the valve. It is just a spring / ball valve that can be bypassed with a strong magnet. I have an older BR tank that does not have this valve.

Also, don't go with the tank exchange stuff. They only put 15lb of gas in it and I have seen a few as low as 12.5. Most places that sell propane have used bottles for less than $20.

I can get 20lb refill for $14 at my local filler. Bargin compared to exchange.

A 20lb propane tank should weight around 38-40lbs when full. There is a tare weight that is requited on all bottles and it is located around the handle. It should be around 18.7 lb.

I use a small scale to weight the tank to calculate a %full before we go camping.

Hope this helps!

Scott Lusted · **Joined:** Tue Oct 27, 2009 9:52 am **Posts:** 215

Also, I think you can have an old tank tested and recertified. I'll ask my filler this afternoon as I'll be there before our trip next week.

-Scott

RodneyWright · **Posted:** Wed Jul 28, 2010 3:19 pm

Scott Lusted wrote:

Also, I think you can have an old tank tested and recertified. I'll ask my filler this afternoon as I'll be there before our trip next week.

-Scott

I know the valve on my old tank leaks and it's past the stamped safety date. I'd rather just by a new tank and be done w/ it rather than go thru the frustation of testing and buy a new valve. With it being in the weather for who knows how long, rather safe than sorry when it comes to a propane tank.

Aaron Buckley · **Posted:** Wed Jul 28, 2010 4:29 pm

RodneyWright wrote:

I know the valve on my old tank leaks and it's past the stamped safety date. I'd rather just by a new tank and be done w/ it rather than go thru the frustation of testing and buy a new valve. With it being in the weather for who knows how long, rather safe than sorry when it comes to a propane tank.

I wish I lived closer to you Rodney. I have a double size tank (at least 40 lbs.) that I've had for about 6 years that was only filled once. It's been stored properly and looks good. I would give it to you, for it doesn't fit in the bricked area for my grill. - AB

Michael Westerfield · **Posted:** Wed Jul 28, 2010 4:32 pm

Sweet sweet charcoal, how I love you.

JamesMilko · **Posted:** Wed Jul 28, 2010 4:46 pm

Michael Westerfield wrote:

Sweet sweet nautral gas, how I love you.

Fixed for me. Had one in the house I grew up in and I have one again in Durham. They are the best.

RodneyWright · **Posted:** Wed Jul 28, 2010 5:02 pm

Aaron Buckley wrote:

RodneyWright wrote:

I know the valve on my old tank leaks and it's past the stamped safety date. I'd rather just by a new tank and be done w/ it rather than go thru the frustation of testing and buy a new valve. With it being in the weather for who knows how long, rather safe than sorry when it comes to a propane tank.

I wish I lived closer to you Rodney. I have a double size tank (at least 40 lbs.) that I've had for about 6 years that was only filled once. It's been stored properly and looks good. I would give it to you, for it doesn't fit in the bricked area for my grill. - AB

Yeah, so do I. THAT I could use all summer!

Aaron Buckley · **Posted:** Wed Jul 28, 2010 7:13 pm

RodneyWright wrote:

Yeah, so do I. THAT I could use all summer!

Are you going to Laurinburg on August 21st? It's possible I could bring it. - AB

JohnByers · **Posted:** Wed Jul 28, 2010 7:16 pm

Aaron Buckley wrote:

RodneyWright wrote:

Yeah, so do I. THAT I could use all summer!

Are you going to Laurinburg on April 21? It's possible I could bring it. - AB

Wow Aaron, you plan WAY in advance! :lol:

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'20lb' tank not a 20lb tank?

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