CO2: how to tell.....?

[dragonfisher33]

so i just got a pressurized co2 system, therefore don't laugh at my stupid questions and be gentle with me

1) how to tell when the tank is out of gas? what should the pressure reading be in order to indicate it's time for a refill? my co2 tank, i believe, is a 5lb

2) the right gauge on the solenoid is to monitor the co2 that's been sent out, but in my case, that's broken. can i just eyeball the bubble counts in the bubble counter?

3) there's a certain noise when the co2 is on, almost a leaking sound kind of. how do i narrow down and tell where the leakage comes from? as far as i can say, everything seems tight and snuggle. the noise is heard when i adjust the black regulator adjustment knob in the front of the solenoid.

as always, thanks for reading and tank you for the input

 

[jetajockey]

When the pressure gauge starts going down I plan to go for a refill the next day. I've let mine run out and on mine it looks like as soon as the needle begins to drop it is out within a day or two.

You can go by bubble count, that's what I do just for an eyeball estimate of how much is going in the tank at any given time.

And no, you shouldn't be hearing any noises. A spray bottle with a little bit of dish soap and water sprayed around all connections or suspect areas should help show you if you have a leak.

 

[dragonfisher33]

When the pressure gauge starts going down I plan to go for a refill the next day. I've let mine run out and on mine it looks like as soon as the needle begins to drop it is out within a day or two.

You can go by bubble count, that's what I do just for an eyeball estimate of how much is going in the tank at any given time.

And no, you shouldn't be hearing any noises. A spray bottle with a little bit of dish soap and water sprayed around all connections or suspect areas should help show you if you have a leak.

thank you very much. i will try it out tonight. for some reason i have this mental picture of the tank exploding on me or kill someone (too many movies maybe?). i would like to go as safe as possible with the pressurized system.

 

[dragonfisher33]

one more question: if the solenoid is faulty, will the tank explode? this is the situation i'm envisioning: the solenoid is plugged in, you hear the click sound. you open the valve on the actual co2 tank, and for some reason the solenoid prevents the tank from releasing the co2. i know it sounds childish but like i said, i want to eliminate any source of danger with the pressurized system. or will the co2 tank explode under normal circumstances? ie when the regulator adjustment valve is screwed in too tight

 

[foster53]

unless the tank is defective it won't explode. It is holding the pressure before you hook anything up, so it will be fine. I don't know the rating for a smaller canister but mine is rated for 2000PSI.

 

[jetajockey]

If the solenoid is faulty the worst it will do is stick closed or stick open, as foster mentioned, the tank is what holds the pressure. From what I understand, co2 tanks have dates on them and have to be inspected or replaced at certain intervals.

 

[aqua_chem]

Really the only thing you can do to make a CO2 tank unsafe is to operate it on its side rather than standing up. This can damage the regulator and potentially make it unsafe. As far as solenoid/needle valve failure, everything past the regulator is 'regulated' to a lesser pressure as determined by the regulator/working pressure gauge. One atmosphere is about 15 psi, your regulator is probably running between 10 psi and 30 psi, and a soda bottle is under 30-50 psi (and will blow at 400 psi or so).

And fix your working pressure gauge. They're cheap and will buy you some peace of mind.

 

[dragonfisher33]

thanks everyone for the great insights. i just recently got two handed down solenoids by JBS, a Taiwanese brand, that i can't find any info on. One is supposedly fully functional with the other one had the gauge that's next to the bubble counter broken. i was trying to alleviate the anxiety with a pressurized system because of the preconception i have had on them, and of course more complicated with a broken gauge.

@aqua_chem: your picture does it's job. every time you post something for me, i feel like Bill Nye the Science Guy is talking directly to me and i can't help but talk your words for it since i have such a great admiration in him

 

[dragonfisher33]

i was also hoping if anyone here know anything about the JBS brand. it took me a long time to figure out JBS stands for Jin Ben Sun, the company's name and has some sort of root in Taiwan. all i can find is that some Hong Kong ebay seller sells them and no review what-so-ever.