Cylinder Questions

I came across someone who has an empty 50lb cylinder for sale and says it had nitrous in it before and had been used by a dentist.

Can this be filled with CO2 or used to swap for a filled cylinder of CO2?

I'm concerned that it may have sat empty and began rusting on the inside and be good only for a swap but don't know if gas suppliers will take nitrous tanks and swap for CO2.

Thanks,
Tim

heh... dentist... yeah...
seems likely that any gas supply business would exchange it for you.
I personally might just get it refilled

Isn't it also called "locker room" ???

Ouch. Well dress me up and call me Shirley.

If you could do a swap out, that would be the way to go. Everything the gas companies put out has to be up to spec.

Oops. Never mind. Locker room is amyl nitrate (funny the first word rhymes with something).

Butt (there's another one), again, I goofed.


Nitrox oxide is extremely flamable, and is sometimes used to enhance the performance of race cars. I hear it really tears up the engine though.


More fun facts later.

nitrous oxide in a 50 lb tank is likely from either a dentists office, a lab, or much more likely someone's basement... I wouldn't mess with it if you don't have some idea of what you are doing and just trade it in. Nitrous isn't a good thing to decide to toy with around flames or non ventilated areas. You might find it hard to get up and turn the tank off or get tissue damage from freezing (not to mention direct brain damage) resulting in very bad things. Still... as I say they should trade tank for tank as long as it is within its safety testing time limit. If not they might still take it as trade in some way. I highly doubt that it has rusted on the inside unless it is not only completely empty but somehow had regular air vented in.

Unless you know a place that will swap the tank for a CO2 tank, I wouldn't bother. Some places will, some won't. Other uses of nitrous oxide are melting car engines and blowing up expensive model rockets.