CO2 Fills - Welding vs Fire Supression vs Paintball/Sporting Goods vs Exchange

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htims05

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So i'm sure this is asked all the time and/or a hot debate topic but what is your preference for CO2 - Get your tank filled or do an exchange.

My two tanks are brand new, I don't really care what the look like, but I do care if the exchange is giving a a tank that's been re-certified and/or within its certification date.

That said I'm also not sure about having a welding for fire extinguisher place fill my tank - is it the same co2 - I mean (I assume perhaps naively that co2 from a beverage store is for beverages) does welding or fire suppression have other additives in it that shouldn't go for beverages?
 
If you have a place that will fill your cylinders, consider yourself lucky. The places near me that used to do that have been bought by Airgas and they will only exchange.

I'm told its mainly because it takes more effort to "properly" fill a CO2 cylinder than what most welding gas shops can even do.

As to the type of CO2, I'm sure this is debatable but the Airgas shop I went to most recently told me its all "Food Grade". Technically CO2 is CO2. The concern would be impurities from misc things like oils and such, most of which can be filtered out.

Regardless of truth -vs-fiction, I've not had any troubles with the CO2 from refill or exchange.
 
So then the question is...for all the places that exchange who do they get the new gas from? Presumably Airgas or some other major outfit is doing the same thing that BlueRhino is doing with propane tanks.
 
Lots of misinformation on this topic. Just do an internet search.
"Food Grade" CO2 has nothing to do with the gas, and everything to do with the tank.
Food grade tanks are highly regulated and controlled with a stock number. There can be no cross contamination with these tanks. They're usually identified with a pink ring around the top. There should be no "up charge" for food grade CO2.
 
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