Gas bottle valve help needed please

[sparkysy]

What's the worst that is going to happen! If the valve is shut then no gas can escape! I've done loads either cutting the guard off or hacksawing through the valve and even giving them a good battering and never had a problem! The other week though I had a mate round while I was de valving one! I got him to sit on it and when I got a spanner, scaff bar and a sledge hammer he was well edgy! Told him he should of been there while I had the collar off it with the 9inch!

 

[DAPPH]

Al , if you've not managed to remove the tap can you lay the bottle on it's side , slip a longish bar through the holes in the bottom to stop it rotating , sit astride the bottle then try the spanner & lump hammer trick to loosen it .

As I'd disabled I can't do , " The Gorilla tricks " , anymore so have to use my brain instead .
When I do my bottle top games I'm going to weld up a 1/2 " thick steel shoe ( With a hole to insert a 3 foot long inch thick power bar ) that fits over the whole valve assembly as snug as possible.. I'll put three or more 3/4 x 4 inch long inch anchor bolt sleeves down in our 6 " thick concrete garage floor , using resin anchors.

When the time comes to take the valve out I'll insert the bolts in the anchor sleeves , to anchor onto some purpose made clamps with short 1 & 1/2" chain links that bolt into lower rim holes or use 1/2" or 3/4 re bar hot bent " S" hooks. Then gently wind the valves out using a longer tubular extension to the power bar if needed to crack the seal

 

[outofthefire]

B

What size flue would you use on a 7kg and 15kg stove? And who would stock it?

There is probably an optimum size but I use scrap crossmembers out of the wagons at work, they're about 4" and work ok.

 

[MattF]

If you can't safely cut the shield off with a power saw or grinder you should not go within 100 m of a gas bottle. Or leave the house on your own.

To be fair though, there are so many people online willing to tell how it's likely to incinerate everything within a fifty yard radius each time something like this is mentioned that you can't really blame someone who isn't practiced with things like this for being cautious and possibly nervous. There are way too many doom and gloom mongers out there.

It's one of those things which applies to pretty much anything. Use common sense and gumption, and if you don't have either, steer well clear.

 

[al johnson]

Ok I will admit it's beat me, in my defence I can only say that the effort needed in more than I can give since my heart op, it would be silly to risk my health by straining to much and so for that reason I will accept the kind offer from Mr Migwire! After that I can take my time.

Can I thank all of you for the help and thoughts you have put into this discussion, I will let you know with pics how it all goes,, in the past I have made racks etc for motorbikes and even a couple of go karts, those days are long gone and I was somewhat fitter as well lol.

Thanks guys, have a good weekend!

 

[outofthefire]

Ok I will admit it's beat me, in my defence I can only say that the effort needed in more than I can give since my heart op, it would be silly to risk my health by straining to much.

I'm sure someone cleverer than me once said you can move a mountain with a long enough lever, but I can understand you not wanting to strain too much.

 

[Bill Edwards]

I'm sure someone cleverer than me once said you can move a mountain with a long enough lever

That may be very true, but extra distance needs to be traveled as a lever gets longer, so while technically possible it would require a very long walk!

 

[DAPPH]

Put a hydraulic ram on the long lever you can shorten the original length considerably.

PS.
I think it was that guy who was screwing around who said, "Give me a lever long enough & I can move the world " . I've just remembered ... it was a guy called Archimedes

 

[al johnson]

Sorted! A few kettles of boiling water then knocking hell out of the valves and they finally gave in, did 3 in 40 minutes.

The only problem I see coming now is the hinges, a few of you have said in earlier posts that certain hinges will seize up after a few fire ups, Could you post ( pics ) the types of hinges which you know will stand the test of time please, I would rather do this right the first time than having do start again..


Cheers guys

 

[outofthefire]

I make all my hinges myself, they are all made from either flat bar or a piece from the base for curved hinges with a piece of tube welded to them and a pin of a suitable size, they are all made so the door can be just lifted off the hinge. If you don't have any suitable tube and you don't have access to a lathe, you can run a few nuts loosely down a bolt then weld them together. then holding the bolt in a running drill tickle the weld on the nuts with a grinder. Then just drill out the threads, you can spin a bolt down to a suitable size for the pin and nicely round off the head. I usually drill holes through the hinge and spot weld them on.

 

[sardine]

Weld on hinges are cheap enough and look much neater.

 

[mr migwire]

Weld on hinges are cheap enough and look much neater.

yeah but wheres the fun in that mate, I like to be able to say "i made that" a bit of 10mm round bar and some flat bar and your away.

 

[DAPPH]

OK use 1" square MS bar and drill /bore so you can fit the hinge pin in the ends , trouble is that when the pins wear of the body is still in good nick you have to grind off the old hinge to put new ones on .
If you need someone to drill bore them on a lathe , so long as you supply the metals for body & pins there are plenty of folk onsite like me willing to play and do it for you.

The other way is to use three square bar lengths , drill & tap the vertical hinge then put two shortish hinge arms on bolts with brass washers in between the shoulders down into the vertical bar

Al ,
I found out that when you want to cut the door in a cylinder cut the hinge side first with a thin cutting disk and put the hinges on . make the opposite cut and fix the door closer on then cut the other two sides it gives you a brill door fit & stops you jamming the disc cutter . If needs be you can then remove the door entirely and fit shrouds around the edges if needed.

 

[Parm]

• A method I use to make hinges is get some steel tube with 10mm ID hole. Cut tube into an odd number of lengths to suit door. Then link all together with 10mm studding and place over door on hinge side. Then for example weld two sections to door and three to the frame. Works a treat every time and if things a little tight then remove the studding and fettle with a file

If you get good at this you can weld a dome nut at one end of the hinge and another dome nut to one end of the studding thus allowing whole thing to be screwed together with almost visible fixings

 

[outofthefire]

Weld on hinges are cheap enough and look much neater.

Look much neater than what? if you are making something from scratch in my opinion you make everything. If you want something mass produced and machine made you might as well jut go out and buy the whole thing and to be honest if you cant make a hinge your going to struggle with the rest.

 

[al johnson]

making my own hinges would be the way to, as you say it's the satisfaction of start to finish diy, I am only hindered in the lack of tools since so much is in storage but you guys are right, when it's finished I can stand back and say, yep, I made that! Even tho it's only for a shed I want it to look good so I hope with the limited tools at hand I can still make a decent job.
Thanks for your offer DAPPH and advice, the hinges I will have go at and the door directions will make life easier.

 

[Wedg1e]

Look much neater than what? if you are making something from scratch in my opinion you make everything. If you want something mass produced and machine made you might as well jut go out and buy the whole thing and to be honest if you cant make a hinge your going to struggle with the rest.

Hmmm, if you're going down that route you'd better cast the shell in your backyard foundry

 

[sardine]

You didn't make the gas bottle you cheat !

( you stole it from Calor, and criminally damaged it , you naughty boy )

 

[al johnson]

Ok so part of it was already done for me I give you that but you should have seen the fun I had just getting to point were I could think of even starting it. I would like to think that calor and all the other makers of bottles designed the units with diy'ers in mind for after the life of the bottle had ended, well this one is dead I can assure you but now it's about to be reborn

On a happier note I have just returned from the local engineers, I have asked for flat bar ,tubing , round bar, sheet metal for the baffle and 4 feet of 4 inch pipe, they have the 3mm size, total cost of all of the above is £10 and apart from the flue pipe I will have enough to metal to make 3 stoves which will allow for any silly mistakes! I thought this was a bargain especially since it included the flue pipe as well, so did I get a good deal?

So the first step once I pick my materials up is to make the hinges, the fire rope for the door will be ordered off fleabay so I am about ready to go nearly.

 

[sardine]

You have a legally binding letter from Calor that allows you legal ownership of the bottle, and a risk assessment filed with the HSE, and are going to laboratory test the emissions of this stove to comply with EU regulations ?