calor gas bottle

A

Alrob

Well-Known Member
Joined
19 Jul 2005
Messages
1,042
Visit site
anyone got a simple way of determining how much gas I have left in a 4.5Kg calor bottle ??
 
Maybe weigh it??? dont really know but if its a 4.5 kg bottle of gas its the only way I can think of.
 
I just saw a little stick-on magnetic thingy you can slap on the bottle and it indicates how far down the gas is. Haven't tried one and can't remember where I saw it but if I find the link again I'll post it.
 
The disc around the top gives the empty (tare) weight in lbs and ounces.

Weigh the bottle

Subtract the empty weight

The result is the weight of gas remaining

Convert to kilograms

(I claim no credit for this - I have never done it yet and I read it somewhere on the internet and wrote it down in my notebook)
 
No idea we carry two, and wait for the cooker to expire. Must be awkward if only one bottle is deployed, in which case carry lots of beer, no substitute for a good cuppa though.
 
A full calor bottle weighs 10.6 kilos - i found that the ones in the boat and caravan often had to help out the gas bbq - so i weighed a full one on the scales so i could tell how much gas was left. empty weight which as others have said is marked on the bottle
 
i have just looked at an empty calor gas bottle and weighed it at home, although its a 3.9 kg propane bottle, it was weighed at just under 6 kgs empty. The label showed 12 12, under the stopcock, so converting that arrived at 5.49 kgs, which i would say is about right.

I dont have a butane bottle but i would say that the same sort of info would be present.
so if you weigh it and deduct the amount on the label, then you would have some sort of idea, as long the the full weigh mentioned on the other post is accurate.
 
Humblebee said:
Try a caravan accessory shop - they sell a stick on thing that shows the level of gas left in the bottle. I'm not sure how they work but they somehow can locate the level of liquid gas remaining.Temperature or conductivity, perhaps? Help, please, Vic!
Click to expand...


The gas is warmer than the liquid, giving a reading on the stick on label.(only a guess tho')
 
thanks for ideas guys, I went down to boat tonight armed with kitchen scales - doh !!- kitchen scales only go up to 5Kg (I thought the 4.5Kg meant the total weight of gas & bottle doh !!!)
 
boil kettle using the gas

Pour hot water down side of gas bottle

Feel side of bottle for where the temperature drops sharply - Thats the lebel of the gas - its to do with the liquid gas conducting the heat away more quickly than the vapour
 
colvic987 said:
The gas is warmer than the liquid, giving a reading on the stick on label.(only a guess tho')
Click to expand...

Yes, they are liquid crystal thermometers, similar to the things you can get for wine bottles.

They apparently work best when the gas is actually being used, because that is when the temperature-difference between the liquid and the gas above it is greatest.
 
Alrob said:
anyone got a simple way of determining how much gas I have left in a 4.5Kg calor bottle ??
Click to expand...

Pick it up and shake it.

You can get a good feel for how much liquid is in it (i.e. how much gas is left).

The LCD thermometers that stick onto the side of the bottle work because the liquified gas cools when gas evaporates off as it's used. You can probably make an equally accurate assessment by running you hand down the bottle under similar circumstances.

Andy
 
alan_d said:
Yes, they are liquid crystal thermometers, similar to the things you can get for wine bottles.

They apparently work best when the gas is actually being used, because that is when the temperature-difference between the liquid and the gas above it is greatest.
Click to expand...

Got one of those LCD thermometer stick on thingys. Waste of money. It was showing half full last time we ran out of gas.... In fact it always shows half full, even when I take it off the bottle!.

The idea is that it sticks on the lower half of the gas bottle. According to the instructions you should use gas for at least ten minutes before taking a reading, this cools the liquid inside down, and it is supposed to show the gas level inside.

It doesnt.
 
I have a regulator with a meter attached showing how much gas is left and according to what the ambient temperature is as well. And carry a spare gas tank. Over time I've got a feel for how often I go through a tank, for me it's a 4.5kg tank every 2 months...
 
I have an auto changeover valve, when it switches to the other one, I get it refilled.
Admittedly, not very helpful advice if you only have space for one cylinder.
 
The monitor is called a Gaslow.I have one and it indicates the amount left in the bottle and also tells you if you have a leak.Camping shops and some chandlers sell them for about £20.Mine had a built in regulator but you can get them without i.e. just the monitor bit.
 
Gaslow's work on pressure only and are brilliant at telling you the gas is about to go out, about the same as watching the flame reduce. Whilst there is liquid in the cylinder, there is vapour pressure.
An auto change over switch is also a problem from the fact, that it auto changes over. If it does that and you don't check it, you end up with two empty cylinders.
Parsifals calculation is entirely correct, the remnant liquid is the weight less the tare, which is printed on the cylinder ID plate. This may be on the collar, on a plate welded to the body of the cylinder, or even on the bottom ring. Some gas companies stencil it near the valve, as the older machines needed a tare to work to and this had to be set manually on the filling machines.
Under normal circumstances, the weight of the gas is what is remaining, however some large gas companies operated the nefarious activity of ballasting the cylinder with a couple of kilos of water.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Other threads that may be of interest

E
Is this any use as a kedge?
Replies
15
Views
595
noelex
noelex

Share this page

Top