Hi Rob,
you mention concentrator, now that might just be something different to the electrolysis way of producing o2. electrolysis does not produce or seprate nitrogen as it doesnt use air a a feed stock.
Its the latter im familiar with!.
tho as you may recall ive o2 in 200ltr steel cyls at 300 bar. being a commercial user of this when i need it!!.
Cut some 3/4 steel plate for a repair job last week, My fault! broke my log splitter sheared off the point between the vertical RSJ and the horizontal plate it went through. built it myself and the hydraulics are too powerful.
Ted.
!
Several years ago I went searching for someone to fill my oxygen tank as the closest company that would do it was an hour and a half drive. I found the place in the next town and brought my tank up there. As it turns out it is the business that makes the extreme concentrators. I bought one and haven’t looked back(also got a pretty good deal being a local). Rob is right the nitrogen separation happens from compressing the air and passing it through filters and a sieve bed. In actuality extreme actually will replace the filters and the sieve bed media if they get filled. Some of these have been used for large glassblowing operations and have gone years without replacement. For a typical jewelry torch usage it would probably be many years longer. I was told by the owner to turn the concentrator on long before you plan to use it(as in over 10 minutes) and to leave the torch cracked open. There is a time curve until it gets up to the correct oxygen concentration(and breathing extra oxygen doesn’t really hurt anything!). These units are actually reserviced medical concentrators. The pressure valves and some other items are swapped out He had a device that measured the oxygen purity in the shop and it actually produced more concentrated oxygen then the oxygen used in medical tanks.
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Hi Rob,
Ted again,
Ive done my research, and yes its a different system to the electrolysis of water. It rapidly drops the compressed air pressure in the cryolite adsorban tank where the nitrogen is held at a molecular level, and passes the oxygen to another cylinder for further cleaning? beforre passing it to an outlet.
all diagrams ive found show a complicated system of valves etc so theres quite a lot that could go faulty.
For the original poster its really back to the maker for a trouble shooting guide and parts list.
These were developed for medical use for folks who need additional oxygen in their homes where compressed and liquid o2 was not practical.
ted.
Ted…As far as I can tell, your research is correct. These concentrators are re-manufactured medical O2 generators that have been modified to produce O2 at a little bit higher flow rate than that for which they were originally designed. There are, I am sure, a number of things that can go wrong in a concentrator to cause the problems that the original poster is experiencing. However, other than regular filter maintenance, I am not sure if you can fix them, or at least that it is economical to fix them. If the concentrator isn’t producing fairly pure O2, the torch won’t work. I can tell this when I try to light my torch before the concentrator has stabilized and it blows out the gas flame because the concentrator isn’t producing pure enough O2. I wait a few minutes, and it eventually stabilizes and the flame is sustained just like with an O2 tank and regulator. If it keeps blowing out the flame, and I know that all the connections, valves, torch tips etc are good, I will assume that the concentrator is the cause of the problem. Fix or replace the concentrator is the question. I have yet to be faced with this decision. When I am, I will buy another concentrator for reasons that I have already discussed. I don’t want large cylinders of compressed gas and oxygen in my shop. For my purposes, I can run my torches on 1 lb. refillable propane cylinders and O2 from a concentrator. I don’t cut or weld large pieces of steel. If I did, I would have a shop outside of my house and use proper cutting and welding torches to do it. Thanks…Rob
I have been using an oxy-con for almost a year now. I was a beginner then as well so I feel your pain… Rio Grande has an excellent video on getting started with using one.
I bought a re-furbished one at a much lower price and then simply outfitted it myself which is really simple. The oxy-con makes oxygen as it functions at a specific flow rate as is indicated on the meter. No oxygen is stored and it is not emitted under any pressure at all. Keep in mind that these are actually made for medical use - not torches. You need to keep the flow all the way up and keep it there.
I don’t know what size tip you had on your Smith Little, but you need to handle lighting your torch differently than if you had pressure control. I have had that same blow out when I have a lot of fuel on and then introduce the oxygen. If it happens repeatedly, I turn off the oxy-con, bleed the line a little and try again… When I begin my daily work, I turn on my oxy-con and open the corresponding torch valve all the way. Then I leave that for several minutes so that the oxygen can develop more purity. When I am ready to light up, I turn the oxy valve off at the torch.Then immediately turn the fuel side of the torch on slightly and light it up. I then re-open the oxy and begin to adjust my flame until I have what I want for the job. You need to finesse this process until you get used to the feel. Go slowly. Your flame control using the propane and oxygen concentrator will come from the torch - not fuel pressure.
Watch the video - It will help you.
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I have this problem all the time with my oxygen and propane tank. The way I get around it is to first open both tanks up. I than light my propane and than reduce my flame to very low. Than I open the oxygen slightly. With a nice but small blue flame I than increase the propane than alternate increasing the oxygen till I see my nice blue flame. Keep alternating until you achieve the desired strength of your flame.