Natural gas booster

Jewelry Discussion
1

I’m in preliminary stages of planning/building a new home and studio.
I’ve always used an O2/Propane torch, but considering moving to
O2/natural gas with a G-Tec booster. My gas needs are for daily
fabrication and weekly casting. Aside from the cost, are there
disadvantages to such a setup that I should be aware of? If any of
you are users of a G-Tec, are you satisfied with their product?

Thanks for your help.
Jamie

2

Hi Jamie,

If any of you are users of a G-Tec, are you satisfied with their
product?

Very satisfied. I use two of them, each at a different location. I’ve
experienced excellent customer service from them as well. I think
it’s just a smart thing to use the booster, you can raise your
pressure if need be and it adds an extra layer of safety between your
torch and your gas meter. If you try to use natural gas straight,
without the booster, you likely won’t have enough pressure to push
through the flashback arrestor. So if you want to use NG you really
need a booster. Anyway, I’ve used them for 4 years and am very
satisfied.

Best regards,
Mark

3

Hi Jamie,

If you are in the US, I know that most cities and town that provide
natural gas usually provide it at about 2lbs of pressure out going so
that should be enough for a small shop set up for soldering and
casting.

I have a small manufacturing business and I use propane and O2 for
soldering and run a straight line for casting of natural gas. I
worked for another business at one time that use a gas generator and
they ran at least 8 stations for soldering, a natural gas oven for
casting and a gas torch for heating the crucibles. It was more than
adequate for their needs but at a cost of $2000.00 for the generator,
it better be! LOL I think you should be fine without one.

4

Since I am the Sales Manager at G-TEC you can pretty much guess what
my recommendation will be so I will let the response from the Orchid
community speak for itself!

If you decide to purchase a G-TEC system please call me directly
with any questions you may have about the right system, installation
in your studio, fire marshal approval or anything else.

There is a lot of about our systems for jewelers at our
website www.safe-t-gas.com - click on the “Jewelry Manufacturing”
link unless you are in New York City (there are different rules for
our systems in NYC). We explain the different Torch Booster models,
pricing, distributors who sell our systems, safety certifications and
approvals and get a quick overview of how our Torch Boosters are
connected to your utility natural gas pipe.

Anyone with a questions about how a G-TEC system would work for you
is invited to call me directly.

Ed Howard
G-TEC
1-800-451-8294

5

I have used the G-Tec booster everyday for the past several years.
We cast up to 50 flasks a day and have never had a single problem
with the machine. You will be glad you bought it!

6 
If you are in the US, I know that most cities and town that
provide natural gas usually provide it at about 2lbs of pressure
out going so that should be enough for a small shop set up for
soldering and casting.

In some commercial real estate it is possible to get high pressure
natural gas but often at a significant installation cost. The
distribution pressure varies with the age of the utilities lines. It
is against code to supply residences with more than 11 inches of
water pressure which is just below.5 PSI. At that pressure there are
problems with using it for torches. You cannot get a flashback
arrestor that will work at that low a pressure.

James Binnion
James Binnion Metal Arts

7 
If you are in the US, I know that most cities and town that
provide natural gas usually provide it at about 2lbs of pressure
out going so that should be enough for a small shop set up for
soldering and casting.

This isn’t always true - in many places typical gas pressure is 1/4
psi (also refered to as 7" Water Column, 28" Water Column = 1 psi),
which is not enough to flow through a flashback arrestor so when you
use a flashback arrestor it will block gas flow. Depending on the
manufacturer it takes between 1 to 3 psi to open the flashback
arrestor valve and get a good gas flow.

Natural gas appliances use 1/4 psi gas so if you are in a
residential area then this is most likely your gas pressure. If you
are in a commercial area you may be able to get higher pressure
service but you might need to put regulators on the hot water heater,
space heaters and other equipment that uses natural gas.

It was more than adequate for their needs but at a cost of $2000.00
for the generator, it better be!

Depending on your gas requirements we have Torch Boosters priced
much lower than that! Please visit our website -
http://www.safe-t-gas.com/page13.html

Ed Howard
G-TEC
1-800-451-8294

8

O2 concetrator or generator to use with a natural gas booster

I’m planning the purchase of a TB-15 natural gas booster from G-Tec.
It is rated for up to three jewelry torches. Could any of you
recommend an O2 concentrator or generator to pair with it? I’m not
sure what I need in terms of PSI or LPM or any other factor I need to
consider. Of courses the torches aren’t the majority of the time. The
G-Tec unit has its “recirculating” mode. Is there any kind of
"sleep" or “standby” mode for the O2 generators that conserves
electricity?