how to make an air tank from a propane tank

Ed Norman · #1 04/19/08, 11:48 PM

I figure I need to pull the valve and replace it with standard air hose connections. Any tricks to remove the valve? Is it left hand thread or anything? Is it a standard plumbing thread so I can use fittings to hook up my new valve and chuck?

poorboy · #2 04/20/08, 12:28 AM

Those 100lb. bottles make great airtanks, righty titey-lefty loosey on the valve in the tank itself the gas lines going into the valves have bassackwards threads. take the gas valve outa tank and go to ahardware store and get the correct bushins to adapt it down to the size you need. get a mail nipple and install you a female quick coupler on it and you have a good setup. But you will need to rig you a short double ended male air hose to fill it with..or you can put avalve type shut off and a tire type valve stem for filling if you want to spend that much..

farminghandyman · #3 04/20/08, 08:24 AM

The actual valve into the tank is right handed pipe thread,

but the simple way is to jsut use a regular propane left hand adaptor (like you find on a small regulator), and tee it and put a fill on one side and the coupler for out on the other side of the tee and keep the origional valve.

to remove the valve (the thread seal they use nearly glues it in to the tank), one has to clamp the tank down and then (they make a special wrench if it has the protection collar on it) to grip the valve and then grunt and turn the wrench it may tank a few tries and a number of grunts.
(when these new ones came out I replace a few valves when it as said and done I did not feel it was worth the effort),

Ed Norman · #4 05/26/08, 10:59 PM

I finally got around to it today on a 100 lb tank I got free at the landfill. I was dreading removing the big valve and noticed the little vent valve used when filling. I put a 9/16" on it and turned it out, and found it has the same threads as a male thread air chuck. Screwed that in and I was done. I made a double male filler and filled it up and it works great, but man does it stink. I dumped the air several times and it still reeks of old stale propane. Awful.

blufford · #5 05/27/08, 05:47 AM

The Amish buy used tanks all the time and convert them for air. They run alot of their tools on air.