I guess I am public enemy number none, cause I have been refilling disposables for years, and transporting them.

If you buy these 2nd hand from somewhere, check the SN# as there was a recall on the early ones.

link

You got screwed big time. A fool and their money...

You also got screwed on the regular bottle adapter. Those 'should' only be around 10 to 15 bucks.

Lastly, There is no way you or any freakin cop can tell by looking if a regular 'disposable' type propane bottle has been refilled or not. The simple act of refilling them does nothing to the bottle that can be visually seen or detected in any way.

When properly cared for, stored and used - The 'disposable' bottles can easily survive for many years and if one pays attention (knows what they are doing) they CAN be refilled and reused many hundreds of time with no ill effect.

For the $53.00 you wasted on a single pair of 'special' 1lb bottles a guy can easily buy a case of the regular 'disposable' bottles and have enough money left over to refill them several times... (costs me about $11.00 to have a 20lb tank filled locally and that will refill about 20 of the 1lb bottles)

Same. Every last one of my tanks have been refilled. Every last one. They start looking crappy, just toss them and pick out a new one from your favorite campground garbage, recycling center, etc.

So no leaking valves?

In all of my disposable uses I think I can count about ZERO times I've had a valve seal up after it's been "cracked" for the first time. As a matter of fact, I just know that if I'm going to put a tank on something it's not coming back off until empty, or it's going immediately onto something else. I've bought several of those cheap $10 pencil burners just to act as proper "seals" for them...

I've refilled many 1lb bottles. Many repeatedly. Only had one leak after filling.

I like the idea of these 1 lb refillable bottles so I may go get some eventually.

For others that may not know any better -

Disposable bottles generally come with caps. The caps help keep the important parts clean and free of debris when not in use. Keeping these parts of the bottles clean is very important for making sure they last a long time without leaking.

In my experience most leaking bottles have either been damaged, overfilled or allowed to get crud inside their connecting point that prevents them from being able to seal properly. All of that is preventable.

A bottle that is not visibly damaged or full of crud that is slightly leaking at its connection point will stop leaking once connected to the appliance. (assuming the appliance is not broken or damaged)

Disposable bottles are generally very well made and are designed to be idiot resistant. Even in the event that some bubba refills one and is somehow smart enough to get more than he is supposed to in there - they are not going to instantly explode. (most folks wont know how to get a full 100% refill on one let alone fill one to over 100% of the volume of propane it had in it when it was when purchased anyway)

Even an old and tired (think bottle that has been refilled many times for many years) bottle that has been refilled to above capacity and then set out someplace really warm is not likely to explode due to the built in pressure relief valve. Once that bottle warms up and the pressure rises to above what the relief valve was designed to contain - The relief valve will open and release whatever volume of propane it needs to until the pressure drops to below where it was set at the factory. Unless the pressure relief valve was damaged or modified - The bottle will still contain propane and will still be able to be used over and over again. A bottle with a clean and functional pressure relief valve (that was not screwed with by bubba) is going to vent any over pressure situation long before the bottle even thinks about bulging or bursting.

My advice for people that wish to refill their own 'disposable' propane bottles:

1) Safest thing you can do by far and best way to make sure the bottles last forever is to save and reuse your caps when bottle is not in actual use. Keep the bottle, connection point, and pressure relief valve area clean at all times. NEVER attempt to adjust or modify the pressure relief valve in any way. Only refill bottles that are empty and that are at room temp. before refilling. You will only get an 80% to 90% refill this way but the bottles will be 'safe' in pretty much any environment that a new and 'unmolested' bottle would and will last pretty much indefinitely.

2) You are 'that guy' that just cant be happy with an about 80% refill and just has to get more in there - - Freeze the empty bottles for a few hours before refilling them from a room temp tank. That alone will allow you to get another 5 to 10% in there. Follow all other advice I gave above in step 1 and stop there for the sake of 'safety'.

3) You are 'that guy' that just cant leave well enough alone AND you just signed up for the Darwin award... You want even MORE in there than you really should put in there - - Refill the bottle about half way using your normal method and then freeze the half refilled bottle for several hours. Once you cant get it any colder in your freezer - Refill that from a relatively warm and full mother tank. If you are going this route you either want to attach that (overfilled) bottle to an appliance right away and begin using it OR store it in a working freezer. If the excess propane that you managed to get in there is not used before the bottle reaches room temp it may (or may not) vent and this could lead to you 'winning' that Darwin award you wanted so badly... You were warned. If stored in a working freezer - Bottles that have been overfilled this way will usually hold their contents just fine. I use the word 'usually' because it is YOUR freezer, YOUR disposable bottle and YOUR Darwin award at stake here.

NEVER attempt to adjust or modify the pressure relief valve in any way.

I think the problem I have with this is that a single 1#er isn't usually enough.

I have a 5# I truck along for camping. (Backpacking I use the Propane/Butane mix; that shit's smaller)

I do have a 1# refill adapter, but I really only fill them in camp for a lantern or something, and modern LED lanterns have really cut that down for me.

According to the video you linked to above - You are not storing '1 pounders' any more. You paid extra for the little allen screw that helps keep you at an 80% refill.

(you did not 'need' the special screw to be able to do that)

The only reason the disposable tanks are not supposed to be refilled is because there is no requirement to hydro test them. They are too thin to be stamped, and were never meant to be refilled because no one ever thought Harry Homeowner would bother with it.

.....But they are easily refillable.

I made an adapter to help me fill 20lb and 100lb tanks from my 500 gallon tank. I have a proper fill setup for my tank. What I made is an adapter that allows me to use a HVAC vacuum pump to pull a vacuum on the small tank. I then close the valve and take it to the big tank and fill it. It's easy to get a full tank that way. It would be pretty easy to do the same with a 1lb tank.

I don't mind having slightly low 1lb bottles so I usually put them in the freezer for awhile before filling.

I have also used a pair of forceps to open the pressure relief valve and get a full fill. Works just fine too.

This sums it up nicely, no reason to fuck with the pressure relief to fill. You're only along for problems getting it properly seated or worse with properly venting in an overpressure situation.

Always nice to have quality options.

I have refilled dozens of 1lb disposables and only had one that leaked. After that I started putting a drop of silicone oil on the stem about every 3 fills and have not had a problem.

I have disposed of tanks that get corrosion on the valve or threads after being stored in less than ideal conditions.

I've never had one that hasn't leaked... I never even try refilling them because they always leak as soon as I put them on something and take them off.

Stored properly, with the plastic protective cap on and all. They've always leaked for me. Just had a power outage a couple months back that necessitated some lantern usage so I got out 2 new bottle. Went to take them off the lanterns when outage was over to put it all back into storage and both were hissing loud enough to hear... so I had to grab some pencil tip torches to put on the bottles.

Brass caps w/ rubber washers are available for the 1 lb. bottles. Not sure how good a job they would do if there is a leak going on but couldn't hurt & would provide some protection for the top.

At what cost? Op reports this setup has brass valves that are an improvement on the "disposable" cylinders. If the brass caps are anywhere north of $4 these purpose-made refillables seem to be a good option.

$2 - $2.50 each, delivered, via various Amazon Prime listings in fairly small quantities.

https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=sr_gnr_fkmr2?rh=i%3Aaps%2Ck%3Abrass+cap+propane&keywords=brass+cap+propane&ie=UTF8&qid=1542501365

No idea what you're doing differently. I have no idea how many I've filled with no problems. I've used every method listed to fill them and just had the one that had a leaky valve. I put it on a heater, emptied the bottle, and threw it away. I've used several brands but most of mine are Coleman brand.

I have looked at these Flame King bottles and they do appear to be very well made. Compared to buying bottles, a couple of these wouldn't take too long to pay for themselves, especially since a 1 lb fill costs me about $0.40 in propane.

I take the protective cap off, align things, push together while spinning to get the threads engaged, then thread it on. Reverse the procedure to remove...

I was just looking through their Christmas catalog and wouldn't you know it, on sale for $34.99 until Dec 1st... includes 1 bottle.

My great uncle was refilling them as soon as they came out, in the late 50's?  I know he was rolling around in a 4x4 Willys Station wagon at the time, and they stopped making them in 1965.

For that matter, my family had a bunch of 60s?? Philgas 20lb tanks that didn't have shut off valves at all, basically a really big disposable cylinder setup, and due to knowing some redneck hardware store in MI, they got those refilled into the late 1990s.  I'm not sure those had a test date, and were certainly illegal as a pre-school gangbang.

Could the reason that the 1 lb tanks leak after re-filling is because the Schrader valves in the 1 lb tanks are being depressed too far?

I found with HVAC units to not screw thumb valves too far in when using them in line with my pressure gauges, or else the Schrader cores wouldn't snap back shut.

And still a rip off even at that price...

After you (or anyone else) get parted from your money on one of these - Please post up measurements of how much the thing actually holds in propane weight. Empty tank compared to full tank weight please...

Menards has a 2 week price-match policy... the alternative around this policy if you're outside the 2 weeks is, Buy new one at sale price, return new one on old receipt...

At some point it has failed to sink into your head that not everybody is looking for exactly the same thing, and not everybody places the same value on certain things.

That being said, what exactly do you mean by post up measurements of how much it holds? Are you insinuating that the "1 lb capacity" of these refillable bottles is the 100% capacity while the "1 lb" of LP in the disposables is the 80% capacity? I find it very unlikely they would mix up markings like that. Even if they did, does it really actually matter? We're talking 20% of 16.4 oz (just over 3 oz of gas). Does it really actually matter when you're refilling them yourself?

You've already demonstrated enough of your personality to me that I know I don't really care what you have to say, it's likely wrong or misguided and there are plenty of other respectable posters that can appropriately articulate a disagreeing view-point. Your posts have become comedic!

This. Time to find somewhere else to spend your time.

https://www.amazon.com/ShowNew-Universal-Propane-Cylinder-Protect/dp/B0775JDNKF?psc=1&SubscriptionId=AKIAILSHYYTFIVPWUY6Q&tag=duckduckgo-d-20&linkCode=xm2&camp=2025&creative=165953&creativeASIN=B0775JDNKF

This is the solution I use.

You got screwed big time... you're paying $11 for a refill on your 20 lb bottles?

I pay $4. A fool and his money...

A friend of mine and myself have been doing this for awhile. we use Vaseline in the threads and on the valve to help lube the connection. To help flow freeze the 1lb bottles and keep the 20lb bottle at normal temp or warmer. It helps the flow.

OP, please keep a window cracked in yer vehicle while running propane heat.  Thanks for posting.

I looked into those but for the cost they are not worth it.

I don't have a problem with refills leaking either, but I also don't keep corroded bottle around either and test for leaks on every fill.

I have had the regular brass adapter for a long time but it sucks to use, but I built a "filler" after seeing the flame king and paintball refill videos

this one is a old BBQ adapter retreaded, ball valve, a off gass port and a old propane torch that I gutted/threaded. Basically cost nothing as I had the parts laying around (hence all the adapter fittings)





if you freeze the bottle you get 100%, if not you get about 90% because of the boil off.

screw in bottle, open relief valve to depressurise, close, then turn the ball valve to fill

let off the pressure with the relief valve and add more if needed.

$.85 a gallon is cheaper than anywhere I've ever seen. That's impressive.

I mostly said it to point out to him that not everybody sees value the same. It's all based on their situation, their wants/desires, etc.

To be completely honest, I get my refills for free because "he" doesn't charge me; he being my dad. The full story is my dad uses more propane in a month than multiple households use in a year. He has a 20,000 gal, a 3,000 gal, and five 1,000 gal tanks. He buys his LP by the semi-load. In the last 18 months he's gotten a load as low as $0.57/gal, his highest load was $0.93/gal.

So in my eyes, AR15Techguy is over-paying for LP because I don't have to pay that much for mine. But overpaying to one guy can seem like a heck of a deal to another. Just like those flame-king bottles. If the OP sees value in having a brass valve (IE, not as prone to corrosion), with a manually controlled vent valve in it, and a ready-made refill adapter, then does it really matter that there are cheaper bottles (with less features) out there?

I buy USA made tools products sometimes, when there is better value in doing so. Many cheap-skates likely think it's a waste of money when you can get Chinese tools products for a fraction of the cost, some of them even come with lifetime warranties that rival or beat the US made stuff.

Notice how they don't want to disclose how much their overpriced bottles hold on a refill either...

Guessing it is 80% of a lb. which is less than what a 'disposable' can and will hold after a full refill.

Brainy is spending 3 times as much for a bottle that is specially designed to hold less! LOL!

Weight of the empty bottles would / could also help guys make a reasonable guess about the bottles strength as well but they don't want to share that info either for some reason. My guess would be that these overpriced bottles have about the same empty weight as a disposable and are in reality no 'stronger' at all.

For a thread that is supposed to be a 'review' of a product - This thread is pretty short on any sort of real facts / specifics about the product mentioned and pretty long on opinions.

Notice how (so far) in all of the different replies to this thread you sir are the ONLY guy posting about having so many problems with these things?

I suppose it is possible that you could just have really bad luck but I doubt that.

There are plenty of guys that simply can't use a hammer without smacking their thumb every other swing while there are many times more that can easily drive those same nails using the same hammer all day long without issue. An honest guy does not blame the hammer for their sore thumb.

1 thats not a personal attack

2 your the one who has problems with the refilling as he pointed out

80% is the max fill for any LP vessel. Normally vessels with a capacity expressed in weight are expressing the 80% number or max fill while those expressed in volume (gal) are the total capacity. The fact that you're saying guessing that this one manufacturer is listing counter to the norm is very telling. It's not uncommon on the web for people to act like experts when they really know nothing. You're in back-pedal mode and we all know it.
How very presumptuous of you. Bc it couldn't possibly be related to the brand of tanks I buy, frequency of use or anything else. Even if it were operator error, to sling imply person insults is pretty low and shows just how classy you are. Nobody is perfect and mistakes/error do happen.

Not that it matters to you, but I've been described by co-workers as the most intelligent and most capable person they've met in their entire life. My wife has stated many times that on the off-chance she finds something I can't do she gets frustrated because I can do almost anything and do it with excellence. And in my most recent performance review my boss expressed his desire for me to ensure I'm teaching others my skills bc they're indispensable and if something were to happen to me it would cause a severe impact to our group. The "others" he wants me to teach are some of the best, most-educated workers this country has and are all highly paid professionals in their area; and he wants me to pass on my skills to them. The gov't has sent me into austere environments w/ SOF so that I could support the likes a Green Berets, SEALs, etc with anything they could need, including weapons changes/repair, machining/fabrication, & electronics & NVG repair, to name only a few things I did for them. The SEALs were very appreciative of my advanced, diverse skill-set. I was able to repair a MK48 that had been to the armorer 6 times w/ no solution. And you're here foolishly insinuating that I'm the type of guy that can't even swing a hammer w/o hitting my thumb. Mhmm, yup, that's gotta be it... Tell me more about LP, your knowledge on the subject seems remarkable!

Thank you!  

I was going to come here and post that I really liked those brass caps that were linked and order a 5 pack to try them out.  In my experience the older the 1LB tank is the more prone it is to leaking a bit when not attached to something with a valve.

If I like the quality of those caps I may order another 5 pack.  I think they would be handy for using on any disposable 1LB that your transporting, or using while camping.

I have an older straight refill attachment that I haven't used much in a while, so I ordered one of the ones that uses the new style propane thread with the big knob.

I do like the linked kit but my shop is so full of junk, and I have so many of those extra disposable bottles floating around I figure why not just keep filling them.  I really only use them when camping, maybe 4 1LB tanks a year?  Once our full size BBQ grill bites the dust we are going to go with a smaller table top webber that uses the 1LB tanks and then I will be more inclined to refill them on a regular basis.  I am getting sick of having so much "stuff" everywhere that I am down sizing where possible.  To much gear, to much of this, to may of those, to much junk.  Sometimes less is more.

This thread also reminds me that I have almost exhausted my new in package 1LB supply and need to guy buy a few more packs.