I just found a set of tanks at a yard sale, these are the big ones 4.5-5 feet tall the ladys husband left and she got stuck with all his junk, she says I can have them for free, they've been in her yard for at least 3 years who knows where they came from. Are these exchangeable or should I just leave it for the scavanger? Jim

Take them.

He probably got them local, and you can exchange them or sell em.

I'm going to call the local welding supply tomorrow I was just curious if anyone had run into this before. Jim

take them, they are worth some money. Here in Nebraska you cannot buy the tanks but "lease" them for 20 years. After the 20 years, they are yours. I believe when I leased mine some 20+ years ago, they were around $200. I see them sell on auctions all the time for pretty good money.
Cheers
Steve

Yeah, the tank game is a racket. Take 'em!

Pick them up ...I bought an o2 tank at a garage sale almost 16 yrs. ago, traded it in for a CO2/ Argon bottle, and have been swaping bottles ever since. Then a few yrs. back they were out of the same size bottle and I got 2 smaller bottles, traded those in one at a time for the larger bottles, So now I always have a full spare. It sure beats the 150-200 $ others I know are paying for thier " Lease "

I've thrown 3 or 4 away that I inherited when a relative passed away because none of the welding suppliers would refill or exchange them and I had no proof that I owned them.

They say "we can't take them because they are not ours".
I think I still have a couple more to try as soon as they become empty.

On the other hand I bought three 20 lb Co2 tanks for $5.00 each at garage sales and returned them for $70.00 each deposit. I also bought a "B" tank with a Prestoloite regulator, hose and torch for $7.50 and returned it for around 68.00 deposit.

In NY, tanks have to pass a burst test.Not sure what the time limit is, but the last test date is stamped on the tank. You may have pay to have the tank tested before reusing them. If they're useless, you may have to pay to get rid of them. Check with you local dealer before you take them.

I called the welding shop today and they said if their past a certain date they'd test them for 10 bucks apiece and the company is stamped on the cylinder and they said they will refill. I should find out next week if I get a chance to get them over there. Jim

I picked up the tanks last night the acetlene tank had a local company name stamped on it, when I called them they said they were rentals and would I please return it. I asked of they charge a deposit, they said yes, so I asked if I would get to collect the deposit and they said no, they just want they tank back! Well I found another company that will exchange them. Jim

Around here, you can either buy your own, or rent them. With rentals, they claim they expect them back within a couple of weeks to exchange for a refill. Supposedly, they will only exchange the rentals, and your personally owned bottles will have to be marked and refilled. In reality, they'll just exchange them. I bought a set of tanks about 10 years ago, still haven't used all of the acetylene. Oxygen is due for a refill soon, 2nd time. Hoses are due for replacement, too. I do have a couple of C25 tanks for my mig, a 20cf and a 50cf that I exchange about once a year each.