[Jewelry making - Article 00521] - Re: [Orchid] Acetylene prestolite torch safety

[Karen Goeller]

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Sara,

    Of all the tanks and gasses you could have picked, the acetylene is
    likely the safest for use inside your home. There are a couple of
    reasons for this (and why your homeowner's policy and your local fire
    inspector likely won't have a problem with it, but you should check
    anyway). First, acetylene is lighter than ambient air, so it floats
    up and dissipates (unlike propane, which puddles and ponds at floor
    level so it isn't smelled until you have a REAL problem just before
    it goes boom). As acetylene is floating up, you also can smell it,
    which alerts you even earlier to the possibility of a leak. 

    Any compressed gas can cause a fire or explosion, so you need to be
    cautious about caring for the cylinder. It should be strapped into a
    welding caddy or firmly chained and secured to a non-moveable wall or
    built-in object. This is so that you can't knock it over and also so
    that if it does somehow become punctured, it won't fly all over the
    studio and become a lethal missile. 

    When you are soldering, you're not breathing acetylene or the
    acetone in which it's dissolved in the tank. Instead, you're
    breathing the residue from burning off the acetylene. You're also
    breathing the residue of your flux, dust or other contaminants from
    your soldering block, etc. So good ventilation on the soldering table
    is a MUST... it needs to be drawing off the fumes, ash, and residue
    from the heating process and moving all that AWAY from your face and
    outside. You can do this easily and cheaply through a high-CFM
    exhaust fan (in an outside window) that is attached to a metal dryer
    hose that you can position right by your work area. If you light a
    candle in front of the intake, it should very clearly and
    immediately draw ALL of the candle smoke into it. 

    Get a copy of Charles Lewton-Brain's book on workshop safety as well
    (http://www.lulu.com/content/1322094). Definitely worth the money! 

I hope this helps!
Karen Goeller
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