Do you refill them? A lot of people do although it is supposed to be illegal to do so and imprisonment and huge fines are promised if taken across state lines. But on the internet there are dozens of videos about how to refill them demonstrating just what equipment is needed to do so.
Today I watched part of a video by Bob Wells, the Pied Piper of van life, giving dire warnings about refilling them and hawking a reusable canister from an outfit called Flame King. These can cost almost $20 apiece or can be bought 4 at a time for about $60. With the little green tanks now costing over $5 and as much as $9 in some out of the way places buying 4 of these may not be such a bad idea. At $5-$9 a pop it won't take long to amortize the expense of permanent bottles. Bob's shtick is that the valves in the green bottles are light duty and not meant for multiple refills, they will eventually leak in your vehicle, a spark will ignite the fumes and you will be killed. I'm sure it has happened but you can also be killed by a drive-by shooter, lightning or a meteoroid impact. What Bob didn't tell us was that the bottles can be made infinitely safer by replacing the flimsy plastic cap with a screw on brass model with a neoprene gasket. That pretty much eliminates the possibility of a leak and a pack of 6 caps is available on Amazon for around $10. A green bottle with a screw on brass cap is probably at least as safe as a new one with a plastic cap, maybe more so.
If you do the math, it is infinitely cheaper to refill than to buy and throw away 1# at a time. I have refilled the same 10 bottles for years now and am meticulously careful about their use, always keeping them tightly capped and throwing away any that have been left without a cap on. There must be millions of these things in landfills, it just seems damned stupid to keep throwing them away.
Today I watched part of a video by Bob Wells, the Pied Piper of van life, giving dire warnings about refilling them and hawking a reusable canister from an outfit called Flame King. These can cost almost $20 apiece or can be bought 4 at a time for about $60. With the little green tanks now costing over $5 and as much as $9 in some out of the way places buying 4 of these may not be such a bad idea. At $5-$9 a pop it won't take long to amortize the expense of permanent bottles. Bob's shtick is that the valves in the green bottles are light duty and not meant for multiple refills, they will eventually leak in your vehicle, a spark will ignite the fumes and you will be killed. I'm sure it has happened but you can also be killed by a drive-by shooter, lightning or a meteoroid impact. What Bob didn't tell us was that the bottles can be made infinitely safer by replacing the flimsy plastic cap with a screw on brass model with a neoprene gasket. That pretty much eliminates the possibility of a leak and a pack of 6 caps is available on Amazon for around $10. A green bottle with a screw on brass cap is probably at least as safe as a new one with a plastic cap, maybe more so.
If you do the math, it is infinitely cheaper to refill than to buy and throw away 1# at a time. I have refilled the same 10 bottles for years now and am meticulously careful about their use, always keeping them tightly capped and throwing away any that have been left without a cap on. There must be millions of these things in landfills, it just seems damned stupid to keep throwing them away.
funny you mention that. This car has hauled a lot of grain and feed, including the occasional bail of hay. Since I took over car it hasn't had to do it since my truck is always here.
