Is hydrogen refills cheaper than CO2?

[GasGuzzler309]

Is hydrogen refills cheaper than CO2? I've heard rumors. I want to buy a hydrogen tank but Im pretty cheap and want to know how much the refills are. Thanks

[Lord_Whoopass]

You mean HPA right? yeah mine are alot cheaper... and its a huge improvement over CO2... much much more consistant...

[USAF-Flyboy with a Mag]

hydrogen? I think you are mixing it up with nitrogen. Just fyi hydrogen is VERY flamable, so not a good idea. Just ask the late crew of the Hidenburg.

[Skoad]

cheaper? generally they are equal or cost more for a fill.

[cphilip]

To answer your question... No... Hydrogen fills are MUCH more expensive.

And dangerous as has been stated.

Nitrogen is a bit more expensive than High Pressure Air most times. But both will work.

Some places CO2 is getting almost as high as High pressure air to get a fill. But its more dense and last longer per fill per volume. Since its in a liquid form it fits more Gas in a smaller area. But its more and more becoming a Dinosaur.

[speedyejl]

Originally posted by cphilip


Some places CO2 is getting almost as high as High pressure air to get a fill. But its more dense and last longer per fill per volume. Since its in a liquid form it fits more Gas in a smaller area. But its more and more becoming a Dinosaur.

All my local feilds have free air but Co2 usually goes for $4 a fill with the first included in entrance. While the general consensus odly is that HPA is more expensive I've NEVER seen or heard a specific example of that in practice.

Anyhow bottom line for feild owners HPA has a high start up cost but essentially just turns into the price of running a compressor for a few hours to fill a cascading tank system vs constant refills for bulk Co2 tanks.

[argnot]

Are we talking shot for shot or bottle to bottle. A 20 at the field I go to is 4 bucks and nitro is 1 buck per 1000 pounds. I can't wait to go with my 114/3000

[tyrion2323]

Geez - At HeadRush fills all day are free, either way.

[Brophog]

Exactly. How many more shots will that 20 oz give you than the standard 4500 HPA tank....

As far as that compressor over time logic, think of this:

A 50 lb CO2 cylinder, after an intial 100-200 in cost, is about $20 to fill.

Most HPA compressors, without any kind of booster, will run anywhere from $3000-6000 or more, depending.

[Hexis]

One very distinct advantage that HPA/N2 has over CO2 is that you can do a partial fill. With CO2, you have to empty the tank and in addition use more CO2 to chill the tank to get a good fill. So there is some, perhaps a lot of waste filling CO2. There is little or no waste when filling HPA/N2.

A few data points:

A local indoor field here in MN has HPA included with your field fee, CO2 filsl are $5. This is obvioulsy my favorite.

A different local field has a scale for CO2, up to $5. HPA is $2 per 1k, and higher for over 3k (one of the reasons I don't play there).

At Paintball Sam's (I'm there for the big games) CO2 scales up to $5 for a 20oz. HPA fills are $1 per 1k, but they round down a lot.

[cphilip]

Least I need to point out that nothing is ever free....

Somewhere somehow you pay for that fill. Wether it be in the paint mark up or the field fee or whatever... You pay for it.

[Crighton]

Originally posted by Brophog
A 50 lb CO2 cylinder, after an intial 100-200 in cost, is about $20 to fill.

I get 50lb bulk fills for 11 bucks. The 50lb costs $2.35 a month for rental.

Much cheaper than HPA. Thats probably the only reasons its still in use as much as it is today. It's cost effective.

[akscubainst]

Here in Alaska I pay $65.00 plus $7.50 a month for rental for a 50lb CO2 that is usually more like 40lbs. I charge $.35 per ounce but use a flat rate for the fill(see below).

I'm a dive shop so Compressed air is inexpensive. I charge $2.00 for a HPA fill up to 3800 psi. I won't stress my compressor by going any higher.


Here's something interesting:

You know those fishing scales that everyone uses for weighing CO2 fills. They say right on them "NOT LEGAL FOR TRADE". My friend who is a weights and measures inspector threatened to ticket me for using one for trade.

He said all he need was one phone call from a customer complaing about it and we'd be ticketed.

The work around is to sell fills as a unit rather than by the oz. So instead of selling my customer 20oz of CO2 I sell them a co2 "fill" it just cost you $7.00 to get your 20oz filled. The scale is then just for my reference.

I'm not sure how other states work but I'm sure it's similar.

Dave

[Brophog]

If you use any scale NOT specifically tested by the weights and measures department, with the certificate to prove it in your particular state, then you could be liable. This goes for any number of industries, and any number of scales.

Usually this is a regular testing, whether it be annually or some other periodic testing.

[argnot]

I went to my local field and I have a 20oz with on/off and the kid that filled my tank unscrewed it without closing the on/off so he had to fill it again. My tank weighted twice as much as it normally does full and took about 1and 1/2 hours to defrost (the outside) in a heated area. And he used a scale. Messed up I think he over filled it. akscubainst you charge people $7 a fill? I feel lucky to pay $4.