Airgun in your vehicle. How hot can the tank get before being a dangerous problem
Heat versus airgun tanks
- Thread starter Howlinmitchell
- Start date
I was told they're the same tanks fire fighters use for oxygen when entering burning buildings. If there was a risk of explosion you'd be hearing about fire fighters dying all the time. So essentially it's a non-issue. Or did you mean the air tube for the gun? Still probably not a huge issue.
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P=vrt
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ideal_gas_law
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I'm not sure what the safety margin is, but, you can calculate the pressure that will result from basically any temperature. And, of course, assuming the tank/gun isn't garbage, there should be a burst disc that will blow long before the tank explodes. So, it should, ideally, NEVER be dangerous, no matter what.
The easy solution is simply to underfill, if you're planning on leaving it in a hot car. I regularly underfill my AEA HP SS MAX, it's rated to 4500, and I fill to around 3500, so if I was leaving one of my guns in a hot car, that'd be it.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ideal_gas_law
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I'm not sure what the safety margin is, but, you can calculate the pressure that will result from basically any temperature. And, of course, assuming the tank/gun isn't garbage, there should be a burst disc that will blow long before the tank explodes. So, it should, ideally, NEVER be dangerous, no matter what.
The easy solution is simply to underfill, if you're planning on leaving it in a hot car. I regularly underfill my AEA HP SS MAX, it's rated to 4500, and I fill to around 3500, so if I was leaving one of my guns in a hot car, that'd be it.
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I have heard of tanks popping their burst disk in a Hot Car...
High heat should be avoided with 4500psi tanks.. in a trunk is one of the worst places....
But if it's a Quality tank with a proper burst disk......
But it does make a heck of a POP when that burst disk goes!!!
Stuart
High heat should be avoided with 4500psi tanks.. in a trunk is one of the worst places....
But if it's a Quality tank with a proper burst disk......
But it does make a heck of a POP when that burst disk goes!!!
Stuart
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Most people are referring to Scuba or SCBA with the term "tanks". On the gun itself it's a tube, bottle or reservoir. That helps avoid confusion. As said above, the CF (carbon fiber) bottles on guns are akin to firefighter SCBA tanks & there shouldn't be much issue with heat in a car but I wouldn't get a false sense of security when dealing with HP (high pressure) air. Don't leave 'em in there for days at a time but don't be overly worried about them being in a hot vehicle for a normal day out. Use common sense.
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I don't know for sure but I suspect the same manufacturing process to make a large SCBA tank is used to make a small SCBA tank.
Go peruse the used SCBA tanks on Ebay. Some will have obviously been drug through fires. Some of those borderline charred tanks are sold as certified, passing inspection.
So I guess that's how hot they CAN get?
How hot they SHOULD get is probably a different answer.
I've had my 60min SCBA in hot vehicles, in fact once a month in the summer it stays in the truck for a couple days while I'm camping and shooting field target. I crack the windows and usually park in the shade, but it still gets warm in the truck....haven't had a problem yet.....
Go peruse the used SCBA tanks on Ebay. Some will have obviously been drug through fires. Some of those borderline charred tanks are sold as certified, passing inspection.
So I guess that's how hot they CAN get?
How hot they SHOULD get is probably a different answer. I've had my 60min SCBA in hot vehicles, in fact once a month in the summer it stays in the truck for a couple days while I'm camping and shooting field target. I crack the windows and usually park in the shade, but it still gets warm in the truck....haven't had a problem yet.....
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Well HPA should be given the Respect is Requires...
Even a small Air tube can be lethal...
The was a Stock maker GinB ..
It was working on a friends Airtube on his airgun..
Well it blew it's endcap off, almost killing the him...
Even a small Air tube can be lethal...
The was a Stock maker GinB ..
It was working on a friends Airtube on his airgun..
Well it blew it's endcap off, almost killing the him...
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I don't think I'd count on quite this level of care in manufacturing, nor testing, unless the tank is certified by the DOT/equivalant.I don't know for sure but I suspect the same manufacturing process to make a large SCBA tank is used to make a small SCBA tank.
Go peruse the used SCBA tanks on Ebay. Some will have obviously been drug through fires. Some of those borderline charred tanks are sold as certified, passing inspection.
So I guess that's how hot they CAN get?
I've had my 60min SCBA in hot vehicles, in fact once a month in the summer it stays in the truck for a couple days while I'm camping and shooting field target. I crack the windows and usually park in the shade, but it still gets warm in the truck....haven't had a problem yet.....
But I honestly don't know, maybe all the manufacturers are doing better work that I'd suspect.
(though, I have spent nearly 20 years involved in the manufacturing industry, so I'm pretty darn skeptical of that idea.
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Hpa and heat doesnt go well together. Why would anyone leave a tank or pcp gun in the burning sun or inside a car. Not only is it dangerous but it will damage the o rings and leaks. For tanks they have safety burst disc so not so much as a danger, but I still wouldn't leave it out in the sun and damage or weaken my expensive gears
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Cuz making the two hr drive home to the air conditioner every time I want to fill my gun over a 3 day weekend is a bit silly.
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HPA and high temps indeed do not play well, but why even risk an issue? Just don't use max pressure either in your gun or supply tank. The amount of extra shots is really small. I can also state from personal experience that blowing out a safety disc is really exciting.
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Honestly, i would worry more about the guns internals being damaged more so than the reservoir. A few years back I had a wildcat shipped to me from California to here on the east coast. It was shipped ground (because who wouldn’t worry about compressed air issues on planes), and it was only filled to 160bar. The heat that week was beyond bad, and I’m sure the temps in the delivery vehicles werent any lower.
anyway, when I received it, the gun was completely empty, and upon inspection, I noticed a piece of oring pushed out of the regulator vent hole on the tube. The heat in those delivery vehicles caused the air to expand in the plenum (the plenum has a smaller area than the reservoir, so expands at a faster rate), and pushed the regulator so far forward, that it’s sealing oring lined up with the weep hole, and blew it out.
this was an easy fix, and none of the other components were damaged, but it goes to show, just because the reservoir on the gun is safe to higher temperatures,it doesn’t mean the rest of the gun is!
be safe, be smart!
anyway, when I received it, the gun was completely empty, and upon inspection, I noticed a piece of oring pushed out of the regulator vent hole on the tube. The heat in those delivery vehicles caused the air to expand in the plenum (the plenum has a smaller area than the reservoir, so expands at a faster rate), and pushed the regulator so far forward, that it’s sealing oring lined up with the weep hole, and blew it out.
this was an easy fix, and none of the other components were damaged, but it goes to show, just because the reservoir on the gun is safe to higher temperatures,it doesn’t mean the rest of the gun is!
be safe, be smart!
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few hours in the car to go shoot or to the range ok but all day id say no. use your heads as its hot and air does expand guns probably more fragile than the tank,
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Just personal beliefs but I don’t believe the gun will ever get hot enough to increase pressure to an unsafe level in a vehicle. At least an HPA gun. Co2 is a different story. That expands a lot quicker in heat.
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