Cedar Rapids Brewing Society

kjball wrote:I just wanted to add mt 2c to this FYI. Iowa fire supply in Iowa City will fill 5#-15# tanks for $14.25. Never had a problem showing up in my car.

Hey if you have 2c then you should not be wasting it here but rather making donations to me!

Hawkeye Fire in Cedar Rapids +1

Needed to get my tank hydrotested since it was last done in 2004. Apparently Hawkeye Fire and Safety only hydrotests in CR (not IC) and the fella who does that is out on medical leave indefinitely. They said they don't do exchanges there so I will have to try AirGas or Linnweld. Just an FYI in case someone needs a to exchange or have their tank tested.

hoboscratch wrote:Needed to get my tank hydrotested since it was last done in 2004. Apparently Hawkeye Fire and Safety only hydrotests in CR (not IC) and the fella who does that is out on medical leave indefinitely. They said they don't do exchanges there so I will have to try AirGas or Linnweld. Just an FYI in case someone needs a to exchange or have their tank tested.

I don't know if I just got lucky, but I had a tank that was out of date and took it to Linweld and they just did an exchange with no extra charge. I had even said that I knew it was out of date... You might want to give them a try.

I think that's part of the point of doing exchanges. It's their job to maintain the tanks.

On Wednesday 14 September 2011 11:08:42 am you wrote:

hoboscratch wrote:

Needed to get my tank hydrotested since it was last done in 2004.
Apparently Hawkeye Fire and Safety only hydrotests in CR (not IC) and
the fella who does that is out on medical leave indefinitely. They said
they don't do exchanges there so I will have to try AirGas or Linnweld.
Just an FYI in case someone needs a to exchange or have their tank
tested.

I don't know if I just got lucky, but I had a tank that was out of date and
took it to Linweld and they just did an exchange with no extra charge. I
had even said that I knew it was out of date... You might want to give
them a try.

------------------------
Jim Fuller

Life is good, when the beer is too...

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Most of those places due to that being their business have someone on staff qualified to inspect tanks or they do so many that the cost of having inspections done by someone else is minimal.

I thought linweld stopped doing tank exchanges outside of commercial use. Regardless, because of linweld's surly disposition, I now go to Hawkeye fire to get my tanks filled.

Looking at earlier posts, it seems the issue at Linweld was not allowing you to transport in a car. I just did an exchange there a few months ago when I set up my fridge and they didn't ask, I didn't tell. I did park in plain veiw right in front of their shop.

Does AirGas do exchanges? I'm probably good for a year, but don't want to make two trips when the time comes.


On Wednesday 14 September 2011 12:43:46 pm you wrote:

I thought linweld stopped doing tank exchanges outside of commercial use.
Regardless, because of linweld's surly disposition, I now go to Hawkeye
fire to get my tanks filled.

------------------------
You can't get with this with a bad hip - Matt

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I did two 5# exchanges at Linweld two weeks ago. They won't let you transport anything larger than 5# tanks in a car.

I had a bad experience at Hawkeye. Paid to have an old tank tested and filled. They tested it but gave it to me empty, which I didn't find out until I got home. Called them up and they claimed they did fill it and I must have a leak. They said they would refill it, but I'd have to pay again. I won't give them any more of my money.

It appears a lot of club members have gas problems.

Yes Airgas does tank exchanges as that is where I have had my last two exchanges done after my disagreement over the car issue at LinnWeld. However, last time I went in their their prices had climbed by nearly 20%.
So I think Airgas is now charging about $23/20# tank.

Bringing up an oldy.

So I have had my 15CF keezer for over a year now and have a 4 way manifold inside feeding 5 total kegs/faucets when inventory is going properly. I have a 10# tank and a regulator with 2 "outs". One to feed my manifold, the other to feed my sanitizer keg or transfer PBW and sanitizer from keg to keg.

I had a leak last year. Replaced all the keg seals, rebuilt the manifold. Seemed to fix that with the spray bottle of sanitizer trick. The last couple tanks have only lasted me 3-4 months and the last lasting me less than 2 months. So last week I rebuilt the regulator via teflon tape throughout. Seems to be better, but I am so close to being out of CO2 I am nervous to leave it on 24/7. When the valve is open it's open 100% as I have read a partially open valve can leak??

The cost for exchange here is high I think when going through this much. I am spending nearly $30 a fill through Airgas. I have an empty 5# and it was only a few bucks less last time I took it in with the 10#. Thoughts are to take both in and get one 20#er, but I want this leak to be solved first. Had Hawkeye in IC refill mine once, but it was painfully long and the price was no better from what I recall. Maybe I need to get one of these places to give the club an "I'm a member of the CR beer nuts" discount.

Only thing left to replace are the lines themselves. Or is this normal for you guys running multiple kegs?

Just called Hawkeye Fire

10# refill is $15.00+tax
5# refill is $13.50+tax

5# is hardly worth getting refilled.

czubak wrote:Just called Hawkeye Fire

10# refill is $15.00+tax
5# refill is $13.50+tax

5# is hardly worth getting refilled.

Yup, when I checked around on prices last year, Hawkeye fire REFILL is cheaper for CO2. I bought from them a 20lb steel tank, as I never move it and it was only a dollar or two more per fill.

Airgass EXCHANGE is better for O2, because who goes through O2 fast enough to not need a re-certification on the tank (5 years)?

I bought my O2 tank off CL for $20 and it's a large enough tank I will probably be out of brewing by the time it's empty.