Joined: Dec 2010
Posts: 140
Oxypro
11/18/2017 at 10:59 AM
Here in Manitoba, the main players in the compressed gas game will only rent the larger tanks, but will sell you the smaller sizes. If you are an occasional user, those may fit the bill. When TSE was in town, they stocked the tanks. You paid about $200 for a tank (with gas), then when it was empty you brought it back in and they would exchange for another tank for around $60....varied of course on what the gas was. The other suppliers in town do the same thing for around those prices, but also on the smaller tanks only, and of course you have to get to them during business hours to exchange them.
I wanted the larger sizes, and I travel to Alberta at least once a year. There is a company there called oxypro that will sell you whatever size tanks you want at reasonable prices. I recall my first full size oxygen tank was $220 with gas although they are more than that now. On another trip, I picked up the largest acetelyne that I could fit in the vehicle, and it came to around $500. After a decade, I have just emptied that tank now, but have a smaller backup until my next trip at which time I will exchange it for a full tank for the price of the gas. All my larger tanks come from Alberta, and I have the smaller tanks from the locals for either portability or as backup if a big tank runs out.
You also have to be careful about buying some of the tanks from places like princess auto that come with the portable outfits. Once emptied, the gas companies in the province may not refill them for you as they do not have their company''s name on them. They have an agreement between themselves that they will not fill each other''s tanks.
Edited by cmp, 2017-11-18 11:03:25