Saw this on another newsgroup.
Seems as though the big sellers of exchange tanks are not filling them all
the way now.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090522/...g_on_propane_2

I'd rather fill my own tanks ($13.99 today) than exchange. This proves me
right

On Sat, 23 May 2009 00:16:43 -0400, "Ed Pawlowski" >
wrote:

>Saw this on another newsgroup.
>Seems as though the big sellers of exchange tanks are not filling them all
>the way now.
>
>http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090522/...g_on_propane_2
>
>I'd rather fill my own tanks ($13.99 today) than exchange. This proves me
>right
>
I didn't like those things from the git go. Now I have a real reason
not to like them. Give me charcoal and fire.

--
I love cooking with wine.
Sometimes I even put it in the food.

Ed Pawlowski wrote:
> Saw this on another newsgroup.
> Seems as though the big sellers of exchange tanks are not filling them all
> the way now.
>
> http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090522/...g_on_propane_2
>
> I'd rather fill my own tanks ($13.99 today) than exchange. This proves me
> right
>
>
I am always amazed at how well big box home depot marketing works that
people are willing to pay $20+ for an exchange while driving past the
evil family owned regional propane dealer that has 3 locations and is
now up to a whopping $9.95 to refill a tank (and to the proper weight).

Ed Pawlowski wrote:
> Saw this on another newsgroup.
> Seems as though the big sellers of exchange tanks are not filling
> them all the way now.
>
> http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090522/...g_on_propane_2
>
> I'd rather fill my own tanks ($13.99 today) than exchange. This
> proves me right

You know, if they reduce the amount of coffee in a can, it has to say so
on the label. Surely it should be noted that you're not buying a full can
of propane. Not saying it is, saying it should.

I take mine to a local place for refilling. I guess I have to keep an eye
on the scale to see if they are filling it to 20 pounds? I pay upwards of
17 bucks, I like to think it's full when I leave.

nancy

On Sat, 23 May 2009 07:05:59 -0400, George >
wrote:

>I am always amazed at how well big box home depot marketing works that
>people are willing to pay $20+ for an exchange

It is all about convenience.....look at gas/quick stop stores. People
will stop and put 2 dollars gas in the vehicle, go inside to pay and
buy a bottle of water. Price per unit? Over ten dollars per gallon
for WATER!

On 2009-05-23, sf > wrote:

> I didn't like those things from the git go. Now I have a real reason
> not to like them. Give me charcoal and fire.

Unfortunately, charcoal n' wood is not always the better alternative. Here
in CO, we got no natural hardwoods like oak or mesquite and charcoal is
through the roof. Better to just go to local propane supplier and have the
tank refilled at those reduced prices.

nb

Ed Pawlowski wrote:
> Saw this on another newsgroup.
> Seems as though the big sellers of exchange tanks are not filling them all
> the way now.
>
> http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090522/...g_on_propane_2
>
> I'd rather fill my own tanks ($13.99 today) than exchange. This proves me
> right
>
>

I've always refilled my own too. Never understood the need for the
exchange tanks.
I haven't yet been to the local refill place. I would assume it will
cost me around the same. I'll be going today as a matter of fact.

Tracy

On Sat, 23 May 2009 12:56:59 GMT, notbob > wrote:

>Better to just go to local propane supplier and have the
>tank refilled at those reduced prices.

Interesting reading!


http://www.knoxville.com/news/2009/m...oking-convert/

"Ed Pawlowski" > wrote in message
...
> Saw this on another newsgroup.
> Seems as though the big sellers of exchange tanks are not filling them all
> the way now.
>
> http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090522/...g_on_propane_2
>
> I'd rather fill my own tanks ($13.99 today) than exchange. This proves me
> right
>
Been happy with natural gas for the last 10 years since a 20 lb. propane
tank caught fire and ended up burning off the back of our house because we
and the firemen had no way of shutting it down.

"Ed Pawlowski" > wrote in message
...
> Saw this on another newsgroup.
> Seems as though the big sellers of exchange tanks are not filling them all
> the way now.
>
> http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090522/...g_on_propane_2
>
> I'd rather fill my own tanks ($13.99 today) than exchange. This proves me
> right
>
>
When I had portable tanks I always had them refilled (replacement tanks were
always more costly), last price I remember was $7/18 pounds. Then one day
when having my oil fired heat replaced with a natural gas boiler I had the
plumber install a hook up for my gas Weber, natural gas was about 1/4 the
price of propane Now that I moved to the boonies there is no natural gas so
I'm using propane; for heating/hot water, kitchen stove, and Weber. My
propane is in a bulk tank, a big tanker truck comes to refill my 500 gallon
tank, I paid $2.60/gallon my last fill up. I would never use those dinky
20# tanks, they're expensive, and what a hassle keeping them filled so you
don't run out mid cooking. Why are you using 20# portable tanks anyway,
didn't you just buy a brand new fancy schmancy gas range... have a supply
line installed for your backyard cooking.

"Mr. Bill" wrote:
notbob wrote:
>
>>Better to just go to local propane supplier and have the
>>tank refilled at those reduced prices.
>
> Interesting reading!
>
>
> http://www.knoxville.com/news/2009/m...oking-convert/
>
>
>
>
That's nothing new, I've known and been doing exactly that some 40 years.
The only time cooking with charcoal beats gas is when it's a tiny grill like
a hibachi. I've traveled the entire country for many years with my John's
Bargain Store $2 tri-legged pie plate grill and a bag of charcoal.

Mr. Bill wrote:
> On Sat, 23 May 2009 07:05:59 -0400, George >
> wrote:
>
>> I am always amazed at how well big box home depot marketing works that
>> people are willing to pay $20+ for an exchange
>
> It is all about convenience.....look at gas/quick stop stores. People
> will stop and put 2 dollars gas in the vehicle, go inside to pay and
> buy a bottle of water. Price per unit? Over ten dollars per gallon
> for WATER!
>
>
Don't underestimate the power of marketing. New neighbor recently moved
in and somehow we started talking about grills. I mentioned the
convenient place that is less than two miles away that does refills for
$9.95 and is actually on the route you would take to get to home cheepo.
It is also megaconvenient too because the filling platform is about 30
feet from the parking area. I simply got a deer in headlights look and
later noticed a "blue rhino" tank on their grill.

I often get the same deer in headlights look when I mention the large
local food store that has an in house meat department and doesn't sell
the walmart style adulterated meats. It doesn't have a marketed brand so
for a lot of people it can't possibly be good.

"brooklyn1" > wrote in message
> Why are you using 20# portable tanks anyway, didn't you just buy a brand
> new fancy schmancy gas range... have a supply line installed for your
> backyard cooking.
>
>
>
Yeah, I just need a round tuit. I have 100 pound tanks for the gas range
that get filled once a year or so.

Tracy wrote:

> I've always refilled my own too. Never understood the need for the
> exchange tanks.

> I haven't yet been to the local refill place. I would assume it will
> cost me around the same. I'll be going today as a matter of fact.

In Oklahoma, I had a place I could take my tank. Occasionally they were
out or they weren't open (when I would run out unexpectedly). Here, I
don't have a propane dealer close by -- but there's a Blue Rhino
exchange on just about every corner. So, I might pay a bit more -- but
for me that's the cost of convenience and I simply don't have a choice
nearby for refills of my own tank. With Blue Rhino, If I run out in the
middle of cooking, I can be back grilling in under 10 minutes regardless
of the day or time.

I used to wonder if these exchange places under-filled tanks, but I
can't say that this tank purchase was as I use the new grill a lot and
have yet to run out.

My mom was telling me to examine the valves/connectors on these
exchanges closely. If they look rusty or acid etched it's because it's
been used in someone's meth kitchen. Now THAT is something that does
concern me about "used" tanks.

--Lin

"Lin" > wrote in message
> With Blue Rhino, If I run out in the middle of cooking, I can be back
> grilling in under 10 minutes regardless of the day or time.
>

With my own spare tank I can be back grilling in about two minutes with a
lot less hassle. I ran out once about 40 years ago and have had a spare on
hand ever since.

Ed Pawlowski wrote:

> With my own spare tank I can be back grilling in about two minutes with a
> lot less hassle. I ran out once about 40 years ago and have had a spare on
> hand ever since.

I'd be all for doing that, but as I said before -- we have no place
close by for propane refills. Easy enough to run up to the corner for an
already filled tank.

What might be a consideration in the future is to run a natural gas line
to the new grill. It's convertible.

--Lin

George wrote:

> I am always amazed at how well big box home depot marketing works that
> people are willing to pay $20+ for an exchange while driving past the
> evil family owned regional propane dealer that has 3 locations and is
> now up to a whopping $9.95 to refill a tank (and to the proper weight).

The exchange places are a cheap way to replace an old tank. We can't get
tanks refilled if they are more than 10 years old. A few weeks ago I had
a tank that was 10 years old and had been told last year that I would
have to get a new one this year. I took my ten year old tank to the
exchange and got one that was only four years old. It was a lot cheaper
than buying a new tank and then paying to have it purged and filled.
When it runs out I will take it to the local family owned business for a
refill.

brooklyn1 wrote:
>
> When I had portable tanks I always had them refilled (replacement tanks were
> always more costly), last price I remember was $7/18 pounds. Then one day
> when having my oil fired heat replaced with a natural gas boiler I had the
> plumber install a hook up for my gas Weber, natural gas was about 1/4 the
> price of propane Now that I moved to the boonies there is no natural gas so
> I'm using propane; for heating/hot water, kitchen stove, and Weber.


My brother has natural gas in his house and brought the natural gas BBQ
from his old house. He wanted to get a line out to his patio for the
grill and had a hard time. It was going to cost a small fortune. he ahs
a NG fireplace on the other side of the wall and just wanted them to
extend a line from the fireplace, through the wall to the patio. the guy
tried to tell him that he had to go back to the main line in because the
line to the fireplace was not large enough to feed both the fireplace
and the grill. Duh..... just don't use them at the same time. he won't
be outside grilling when it is cold enough to use the fireplace.

notbob > wrote:

> Here in CO, we got no natural hardwoods like oak or mesquite and
> charcoal is through the roof.

Look for fruit or nut woods -- pecan, apple, plum. (They aren't
native there either but there should be some around.)

Steve

On 2009-05-23, Steve Pope > wrote:

> Look for fruit or nut woods -- pecan, apple, plum. (They aren't
> native there either but there should be some around.)

Not a lot of fruit/nut orchards at 7,000 ft.

nb

Dave Smith wrote:
> brooklyn1 wrote:
>>
>> When I had portable tanks I always had them refilled (replacement
>> tanks were always more costly), last price I remember was $7/18
>> pounds. Then one day when having my oil fired heat replaced with a
>> natural gas boiler I had the plumber install a hook up for my gas
>> Weber, natural gas was about 1/4 the price of propane Now that I
>> moved to the boonies there is no natural gas so I'm using propane; for
>> heating/hot water, kitchen stove, and Weber.
>
>
> My brother has natural gas in his house and brought the natural gas BBQ
> from his old house. He wanted to get a line out to his patio for the
> grill and had a hard time. It was going to cost a small fortune. he ahs
> a NG fireplace on the other side of the wall and just wanted them to
> extend a line from the fireplace, through the wall to the patio. the guy
> tried to tell him that he had to go back to the main line in because the
> line to the fireplace was not large enough to feed both the fireplace
> and the grill. Duh..... just don't use them at the same time. he won't
> be outside grilling when it is cold enough to use the fireplace.

Why not? Lots of folks fire up an outside grill on cold days.

George wrote:
>>> When I had portable tanks I always had them refilled (replacement
>>> tanks were always more costly), last price I remember was $7/18
>>> pounds. Then one day when having my oil fired heat replaced with a
>>> natural gas boiler I had the plumber install a hook up for my gas
>>> Weber, natural gas was about 1/4 the price of propane Now that I
>>> moved to the boonies there is no natural gas so I'm using propane;
>>> for heating/hot water, kitchen stove, and Weber.
>>
>>
>> My brother has natural gas in his house and brought the natural gas
>> BBQ from his old house. He wanted to get a line out to his patio for
>> the grill and had a hard time. It was going to cost a small fortune.
>> he ahs a NG fireplace on the other side of the wall and just wanted
>> them to extend a line from the fireplace, through the wall to the
>> patio. the guy tried to tell him that he had to go back to the main
>> line in because the line to the fireplace was not large enough to
>> feed both the fireplace and the grill. Duh..... just don't use them
>> at the same time. he won't be outside grilling when it is cold enough
>> to use the fireplace.
>
> Why not? Lots of folks fire up an outside grill on cold days.


I am sure that lots do. Not him. It has to be a lot warmer for him to go
out and BBQ than it does for me. It also has to get pretty cool before
he would turn on the gas BBQ. The thing is that the guy he talked to
insisted that he had to run a line all the way back to the main line in
order to get enough volume to supply pressure for both the fireplace and
the BBQ, and that was going to be prohibitively expensive, compared to
the minor cost of simply tapping into the line to the fireplace and
running a pipe through the wall to the patio.

What is the worst that could happen..... if pigs learned to fly or hell
froze over he might try to go out and BBQ on a cold night when the
fireplace was on, in which case he might have a slight reduction in
pressure and a lower flame. If that happened, he could turn off the
fireplace for a few minutes.



He found someone else to do it. The second guy saw no problem with it,
and my brother saved over $1000 in needless costs.

Lin wrote:
>
>
> My mom was telling me to examine the valves/connectors on these
> exchanges closely. If they look rusty or acid etched it's because it's
> been used in someone's meth kitchen. Now THAT is something that does
> concern me about "used" tanks.

Why? Do you think that having a tank that was used to cook drugs will
turn you into a crack head?

"Ed Pawlowski" wrote:
> "brooklyn1" > wrote:
>>
>> Why are you using 20# portable tanks anyway, didn't you just buy a brand
>> new fancy schmancy gas range... have a supply line installed for your
>> backyard cooking.
>>
>>
>>
> Yeah, I just need a round tuit. I have 100 pound tanks for the gas range
> that get filled once a year or so.
>
Call your gas supplier, they'll likely make the connection gratis, mine
did... more propane you use more propane you buy.

Dave Smith wrote:
> Lin wrote:
>>
>>
>> My mom was telling me to examine the valves/connectors on these
>> exchanges closely. If they look rusty or acid etched it's because
>> it's been used in someone's meth kitchen. Now THAT is something that
>> does concern me about "used" tanks.
>
> Why? Do you think that having a tank that was used to cook drugs will
> turn you into a crack head?

Anything that's been used around a meth lab becomes poisonous.
People have had to leave a houseful of possessions behind because
they're too dangerous to keep.

nancy

On Sat, 23 May 2009 12:56:59 GMT, notbob > wrote:

>Better to just go to local propane supplier and have the
>tank refilled at those reduced prices.

It's hard enough to find a gas station in this town and now you're
telling me to find a propane *supplier*? HA! Fat Chance.

--
I love cooking with wine.
Sometimes I even put it in the food.

On Sat, 23 May 2009 10:47:10 -0400, "Ed Pawlowski" >
wrote:

>Yeah, I just need a round tuit. I have 100 pound tanks for the gas range
>that get filled once a year or so.
>

We had a five hundred pound tank buried when we built the house. Best
thing we ever did since we got a free lifetime lease on the tank.

On Sat, 23 May 2009 17:45:30 +0000 (UTC),
(Steve Pope) wrote:

>notbob > wrote:
>
>> Here in CO, we got no natural hardwoods like oak or mesquite and
>> charcoal is through the roof.
>
>Look for fruit or nut woods -- pecan, apple, plum. (They aren't
>native there either but there should be some around.)
>
When I was a kid in Michigan, we grilled over hardwood fires/coals
exclusively... we were near orchards so we got a cord of fruit wood
from time to time - I could never taste the difference between
fruitwood and oak.


--
I love cooking with wine.
Sometimes I even put it in the food.

On Sat, 23 May 2009 07:51:03 -0700, Lin >
wrote:

>My mom was telling me to examine the valves/connectors on these
>exchanges closely. If they look rusty or acid etched it's because it's
>been used in someone's meth kitchen. Now THAT is something that does
>concern me about "used" tanks.


How would your *mother* know about these things???? My mom used to
come up with stuff that left me scratching my head, just the way I
would have felt if she warned me to watch out for tanks used in meth
kitchens.

--
I love cooking with wine.
Sometimes I even put it in the food.

On Sat, 23 May 2009 08:36:07 -0700, Lin >
wrote:

>What might be a consideration in the future is to run a natural gas line
>to the new grill. It's convertible.

Get Bob to construct an out door kitchen for you when the time comes!

--
I love cooking with wine.
Sometimes I even put it in the food.

Ed Pawlowski wrote:
> Saw this on another newsgroup.
> Seems as though the big sellers of exchange tanks are not filling them all
> the way now.
>
> http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090522/...g_on_propane_2
>
> I'd rather fill my own tanks ($13.99 today) than exchange. This proves me
> right
>
>

One man's rip-off is another man's profit margin. :-)

notbob > wrote:

>On 2009-05-23, Steve Pope > wrote:

>> Look for fruit or nut woods -- pecan, apple, plum. (They aren't
>> native there either but there should be some around.)

>Not a lot of fruit/nut orchards at 7,000 ft.

Note necessarily true. Apple and pecan both grow at those
elevations. Not sure about plum or cherry -- probably not.

It is not uncommon, in a national forest in CO or NM, to
come upon a grove of gnarly disused apple trees, planted by a
settler many many decades ago.

Steve

Nancy Young wrote:

> Anything that's been used around a meth lab becomes poisonous.
> People have had to leave a houseful of possessions behind because
> they're too dangerous to keep.
>
> nancy

I can't say that I've ever heard that before? do you have any citations
or references for this?

On 2009-05-23, Steve Pope > wrote:

>>Not a lot of fruit/nut orchards at 7,000 ft.
>
> Note necessarily true.

You're saying there are a LOT of fruit/nut orchards at 7,000 ft? And just
where would this be? No here. I don't think one abandoned apple orchard
constitutes "a lot".

nb

On 2009-05-23, sf > wrote:

> It's hard enough to find a gas station in this town and now you're
> telling me to find a propane *supplier*? HA! Fat Chance.

So, what are you trying to tell us? No one in SF grills using propane or
you just don't know where anything is?

nb

"Lin" > wrote in message
.. .
> Ed Pawlowski wrote:
>
>> With my own spare tank I can be back grilling in about two minutes with a
>> lot less hassle. I ran out once about 40 years ago and have had a spare
>> on hand ever since.
>
> I'd be all for doing that, but as I said before -- we have no place close
> by for propane refills. Easy enough to run up to the corner for an already
> filled tank.

With a spare tank you don't need a refill place up at your corner... I'm
sure if you check your Yellow Pages you'll find a half dozen places within a
fifteen minute radius... take your empty spare along next time you're
heading in that direction, certainly less hassle refilling at your
convenience than running out.

> What might be a consideration in the future is to run a natural gas line
> to the new grill. It's convertible.
>
>
What future... you have natural gas available... I'd want my grill connected
yesterday.

Dave Smith wrote:

> Why? Do you think that having a tank that was used to cook drugs will
> turn you into a crack head?

Silly Dave. Concerns with the structural integrity of the valve/connections.

--Lin

Nancy Young wrote:

> Anything that's been used around a meth lab becomes poisonous.
> People have had to leave a houseful of possessions behind because
> they're too dangerous to keep.

This is indeed very true.

--Lin

sf wrote:

> How would your *mother* know about these things???? My mom used to
> come up with stuff that left me scratching my head, just the way I
> would have felt if she warned me to watch out for tanks used in meth
> kitchens.

Oklahoma. It was one of the original meth capitals. Propane is very easy
to come by there. It's portable, easy enough to up and move. All you
need is an attached burner. They were actually one of (if not the first)
states to outlaw the sale of pseudoephedrine on the shelves and you had
to sign out for it from a pharmacist with only a limited amount
purchased. Many states (including California) followed suit soon after.
It cut the meth problem waaaay down from what it was.

--Lin

Goomba wrote:

> I can't say that I've ever heard that before? do you have any citations
> or references for this?

Here's one:

http://methlabhomes.com/2009/04/chro...eps-on-giving/

It happens all the time, and the law enforcement agents that have to
bust these are at risk each and every time they do a drug bust. You just
never know where it will turn up.

--Lin