Gas Cylinder Storage Safety Requirements

Almost at any facility engaged in gas welding and gas cutting, cylinders with various gases are used, e.g. oxygen, propane, acetylene, etc. In today’s article, we look at the basic requirements for storing gas cylinders. A gas cylinder is a vessel that has one or two necks for installing valves, flanges or fittings, and is designed for transportation, storage, and use of compressed, liquefied or dissolved under pressure gases.

Cylinder Storage Safety Requirements

Below, we take a look at the basic safety requirements for storing gas cylinders.

Keep Cylinders Separately

Flammable gas cylinders (for example, propane or acetylene) should be stored separately from oxygen and other gasses cylinders such as fluorine, chlorine, compressed air, and also away from any toxic gas cylinders (e.g. hydrogen sulfide, ammonia, benzene, etc.).

To rule out any confusion between filled and empty gas cylinders, empty cylinders must be stored separately from filled ones. So, the separate storage means the following:

keep cylinders with flammable gases separately from cylinders with oxygen and other gases keep empty and full cylinders separately.

Cylinder Storage Position

• With special foot rings

Keep cylinders vertically. For this, special devices (stands, cages) are used, which prevent the cylinder from falling.

• Without special foot rings

Keep cylinders in a horizontal position. For this type of storage, special frames or racks are used. In this respect, it is not allowed to exceed the height of such a stack by more than 1.5 meters, the valves should face one direction and cylinders should be equipped with protective caps.

Any premises (structures) intended for the gas cylinder storage must be made of incombustible materials. Such rooms should be self-ventilated to prevent the formation of explosive mixtures.

For example, do not store cylinders in a room made of wood because it is a combustible material.

In addition to the above, when storing many cylinders, the cylinder storage room must be divided into compartments by special fireproof walls, and it is allowed to place in each compartment no more than:

• 500 cylinders (40 liters) for flammable and toxic gases

• 1000 cylinders (40 liters) for non-flammable and non-toxic gases

Concurrently, when storing non-flammable and non-toxic gases, it is allowed to use fireproof partitions with a height of at least 2.5 meters to separate compartments. Each such compartment must have its own independent way out, the doors must open outwards.

Outdoor Storage

When storing cylinders outdoors, it is necessary to provide protection from sunlight and atmospheric precipitation. It can be done with a canopy and a fence. Materials for a canopy and fencing must be non-combustible.

Placement of cylinders during handling

While handling cylinders, for example, during welding, they should be placed as follows:

at least 1 meter away from emitters and other heating appliances

at least 5 meters away from heat sources with open flames

Install the cylinder in a vertical position and secure it from falling. The procedure for installing and securing the cylinder should be prescribed in the technical operating manual.

It is forbidden to keep cylinders in places where people pass, machines and mechanisms move, etc.