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Welding Oxygen


mit12
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Thanks, M'12. If you rent it during your cycle and return it after, that's certainly a reasonable price, at least in the short run.  I wonder if one 60 cf tank is enough.  I've seen new 125 cf tanks for sale online for $300, full, and new, full 80s for $200.  I don't know if one supplier, Air Gas for example, will fill tanks you have bought from someone else, though I would kind of expect so.  (The 125 is, of course, a pain to have to schlep to and from for refills.  The 80 is bad enough.)

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I believe that as long as the tank certification is current they will fill it. That is the problem with buying a tank, recertification or replacing the tank can get pricey. For me Airgas is only about 6 miles from my house. I know that the company I retired from will let me use a real large tank at no cost so that I can refill my self. So for $18 a month I should be set.

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CHfather,

I had the regulator, just received the Clusterbusters oxygen mask and should have the Oxygen bottle tomorrow. I have a 0-25LPM regulator. What setting would you siggest I start at? Thanks for all your help.

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Start at a flow that keeps up with your breathing. If you need 25lpm to fill the bag in time for the next breath, that is what you use. Then, as your breathing slows, dial it down. It all depends on your lung capacity as to what you set it at.

 

Just be sure to do your post hit O2 time!!! That really matters. You will find that new mask works great too.

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Stay on the O2 for a while after the attack has been aborted, to help prevent later attacks.  What's "a while"?  You could say 5-10 minutes.  We used to say as long as it took to abort the attack.  So, you get the idea -- some period that's not brief.

 

Spiny,
Can you explain post hit 02 time?

Thanks

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Yep. CHF is correct.

 

I used to count breathes till the pain was gone and then do the same for post dose part. Finally realized that I was counting rapid breathing breaths and cut the count for the post dose part. Saved a lot of O2 that way.

 

Remember to dial the flow back to match your slowed breathing.

 

It can be a pain when you are tired but it is soooo worth it!!!

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More information. I got the 60 cubic foot oxygen bottle today. Rent is $28 for the first fill and tank and $18 per month. I asked about purchasing a tank and the recertification. Airgas will recertify or replace any tank you purchased from them when the certification expires.

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I woke up at 2:00 this morning with an CH attack, I used my oxygen setup and a aborted the headache! started at 25lpm and reduced it to 8lpm after the headache went away for the post headache time. When my doctor tried oxygen on my headache it did not work, high flow did the trick. Thanks CHfather for pushing me into trying oxygen again with the proper setup.

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  • 2 weeks later...

I wish there was a way to broadcast to all Neuros what we know about O2 usage. IDK of any that will write the script for 25 lpm and only some that will for 15 lpm. Then, its off you go .. no instructions on how to abort. Sad.
I too use welding O2. I have 2 tanks because you NEVER want to run out. I bought both of mine from Praxair - 154 cuft and 84 cuft sizes. Its $20 to exchange either. Consider that an 'E' tank holds around 22 cuft. and I know I can get 3 - 4 aborts off an 'E'.

 

I woke up at 2:00 this morning with an CH attack, I used my oxygen setup and a aborted the headache! started at 25lpm and reduced it to 8lpm after the headache went away for the post headache time. When my doctor tried oxygen on my headache it did not work, high flow did the trick. Thanks CHfather for pushing me into trying oxygen again with the proper setup.

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I wish there was a way to broadcast to all Neuros what we know about O2 usage. IDK of any that will write the script for 25 lpm and only some that will for 15 lpm.

It's up to us to educate them.

 

In any event...the important thing is to get the script written......one can then source their own regulator for a high flow rate.

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I was thinking about breathing techniques for O2 the other day and decided to try something different. Using the theory of O2 transferring into the blood stream I figured that having the oxygen in the lungs longer would help the saturation process.

During my last attack I tryed a different breathing technique and it seemed to work fast. I started at 25lpm for five deep fast breaths on the last breath reduced the lpm to 10 and held my breath until the bag filled up exhaled hard and took a deep breath and held it until the bag filled repeating this until headache was gone. It took less than 5 minutes to abort the headache. After the headache was gone I continued normal breathing at 8lpm for a few minutes.

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  • 1 month later...

Being naive.. Can you buy the regulator with the tanks? Any idea on what a tank would cost up here in Canada; filled, with the regulators ? Where can I buy the proper mask ? How much is a mask , each ? How long does a tank usually last during a cluster headache cycle ?

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You can buy a regulator at a welding O2 store, but there are two issues. One is that they generally very expensive to buy at those stores, and the other is that those regulators usually don't have the barbed connector that you attach your mask tubing to.  You can buy an adapter with a barbed end at a hardware store, or you can fuss with the tubing and kind of jam it on, but you're better off getting a regulator that already has an adapter and that will cost considerably less.  Here are two:

https://www.amazon.com/IMAGE%C2%AE-Welding-Welder-Regulator-Cutting/dp/B00JP9WIF2/ref=sr_1_1?s=industrial&ie=UTF8&qid=1471881287&sr=1-1&keywords=welding+oxygen+regulator

 

This is the one most people buy.  There might even be a Harbor Freight store near you. http://www.harborfreight.com/catalogsearch/result?q=oxygen+regulator

 

This is the best mask: http://www.clusterheadaches.com/ccp8/index.php?app=ecom&ns=prodshow&ref=clustero2kit

You can get a standard non-rebreather mask at amazon or other places for just a few bucks. Be sure it comes with the tubing.

 

I don't know what a tank might cost in Canada.  The standard advice in the US seems to be that a full setup with a big tank, a good mask, and a regulator might cost $250-$300.  You pay something to have the tank refilled.  Depends, of course, on the size of the tank.  Because you have to bring it in to have it refilled, many people prefer to get two somewhat-portable size ones that still have a good supply of oxygen, say 80 cubic feet of O2.  (An 80 cu ft tank is still pretty heavy.) You might also want a smaller one, maybe 40 cu ft, to keep in your car.  Have much you get from the tank is also going to depend on the size of the tanks, as well as the flow rate and the time it takes you to abort.  An 80 cu ft tank has roughly 2.5 hours of oxygen in it at 15 lpm.

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G'evenin Darcy

I've posted in a Facebook group to see if any of the Canadian members have successfully sourced welding oxygen up there. I know that a longtime member here looked into it and couldn't find any regulatory restrictions in Canada but to be honest, I've yet to see anyone from Canada or the UK talk about using it. If I learn anything from my fb post I'll update here. One comment I have gotten is that you shouldn't have any problem sourcing medical oxygen thru ya'lls health care system but if it's anything like the UK, they seem to have a lot of hoops to jump thru but most usually end up getting it thru NHS at a reasonable price.

DD

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  • 4 weeks later...

Update,

First thing, if you are renting an oxygen Bottle from Airgas they will have an $11.00 a month Hazmat charge added to your bill. Call them and tell them that you will not pay for a Hazmat charge for an oxygen bottle that is your possison. They try and shove this charge down your throat but they have no right to charge you for Hazmat on a bottle in your possesion.

Second. The rental charge is $.85 per day $26 per month.

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I bought a 100 tank filled with O2 for $274 and refills cost around $20 on it from Welding Supply in Louisville, KY.  I also have another 100 tank that I got filled. from a welding supply company.  I have the Harbor Freight valve and the Cluster Buster mask.  I swap tanks with them instead of filling mine which means that all the recerts are done by them.

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  • 6 years later...
On 6/14/2016 at 6:37 PM, mit12 said:

Just an FYI. At Airgas you can rent an 60 cubic foot Oxygen bottle for $18 per month. I filled out the credit application today. It will cost $20 dollars to fill it each time.

About how long does a tank last? I know everyone's experience will be different - but this is all new to me. My PCP recommended oxygen and it seems miraculous - but now she says there is ZERO way to get it! So, if you rent this tank, about how many cluster treatments can you get from a bottle this size? 

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@Rachael R,

The answers to your questions are a little complicated.  I think it would help you to read this post.  https://clusterbusters.org/forums/topic/5627-notes-about-welding-o2/

 

And maybe also the part near the beginning, headed "Oxygen," in this post.  https://clusterbusters.org/forums/topic/6213-basic-non-busting-information/

 

You might still have questions, but maybe they'll be easier to answer.  

I don't understand why so many doctors say that medical O2 can't be obtained.  Did she give you a specific reason (insurance?  Covid-related shortages?).  Usually, there's a way.  

10 hours ago, Rachael R said:

About how long does a tank last? I know everyone's experience will be different - but this is all new to me.

This might be in one of the posts, but the way to calculate very roughly how long a tank will last is to divide its capacity in liters by the flow rate you will be using (which is measured in liters per minute).  US welding tanks are stated in cubic feet, so you have to convert that capacity to liters.  Say you have a 60 cubic foot tank.  That's 1699 liters.  I know that because I typed [60 cu ft = liters] into google and it told me the answer.  If you were using a flow rate of 15 lpm (liters per minute), you would get 1699/15 minutes of oxygen from the tank, or 113 minutes.  For a bunch of reasons, you can only really rely on getting about two-thirds of that as fully useful O2 for aborting, or about 75 minutes.  You might use a higher flow rate, which would theoretically mean that the tank would empty faster -- but many people get faster aborts with higher flow rates, so they might get as many or more aborts from a tank as someone using a 15 lpm flow rate.  (Like I said, it can be a little complicated -- but of course the simple urgency is to get O2 and start aborting with it.  The rest works itself out.)

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