Oxy/Acetylene or Petrogen

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Jim Rigstad on May 27, 2008 at 8:11pm

The Petrogen works great for thick stuff but if it's less than an inch I prefer the plasma cutter. The nice thing about the Petrogen is you don't have to worry about transporting the acetyalene tanks always upright.

Permalink Reply by Chris Piepenburg on May 27, 2008 at 9:00pm

I have used both and prefer the Petrogen torch over the OA torch. I like the way it cuts and also look at it this way, if you need it in a disaster type situation I believe it will be much easier to get gas than it will be to get Acetylene.

Permalink Reply by Scott Richardson on June 3, 2008 at 9:54pm

Good point Chris!

Gasoline and Oxygen are a little easier to procure in a natural disaster. The petrogen seems to have more "bang" for the buck (no pun intended).

Permalink Reply by Jim Saladin on June 5, 2008 at 11:47am

To me the pros of the Petro system is the fuel is easily obtained, and you don't have the same level of hazards as you do with Accetylene (tipping the cylinder on it's side ect...). The one draw back I have heard of with the Petrogen is it might be difficult to ignite in cold conditions. Our department does not own one but I have trained with one on several occasions...unfortunately they were fairly temperate (above 45 degrees).

Good luck,
Captain Sal

Permalink Reply by Rex Strickland on June 6, 2008 at 4:28pm

We carry PCS Petrogen on the Rescue's and a larger system on the support unit. It is also part of the US&R cache. I definitely favor the Petrogen over OA for several reasons. Ease of ignition, availability of fuel, safety of fuel source, ease of operation, and forgiveness for the operator make it favorite for most firefighters.

While Plasma gives a nice cut, power is sometimes an issue. It can also be finicky on the street. The SLICE pack is also another cutting system we have used. Rods go quick and the igniter gets fouled quickly.

The biggest issue with Petrogen is Oxygen. The solution is feathering the O2. Most folks have a tendency to flow the O2 wide-open, depleting the bottle too quickly. You only need enough O2 to blow out the slag. The other is issue is dipping the tip in your work.

For general use, we use the 8/3 tip.

Customer service has also been great with Petrogen.

Permalink Reply by Sandy Lasa on June 10, 2008 at 4:20pm

Only had a chance to use Petrogen once. I must admit I like the system over the OA for the same reasons as everyone stated but mostly because of the ease of operation and forgiveness for the operator. Have a chance to work with some ironworkers in a couple of weeks, we're going to get to cut with all the systems. I'll let you know how it goes. Anybody have any problems or have heard of any problems due to cold weather operations like Jim S stated? We're in the northeast, so if cold weather is a problem, that may effect our decision in purchasing a Petro system

Permalink Reply by Jim Rigstad on June 13, 2008 at 3:39pm

It is very important to keep you gasoline fresh. Long periods between uses and the gas gums up everything. One solution is to fill the tank with white gas when storing for long periods and still need it ready to go. We also drain the gas out of the hose when storing.

Permalink Reply by Steve Disick on June 20, 2008 at 7:31pm

Ditto to everything said here so far. Petrogen over OA any day. One advantage that I have found with the Petrogen is that it produces less slag than OA which can be beneficial when cutting near a victim