Re: [PSUBS-MAILIST] O2

["John R. Farrington" <jrf@austin.ibm.com>]

Interesting you should mention that.  Just last Friday I was
in a welding supply place trying to 'size-up' oxygen tanks to
figure out their size/cost/availability.  I got the same story
that you did.  The guy said that you need a prescription or something
of the sort to get the medical-grade oxygen.

I know we've discussed this before in the archives, but I think the
end result was that some were willing to use the welding-grade O2,
and others only felt comfortable using medical-grade.

Obviously medical grade is better, but if it's really unavailable
we have to wonder if the welding-grade stuff is acceptable.  The
guy at this welding shop went so far as to tell me that he wouldn't
sell me welding-grade O2 if he knew that I was going to be breating
it.

He wasn't the regular guy, and he had no idea what I really had 
intended to use if for (submarine, not an ailing grandmother).

It wasn't the regular welding shop that I go to anyway, which does
know in detail what I'm doing, and would likely sell me O2 in
probably either of the two flavors.

You've got to wonder though if they're going to take your exhausted
medical-grade O2 tanks after they've been dunked under water,
covered in silt, etc.

Anyone have experience getting medical-grade O2 from welding supply
places for the use in their sub?

-John