NITROUS OXIDE ( nos / n2o ) advice forum

As the tittle says, are there any 'traditional' methods of warming the bottle up, instead of using an electric heater? im hardly getting any power at all on a cold bottle on 25hp jetting

Let it heat soak in hot water.

ahhh...interesting. good point.

obviously there isnt a bucket big enough to drown the bottle, but i assume you mean from the base and let it stand in a large pot of hot water. thats a really good idea. although only good if you're just about to go out racing from home. useful for me though.

any more?

I don't know if I should say this but some people use a toarch from
a natural gas tank or one of those $3 lighters that shots flames like a
rocket.

I guess It could be safe if you move the lighter up and down the
tank really fast.
(Just get a bottle heater, what's wrong with you? )

I reckon hot water is going to be best due to the great heat transfer you'll get compared to air. It will also limit the spot temp to <100c so it will be safe. Perhaps some kind of plastic bag (that can handle boiling water) put the bottle in the bag - add water.

Certainly is Dave and if the hot water tank of your home is in a cupboard, then that's another option.

Whatever you do, make sure you have a gauge fitted and you keep an eye on it.

If you have an SPRV, make sure you keep the pressure below it's relief setting.

Regards

Basically you need an electric heater as it's the easiest and most consistant.

You're missing the easiest option of all

Wrap it in a towel and dump it in a warm bath! Or if you're not worried about possible scratches to the bath you don't even need the towel.

Dan

Hi TREV

Wow...a space heater that shoots flame out of end ..like a workshop one ??

Id like to have seen that....from a distance lollllllll


All the best Brett

Yep that's the type and believe me I was also at a distance and behind a metal shield!!!

The things we do when we're young and naive.

Regards

Hi Trev

Yup...age makes us more sensible lol....

Mind you.....I think I can beat that story for bravery/stupidity....

Once long ago ,I seem to remember seeing some nutter racing a Bond Bug.....now thats REALLY brave/stupid lol

All the best Brett

I've got a story even crazier than that!!!

I had a customer come to my place with a racing hovercraft in the depths of a snow covered winter many years ago.

It didn't have any electrics so we fitted a cable operated system but we didn't have a cable long enough to connect it from the bars to the location near the engine.

The guy was desperate to experience what the nitrous was going to do before he took it away and begged me to ride on the back (these are single seater vehicles by the way), while he drove it across an open field (covered in snow) in the pitch dark, so I could operate the manual nitrous valve.

Reluctantly I agreed and off we went.

Now I'd never seen one of these things before and I've never been too concerned about stopping whatever I've driven, because I've been overly dedicated to making them quicker, so it didn't enter my head to wonder how they stop those things.

Anyway we're charging across the snow covered field at about 60 mph and he gives me the nudge to hit the gas. The thing shot off and all was good in the world till all of a sudden he screams at me to shut it off and then slings out the anchor. Well that's my technical term for how they slow them down but what they actually do is spin them through 180 degrees whilst also tipping them side ways, neither of which I was prepared for.

The 180 about face is for the fan to blow in the reverse direction and the tip is to get rid of the air cushion and produce drag but because I wasn't prepared for either and I wasn't holding on to the driver, I went head first into the snow (only managing to hold myself inside the thing with my finger tips) and ploughed my own furrow as it ground to a halt.

Now that was bad enough but the guy was so pleased with the result, that he wanted another go and nobody else would take my place, so I had to do it again, this time however I was prepared and avoided the side exit.

I've had a number of similar zany experiences, like one I had on the first ever 3 wheeled ATC I'd ever seen and gassed, have you ever tried to steer one of those without being told how, especially at speed with an oncoming truck heading towards you????

Then there was the off road V8 Range Rover with 2 stages of nitrous, a total of 650 bhp and a loony behind the wheel (no not me, the guy who owned and raced it), that I unwisely took the passenger seat in. I don't think even off road vehicles are adequately modified to handle rolls and pirouettes and I certainly wasn't!!!!

Like I said all crazy stuff but I lived to tell the tale - unfortunately for some -

Regards

Hi Trev

Stop it.....I am still crying with laughter..........could you manage a replay of the snow thing......I would pay serious money to see that lolllllllllllllllllllll

One day we will have to sit down and tell each other stories...if you think our old tickers can take it

All the best...a still laughing ..Brett

I'd guess we could be at it for a week never mind a day.

Never mind we'll see how much we can cram into a day if/when we meet up.

Regards

good point, i might try a hot water bottle and letting it sit under the bottle (touching) to heat it up gradually. thanx guys

Why don't you want a bottle heater?

ideally mate, i'd have a ferrari with nitrous AND a bottle heater, but it all comes down to money my friend

Why don't you sell those aluminum pullys or the cone filter on a tube for a nice blanket. j/k.

Do you have an ac/dc converter? You can find an old electric blanket
for like $5 at a yard sale and plug that in to your car.

My experience prior to bottle heaters and/or nitrogen regulated systems with a motorcycle on nitrous and sometimes racing with ambient temperatures that would not give my targeted pressure of 800 psi I just heated the bottles with the exhaust from my generator while charging the batteries until they reached 850 psi prior to the race.
I have seen the mini torch used by "professional" US teams and as a senior pressurised equipment integrity engineer in a mayor oil refinery I definately recommend other means of heating or controlling the pressure. I have also heard stories of replacing the rupture discs with parts of a beer can to allow for higher pressures. Even worse is pluggin it . This might not lead to a mayor problem unless the bottle is overfilled. In that case a bottle rupture is possible as the hydraulic pressure when there is no gas volume for expansion would increase very quickly. A relief valve or rupture disc is mandatory on any pressurized equipment used in production or where public is near. The official control of them depends on the size of the bottle and if you have employees or not.

lol, noooooo way! they do more for me than nitrous does. remember i use nitrous only in racing. all my mods have done more good than harm...although the bored throttle body cased a bit of knock so i took it off

im gonna go and try to use up a few lbs of gas now on the streets. im bored. i'll be back

I used the exhaust manifold quite often between runs, i just sit the bottle on it.

Probably not a good bit of advice to give either though



@ Trev on the hovercrat!

I've heard rumours that certain members sleep with their cylinder in bed with them. I'm not sure if its to keep it warm for the morning or for something more suspicious....

success

last night i did a 0-100 on a cold bottle and got 13.6seconds
this evening i did it again and got 12.8 (on 25hp jetting!!!!!!!!!)

the secret...a hot water bottle under the nitro cylinder for 40-ish minutes

That does sound like a great success. I was reading very limited gains with the TRD s/c's so I am glad to see what I have to look forward too once I get around to fitting nitrous on our Scion TC which took over the Celica.