Oxygen- EasyPulse 5 conserving regulator?

[Dan Youngquist]

Hi all,

I'd like to hear from anyone who has used the EasyPulse 5 while flying,
and can confirm whether it works at 12K-18K altitudes. Trying to put
together a good but low-buck oxygen system.

-Dan

[Matt Barrow]

"Dan Youngquist" > wrote in message
ell.org...
> Hi all,
>
> I'd like to hear from anyone who has used the EasyPulse 5 while flying,
> and can confirm whether it works at 12K-18K altitudes. Trying to put
> together a good but low-buck oxygen system.
>

Oxygen system oxymoron. (Had to throw that in)

[Dan Youngquist]

Matt Barrow wrote:

> > a good but low-buck oxygen system.
>
> Oxygen system oxymoron. (Had to throw that in)

Well, not necessarily. (I assume the above is what you're referring
to.) I'll have a better system for less than 1/3 the cost of the least
expensive aviation oxygen systems I've seen. Including adapters to
refill from any medical or welding oxygen cylinder, I'll still be at
around half the cost.

-Dan

[[email protected]]

Dan Youngquist wrote:
> Matt Barrow wrote:
>
> > > a good but low-buck oxygen system.
> >
> > Oxygen system oxymoron. (Had to throw that in)
>
> Well, not necessarily. (I assume the above is what you're referring
> to.) I'll have a better system for less than 1/3 the cost of the least
> expensive aviation oxygen systems I've seen. Including adapters to
> refill from any medical or welding oxygen cylinder, I'll still be at
> around half the cost.
>
> -Dan

Do tell/share!

[[email protected]]

> Do tell/share!

I would also like to have a cheaper than average o2 hook up for the few
times I need to go high. Can you advise, or others, ideas?

[Grumman-581[_4_]]

wrote:
> > Do tell/share!
>
> I would also like to have a cheaper than average o2 hook up for the few
> times I need to go high. Can you advise, or others, ideas?

You can get an aluminum medical type cylinder via eBay... There are
companies that sell the fittings and hoses to allow you to fill it from
a welding bottle... If you're lucky, the medical cylinder will even
have a regulator on it... All that is left after that is some sort of
breathing device and that just depends upon your preference... The
medical canulas can also be picked up there... Sometimes, you can even
get all of it in one package... From there, you get yourself a large
welding cylinder and get it filled up with O2 at your local welding gas
supplier... It costs nearly the same to fill up a small cylinder as it
does a large one, so get the largest cylinder that you can justify...
Often this will be one that you will swap out at the supplier instead
of waiting for them to fill it, so going with a size that is common for
the oxy-acetylene rigs in your area is advisable... From an economical
standpoint, you should go with whatever the largest tank you can afford
and handle... I find the large commercial ones that you see at the
construction sights to be light enough that I can put over my shoulder
and carry... Use as large of a steel tank as you can find since this is
going to be what you are going to be refilling the small tank from...
Your small tank will probably be aluminum and will need to hold as much
oxygen as you might possibly use on a trip away from home... I believe
that the one I use is classified as a T-size cylinder (or perhaps a
"K")... A hand card and a couple of straps will allow you to save your
back a bit if you can't the 130-140 lbs that it weigh empty... A "T"
size tank is good for 337 cu-ft at 2640 psi... A "K" size tank is good
for 249 cu-ft at 2200 psi... Unless you see up a bank of multiple tanks
and fill from the lower pressure tanks first, you're not going to get a
full 2200 psi fill for your aircraft's tank very many times... It's
unlikely that you'll need a full 2200 psi for a trip anyway, so that
shouldn't be that big of a deal... What you need to do is calculate the
cu-ft of O2 that you will need and the number of cu-ft that your
aircraft tank is holding at the pressure that you were able to put into
it...

IIRC, medical tanks use a CGA 870 connector whereas welding tanks use a
CGA 540 connector... You'll need to get the appropriate connectors when
you're wanting to build your transfer hose... Some of the online SCUBA
shops will be able to sell you the connectors since some divers mix
their own breathing gas... I believe that I bought all my fittings from
Fill Express down in SoFL... There are some especially anal retentive
people who will say that you should only use either aviation grade or
medical grade O2 for breathing... That is total bull****... There are
quite a few divers who have used welding O2 for many years and the
partial pressure of the O2 is quite a bit more than you will ever
encounter as a pilot and it hasn't caused anyone a problem yet... Even
welding O2 is at least 99.9% O2... According to:
http://www.c-f-c.com/specgas_products/oxygen.htm
"we have been told by the suppliers of welding oxygen, the purity level
required for welding and cutting purposes is more critical than for
breathing."
and
"The bottom line about the different types of oxygen is in the
insurance liability of the oxygen supplier. The gas is the same but the
insurance liability is different."

[[email protected]]

thanks!

[Ken Reed]

> >I'd like to hear from anyone who has used the EasyPulse 5 while flying,
> >and can confirm whether it works at 12K-18K altitudes. Trying to put
> >together a good but low-buck oxygen system.

> I use a Nelson (Precise Flow) demand regulator, with their special
> cannula, and it works very well. Tested to FL160.

I've had my Precise Flight demand valve oxygen regulator to 17,500 ft
with the cannulas and they worked fine.
---
Ken Reed
M20M, N9124X

--
Ken Reed
M20M, N9124X

[Matt Barrow]

"Ken Reed" > wrote in message
...
>> >I'd like to hear from anyone who has used the EasyPulse 5 while flying,
>> >and can confirm whether it works at 12K-18K altitudes. Trying to put
>> >together a good but low-buck oxygen system.
>
>> I use a Nelson (Precise Flow) demand regulator, with their special
>> cannula, and it works very well. Tested to FL160.
>
> I've had my Precise Flight demand valve oxygen regulator to 17,500 ft
> with the cannulas and they worked fine.

Any oxygen (delivery) system will work to quite a high altitude; it's the
cannulas and mask fit that are critical. Also, your own metabolic (?) use of
oxygen. If you're a flatlander, smoker, poor condition, you'll use a lot
more at ANY altitude than a mountain dweller, etc.


--
Matt
---------------------
Matthew W. Barrow
Site-Fill Homes, LLC.
Montrose, CO (MTJ)

[Ron Natalie]

Peter wrote:
> Dan Youngquist > wrote
>
>> Hi all,
>>
>> I'd like to hear from anyone who has used the EasyPulse 5 while flying,
>> and can confirm whether it works at 12K-18K altitudes. Trying to put
>> together a good but low-buck oxygen system.
>>
>> -Dan
>
> I use a Nelson (Precise Flow) demand regulator, with their special
> cannula, and it works very well. Tested to FL160.

Agreed. I have the same. It stretches the bottle time, works well,
and you tweak it to a higher flow if you want. It's entirely passive
(works like a scuba regulator). The Mountain Air one uses more O2,
is not really adjustable, and requires a 9V battery.

[Ron Natalie]

Peter wrote:

> The Mountain High regulator is worse than the Nelson one?

Precisely.

> That's suprising since it's electronic.

Maybe a little, but not if you actually look at the specs
(neither company seems to inflate their own specs, but Montain
High's sales pitch to me at Oshkosh seemed to consist of 90%
untruths about the Nelson unit).

[Grumman-581[_3_]]

"Peter" > wrote in message
...
> Any comments/corrections much appreciated.

Just a bit of trivia... A 2-liter plastic soda bottle is supposedly rated
for around 200 psi... If you filled it with O2 and put a valve on it that
would feed into your regulator, you would have a very lightweight O2 supply
for about 13 minutes... I've never filled them to that pressure though... I
routinely fill them to 75 psi when I'm carbonating a beverage... I also
tried oxygenating beverages at one time, but the taste was too light...

[Ron Natalie]

Peter wrote:
> Ron Natalie > wrote
>
>> Maybe a little, but not if you actually look at the specs
>> (neither company seems to inflate their own specs, but Montain
>> High's sales pitch to me at Oshkosh seemed to consist of 90%
>> untruths about the Nelson unit).
>
> Well, if you ask a U.S. pilot shop what they think of Nelson (a.k.a.
> Precise Flow) they say the stuff doesn't work at all. This is because
> Nelson took their sales in-house so the retailers can't make the
> margin on them anymore.
>
These weren't pilot shops. This was talking to the companies
directly at their respective booths in Oshkosh year before
last. I've never seen a pilot shop (at least not around
here) selling oxygen setups at all. It's way too much
of a niche market. You're lucky to find headphones, etc..
at most shops here (most rarely carry more than sectionals).

[Peter Duniho]

"Ron Natalie" > wrote in message
m...
> [...] I've never seen a pilot shop (at least not around
> here) selling oxygen setups at all. It's way too much
> of a niche market. You're lucky to find headphones, etc..
> at most shops here (most rarely carry more than sectionals).

Huh. It's unfortunate you don't have better-stocked pilot shops where you
are. I have bought most of my pilot accessories from local shops, including
my headsets, handheld radio, and yes...my portable oxygen system.

The shop currently closest to my hangar also sells things like grease,
engine oil, hydraulic fluid, tires, and a variety of other owner
accessories. Granted, they are part of the FBO there, so those sorts of
maintenance items are stuff they have to stock anyway. But I'm surprised to
hear your local pilot shops are so limited. :(

Pete

[[email protected]]

Aviation Consumer tested both units in June 2006. They liked both units
alot and raved about them. They preferred the Precise Flow for a single
user unit, due to its lower cost and more simple installation. For 2
users, you need another unit for the Precise Flow, so its lower cost is
negated, and the Mountain high hooks up for 2 users more easily, so
they preferred it for a 2 place installation.

Bud

Ron Natalie wrote:
> Peter wrote:
>
> > The Mountain High regulator is worse than the Nelson one?
>
> Precisely.
>
> > That's suprising since it's electronic.
>
> Maybe a little, but not if you actually look at the specs
> (neither company seems to inflate their own specs, but Montain
> High's sales pitch to me at Oshkosh seemed to consist of 90%
> untruths about the Nelson unit).