Etiquette if the shop doesn't fill the tank completely

[Kharon]

Shops don't make any money on this service anyway so I would not make their job harder.

Seriously??? There is virtually no overhead so the charge is almost entirely profit. If they are doing tons of fills it's a significant amount. Sorry - if I'm paying for a full fill I wnat a full fill.

 

[Belzelbub]

As mentioned above, I almost always leave my tank overnight. I usually get Nitrox fills, so analyze before leaving the shop. Shop analyzer includes a pressure gauge. If it's short, I'll ask them to top off. At my usual shop, I don't even need to ask. If it's short they will top off right then. If you are paying for a fill, it's reasonable to expect it to be actually full.

Though, I would understand if a shop is unable for some reason to get pressure above 3000 psi. Though, I would expect that they would let me know when I drop off my HP tanks that they have this limitation. At the shops I use though, this hasn't been an issue.

 

[lexvil]

For me, if a shop doesn’t do a full + fill I find another shop.

 

[Boarderguy]

When I pick up my tanks I set them next to the fill station and one of the employees will hook each up to an whip and verify its full. If it's short they top them up to ~3700. I'm happy with anything above 3400, but appreciate their giving me a few more minutes under water. The only tanks they don't jam to a proper 3600-3700 are AL tanks and they keep them right at 3000 cold. When I get a hot fill for whatever reason I know they're going to cool from 3700 to about 3400 at best. With my current farm of tanks it is highly unlikely that I even NEED them back right away.

 

[Tracy]

Seriously??? There is virtually no overhead so the charge is almost entirely profit. If they are doing tons of fills it's a significant amount. Sorry - if I'm paying for a full fill I wnat a full fill.

Yeah, only about $30k to buy and $500-$1000 per year to run and maintain. So basically no overhead.
Not saying you shouldn't get a full fill, but the entirely profit thing is hilarious.

 

[Boarderguy]

Yeah, only about $30k to buy and $500-$1000 per year to run and maintain. So basically no overhead.
Not saying you shouldn't get a full fill, but the entirely profit thing is hilarious.

Don't forget the man hours involved with maintenance and each fill. It may only be a few minutes per tank but that adds up.

 

[MaxBottomtime]

My LDS spent over $150,000 to install a nitrox compressor system and power box from the city to get it running. They won't see any profit from fills for a long time.

 

[rob.mwpropane]

My compressor is a ~ 5cfm machine. I think that higher cfm would need a tad more psi to adjust for more pressure drop as the tank cools but idk.. I have what I have.

With that said I aim for

3.3k in LP (cools to 3K)
3.3k in Al (cools to 3k)
4k in HP (cools to 3.6k)

Theres no reason to fill a tank with less air then needed. Should cool to the correct psi. Adding another 13-15% isn't going to cause the tank to go.. if it passed the last hydro why would it? Why leave it overnight, seems like a waste of my time?

I have never complained about my fills but there have been a few times that I've been tempted to fire myself for other reasons

 

[rhwestfall]

The shop I used to use before I bought a compressor would top pony bottles for free. I thought that was a good policy.

same here.

 

[rjack321]

My LDS spent over $150,000 to install a nitrox compressor system and power box from the city to get it running. They won't see any profit from fills for a long time.

I've seen this a few times around here. A shop will spend insane amounts of money on compressor(s) and boosters that decades of fills could never recoup the capital outlay. After maintenance is factored in I'm not sure they will ever break even.