Of course it is necessary to take reasonable precautions when playing with fire. Safety 1[SUP]st[/SUP]. I am a bit more cautious with propane than acetylene because propane is heavier than air and can collect around the tank if proper precautions weren’t observed ready to be a big fireball if something ignites it. Acetylene is lighter than air and will disperse into the atmosphere if for some reason it escapes. I turn off my propane tank if I am not going to be using it in the very near future. I also like to burn off the propane in the line at the end of the day too.

But there is no need to wrap ourselves in asbestos suits with independently supplied oxygen masks just to do a practice braze. BBQ grills are a good example. There is a vastly greater amount of propane supplied flame used to cook hamburgers than braze a joint. Most people see that as a reasonably safe activity. If I was to ask a landlord about regulations I would say “Do you allow BBQ grills? And if so where is it okay to use them? I’m thinking about getting some propane equipment.” I realize that is a bit of misdirection but the real intent is there. You don’t want his snap judgment based on the oddity of the use rather than whether propane is allowed under what people consider a normal activity. In my opinion it is way safer to have a very small flame that has many more safety features between it and the supply tank than what a BBQ grill has. A brazing regulator is of a much higher quality. There should be a flashback arrestor to stop any flame from going into the tank and check valves on the torch handle provides additional safety. And the difference between flame size is enormous. Using a BBQ grill as an example of propane activity that puts its use into proper perspective.

It is also possible to use natural gas as a fuel supply. The problem is that its line pressure is low so it might not have enough oomph to keep a good flame. Natural gas line pressures vary. I have read different accounts from those that practice home “lampmaking” as to how well it works. My guess is that combined with an oxygen concentrator it will work okay. There is expensive equipment that can increase natural gas line pressure between the supply line and the torch. These are mostly used in industry when working with a number of torches. One secret to being able to keep a propane flame lit is to set the propane line pressure very low – like 2 or 3 psi. Otherwise higher pressure can blow out the flame. This is different than acetylene flame characteristics.