Hey guys so I'm really getting pissed off. I have two lighters from some convenient stores and they worked fine till they ran out and I had to refill them. I only tried filling one with some nibo butane which I read is cheap but it filled the lighter yet it would only shoot out one quick flame everytime I tried it. Now I have a xikar lighter and I filled it with some colibri and I'm getting the same shitty ass problem. It seems to only shoot out a consistent flame when I've got it turned all the way up or close. Once I turn it down a bit it starts doing the quick shoot. Sometimes it is working when it's turned down but then I set it aside and try again after a few minutes and its back to doing the same shit. I really just wanna fricken vape but this is gonna be a pain in the ass and a waste of money and time when I can just flick a bic and have no problems. There is some space in the lighter where it isn't filled with butane but I don't think that's the problem
Help with my new lighter
- Thread starter horizon88
- Start date
GreenHopper
20 going on 60
Hiya, like @needalift is suspecting I too think it's likely a build up of propellant from the gas can you are filling from.
You need to bleed the lighter and ensure you do not shake the can before filling the lighter. Additionally you need to ensure the can is held up (can nozzle down, lighter inlet up) when filling.
Check out this resource for more details:
Butane Quality / Lighter Refuelling Technique
When I got the lighter it was completely empty already. I may have shook the colibri can before filling it but I thought I had to lol fucking frustrating shit. Same problem shown in this video.
I will check out the thread you've posted and I hope I don't have to empty the lighter and refill it again because I only have a small can of fuel and that's seriously a waste of my money to fix one little issue. The lighter is brand new.
GreenHopper
20 going on 60
Haha Yeh same here... for ages, kept thinking I had dud lighters, turned out the lighters had a dud owner.
In a can of butane you need something to expel the butane.
Compressed air is added to the can and used as a propellant, if you shake up the can you mix the propellant and the butane so that both get forced into the lighter tank.
Now if its a can of whipped cream and you are filling your face it's a completely different process. There you DO need to shake the can in order to mix up the NO2 for that light fluffy effect
... whipped cream...Lol thanks guys. I tried the method from the video in the thread GreenHopper posted (thats my exact lighter) and I filled it to the top. It's still not working on low just doing the quick shoot but if I turn it up half way then it works. Which really sucks cause it's supposed to fucking work on low too. Like wtf. Guess I just need to keep it on this half turn. Such bs..
GreenHopper
20 going on 60
Happy to help out,
The ambient temp can affect how open/closed the valve can be.
If you are in a hotter climate the gas will expand so you can close down the valve which will turn down the flame height.
In colder climates you have to turn it up to allow the gas to flow more easily.
I'm finding I'm constantly adjusting the valve depending on the temp.
The ambient temp can affect how open/closed the valve can be.
If you are in a hotter climate the gas will expand so you can close down the valve which will turn down the flame height.
In colder climates you have to turn it up to allow the gas to flow more easily.
I'm finding I'm constantly adjusting the valve depending on the temp.
Oh okay. I didn't know the temperature of my environment could affect it that much. Well I live in Canada so idk lol it's summer now and it ain't that cold but sigh.. I guess as long as it works even if it has to be turned up like all the way I'm okay with it.. I did see a video where someone unscrewed the adjustment wheel off the xikar tech lighter (same one I have) and used pliers to adjust the flames height by turning the valve. Maybe I could try that and turn it up more? Idk..
GreenHopper
20 going on 60
You could probably do that, I've done that on clipper lighters in the past but not on a jet flame lighter. If there are videos out there on it then you are laughing, just wait until the lighter is empty and then have a go.
Don't forget the bigger the flame the more gas you are using up, everything is a trade off and it's a question of balance.
Hopefully you should start getting a more consistent experience now that you are fueling without propellant.
What are you using the lighter with? VapCap, Sticky brick, Other?
OF
Well-Known Member
Actually, no you don't need anything to move the liquid Butane, it's self pressurizing, just like it's heavier cousin Propane. And CFCs for that matter, which we used to use to power spray paints among other tasks. In fact, Butane and Propane are used to pressurize other products, like cooking oils and spray paints these days.
And for sure you wouldn't want to put compressed air in the can with all that flammable gas.....that's how you make a bomb? And compressed gasses, like air, won't really do it since the pressure in the can drops linearly with volume changes. Use half the contents and the pressure would be a small fraction of what it was when full. Instead you need to use things like Propane that can boil off gas to fill the increased volume. Where pressure is determined by temperature, not remaining volume.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Butane_(data_page)
As you can see from the graph about 2/3 of the way down at 0C it's about 20 PSI, at 100C it's about 20 times that 'all by itself'.
Because the pressure (and therefore gas flow rate) varies so much with temperature most lighters end up being temperature sensitive. They can also collect liquid 'gas' in the valve so when it opens it lets out a burst of liquid making lighting erratic. I suggest in such cases you use a candle or similar to light the lighter manually and adjust the gas flow before actually trying to spark it to life.
It's also common for cheap Butane to contain random versions of Butane, some Propane and other stuff. Much like LP gas. BTW, the 'Propane' the man delivers in rural areas contains extra Butane in winter since the vapor pressure of the heavier gas is lower at any temperature. So there, ironically, Butane becomes the driving gas for the more energy potent (and cheaper) Propane.
OF
GreenHopper
20 going on 60