Why Refined Butane is Better for Jet Torches

Refined butane has an incredible range of uses but, like many other products derived from natural resources — in this case, gas — it is often taken for granted. Most people never think twice about butane, until the lighter they use to light a birthday candle fails, or their natural gas powered barbecue grill peters out midway through cooking dinner.

What is Butane?

Discovered in the early 20th century, refined butane is a byproduct of natural gas processing. It is highly flammable and low cost to produce, and is used in many different applications at consumer and industrial level. For the average person, butane is most recognizable because of its widespread use in refillable or disposable cigarette lighters, outdoor cooking and Tiki torches, among other uses. Commercially, butane serves as a fuel source for a wide variety of high powered torches used to cut steel, for instance.

Why Refined Butane is Better for Jet Torches

Advanced technology has created a number of competitors when it comes to butane-powered jet torches. Extremely high pressure water can be used to cut certain materials; the same goes for more exotic machinery such as industrial grade lasers.

But when it comes to widespread availability, production methods, costs, performance and reliability, few fuel sources offer the same cost to benefit ratio as butane. When cutting certain metals, butane jet torches trump many others as they have been known to sustain a temperature approaching 1,700 degrees Kelvin (about 2,600 degrees Fahrenheit) — hot enough to melt aluminum or copper and completely vaporize many organic compounds.

Types of Jet Torches for Consumer Use

But do not be intimidated about all the talk related to high temperatures and the ability to melt metals or vaporize organic materials. At its heart, a butane refill product is best known for common everyday uses.

• Refillable and disposable cigarette lighters, which is how most people gain their first exposure to butane.
• Handheld jet torches are popular in kitchens around the world for their use in caramelizing sugars, melt or brown toppings for various dishes, and even roast or char vegetables for side servings.
• Jet torches are also used in arts and crafts, thanks to specialized nozzles to better direct flames for precision applications. This is another area where a butane refill comes in handy.

Jet Torches for Industrial Use

Newport butane powered jet torches, for instance, are used in a number of industries beyond the realm of consumer uses. The reasons are obvious — butane is inexpensive, reliable, and results in an incredibly hot flame. An automotive repair technician may use a jet torch for welding together car body components; a dental technician often uses a small handheld device when creating crowns or other dental prosthetics; a plumber will often use a jet torch to weld together copper plumbing or other fittings, while electricians, carpenters, and building maintenance professionals utilize torches for other high demand applications where a constant, high-temperature flame is an absolute requirement.

In many of these uses, a torch lighter is a handy means to activate the device, though many torches have electronic ignitions to start the flame. Smaller, handheld torches can sometimes be lit using a common cigarette lighter, like the kind purchased at a gas station or convenience store.

Common Applications for Industrial Grade Jet Torches

So what are some of the applications a Lucienne butane-powered jet torch can be used for?

• Soldering together plumbing fittings.
• Sterilization of equipment used in medical procedures, or other applications where proper hygiene is required.
• Fusing together adhesives, or heating caulking so it sets properly around doors, windows, vents, or showers and tubs.
• Heat shrink tubing, for automotive, electronic, and aerospace or military applications.
• A process to make metals such as copper more workable, called wire annealing.
• Repairing bent or broken frames for eye glasses.
• Lapidary work, where  artisans use Power 7x Butane filled torches to heat stones or gems when creating jewelry.
• Arts and crafts, when working with ceramics, metals, wood, and glass.
• Outdoor repairs.
• When was the last time you had trouble removing a door because the hinge would not come lose? Chances are it may have been caused by a rusted screw. Torch jets also can be used to loosen screws, nuts and bolts.

Tips When Using a Jet Torch

High temperature, butane jet torches are powerful devices, and should be treated and used with caution. At Butane Source, we like to remind the general public to always wear safety goggles and gloves when working with butane, and be aware that like other natural gas, it can be highly toxic. Even when butane is not used in torches, it must be stored properly and should never come in direct contact with the eyes or skin.