Cooking gas, also known as Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) is the most pragmatic clean cooking fuel available today: it is safe, relatively cheap and extensively distributed.
Cooking gas is produced from Natural Gas. For easy storage and transportation, cooking gas is liquefied and stored in cylinders under pressure. This makes cylinders (made from low carbon steel and complying with the BIS 3196 standard) pressurized vessels. Pressurized vessels have lifespans. Cylinders Once older than 10 years, must be inspected and tested by a licensed test station, prior to refilling. Cylinders above their test due dates are expired and must be withdrawn from circulation.
Unfortunately, presently in Nigeria, there are no licensed test stations to requalify cylinders. Thus, cylinders above 10 years in Nigeria are considered expired and must be discarded. Expire cylinders are time-bombs waiting for explosion. If a cylinder is undamaged, it can be refilled unlimited times prior to expiry.
Where do you find the Test Due Date?
The test due date (or expiry date as applied in Nigeria), an alphanumeric code, is marked on collars (shroud) of the cylinder. It starts with alphabets A, B, C or D followed by 2 digits (Example — C-23).
The alphabets stand for quarters -
A — First Quarter (Jan-Mar)
B — Second Quarter (Apr-Jun)
C — Third Quarter (Jul-Sep)
D — Fourth Quarter (Oct-Dec)
The digits indicate the year (YY) till it is valid. Hence C-23 would mean the cylinder is due for testing in the third quarter of 2023.
Note: some cylinders in circulation in Nigeria, have their manufactured dates or initial test-dates stamped on them. To determine their expiry or next test dates, you add 10 years to the stamped date.
Goodnews…….
At Homefort, we prioritize safety. We are on a mission to withdraw expired cylinders from circulation- one cylinder at a time. To do this, we employ barcode technology. Barcode tags are fixed to our cylinders. Vital cylinder information such as manufacture date, expiry date and tare weight are stored on these tags. Tags on these cylinders are scanned before every refill. Our proprietary technology flags expired cylinders (before they are refilled) and are withdrawn from circulation.
For reassured safety, I encourage you to switch over to Homefort.
Click on this link to sign for Homefort service
Opeyemi Owosho
