Tractor Supply and Blue Rhino

[copplecrown]

Until recently, the least expensive option for getting my 20# propane tanks filled was at my local tractor supply. It was like $10 to fill verses $20 to exchange at Blue Rhino, where I had inherited a couple tanks that were technically beyond the 12 year mark. They were not old from BR, but their inspection system is unusual and often inconsistent, as is Tractor Supply's fill policy.

Blue Rhino will often re-certify a tank with the "E" stamp, followed by the date, which is good for a number a years, but will also sometimes use a small white sticker with the date on that as an inspection. I went to my local Tractor Supply to get them filled and the tech explained the BR system and why he didn't like it, understandably. People could easily remove the sticker and put in on an old tank, making me wonder why BR would use such a system. But, he filled the tanks without any trouble, at least at that location.

Last week, I went to another TS location and the tech wouldn't bother to look at the tanks. He had a salesperson look at them and she said they were out of date. I showed her the stickers and she said she'd talk to the tech. Again, he sent her back out, saying it was against their policy. No big deal, but I explained they have an inconsistent policy if one store will fill and another will not. I would have bought new tanks right there on the spot if the tech had actually bothered to come outside.

I opted to exchange the tanks at a local store for $18 and the cashier allowed me to pick out tanks with actual stampings with this year's dates. So, I'm set for a while, but am a bit confused on Blue Rhino's usage of the stickers as opposed to an actual physical stamping, or Tractor Supply's policy on what is legally fillable. Has anyone else had this issue? Happy camping to all.

[red31]

Dusty R wrote:
Last I knew when you do an exchange with Blue Rhino you get less than 20 lbs. maybe 15.

Correct but the new container is discounted $5 and the 15 lbs is FREE.

You do the math.

In between drive as far as ya like and pay whatever, locally its $4.49 per gallon @ the nearest uhaul, real propane dealers farther away since the whole town is piped natural gas.

The current IRS mileage rate is 54.5 cents a mile so that 25 mile trip (unless there is another reason to go that way) is another $13+ of wear/tear/insurance/...

[Dusty_R]

Last I knew when you do an exchange with Blue Rhino you get less than 20 lbs. maybe 15.

[red31]

Every time I exchange (12 yrs) there seems to be plenty of brand new containers to choose from and my neighborhood walmart lets me pick a new one for ~$20 and it comes with 15 lbs of propane. Give ye ole containers to someone with a tab bit of gumption so they can exchange for newer or brand new.

BR is in transportation/commerce and follows DOT, the local propane fillers follow state law.

[markchengr]

Right now my local Costco is selling brand new pre-purged 20 lb cylinders for $20. My local U-Haul dealer will take out-dated cylinders for free. I expect they recertify and sell them to, who knows, maybe Blue Rhino. -Mark.

[fj12ryder]

It's a standard 20# tank, and if it's not out of date there's no reason they will refuse.

[Gdetrailer]

fj12ryder wrote:

Gdetrailer wrote:

copplecrown wrote:
Thanks. Yes, I definitely agree, you get what you pay for. My tanks were free, I inherited them with propane in them and had the 'white sticker' discussion with a knowledgable employee at the store I had been going to, because they did have a good price/gal of propane. They would have filled the tanks because that was their policy.

The difference in policy at another TS was accidental, I was merely driving to a location that had a new TS and I figured I'd bring the empty tanks. That particular store was totally unfamiliar with those stickers, or at least on that day.

My other 2 tanks are my own and in much better cosmetic shape and are in use, no need to have an aggravating discussion about expiration dates, how they are applied, and whether the policy for filling them is consistently applied within a corporation within a state.

New tanks are about $30 here, but that's New England. The tanks will live out their current E stamp and then hopefully be given back to BR or any neighbor or family member who wants to go that route. My neighbor said people shoot them and then bring them in as scrap metal! I didn't bother to ask whether they used explosive ordinance. That's what Youtube is for.

So, you got them for "free", then COMPLAIN that no one wants to "fill" them :R :S :h



OK, perhaps I need to try a different way to explain this.

You technically DO NOT "OWN" Blue Rhino and any other "exchange" cylinders.

You ARE technically RENTING/LEASING those cylinders.

No other propane supplier is "required" to fill those and in fact back when Blue Rhino started they actually had a special valve setup which would not allow ANYONE ELSE to fill those cylinders. They had a special fill nozzle that had a magnet in the nozzle that no one else had.. No magnet in the right place and the internal tank valve would not allow propane to ENTER the tank.

Quit complaining, you ARE technically breaking the "lease" of those cylinders by having a non Blue Rhino business fill them.

Some businesses will turn you away just at the sight of exchange tanks.

You got them for free, you HAVE gotten your "money's worth" out of them.. Dump the exchange cylinders and BUY the new ones and be done with it. A ONE TIME COST for 12 yrs of use without any hassle, that ought be worth something to you..

The exchange system is for CONVENIENCE, not low cost.

The exchange company had to buy cylinders, has to repair/replace/recertify the cylinders, those costs are built into the "rent" of the tank and they make no guarantee that those cylinders won't expire during your use..

BUT, they (the exchange company) WILL take ANY EXPIRED tank back in for exchange and not charge you for the recert cost.

Do some checking before you post information that is not true. This is from the Blue Rhino website:

Blue Rhino is not a deposit program. Retailers do not provide cash for the return of empty tanks. When you exchange a tank with Blue Rhino, you walk away with a tank you own and that you can use however you wish.

You can use em any way you wish, but there is no guarantee that any other propane suppliers will fill those cylinders.

If they do, it is of their own free will to do so.. BUT, don't get bent out of shape if they refuse to.

[Gdetrailer]

copplecrown wrote:
Gdetrailer,

I was attempting to point something out that I couldn't find much information about on the web. I came here because I figured there are people with experience with this, sorry you misunderstood my intention. If I wanted to complain, I'd go to twitter. Instead, ironically, I came to the Good Sam message board. I get your point. It's not a big deal. Sorry to get you all worked up.

I am pointing out there is other "suppliers" than TS, there is other ways to get cylinders filled.

TS is not a "legit" place for consistent propane supply, you will not find every TS store that has a filling station and the store policies vary widely according to the manager of each store..

I have three within a half hr drive of me, NONE have a filling facility.

Only a couple of them even have propane exchanges.

I have a local mom and pop hardware store which DOES have a filling station which is where I take mine.

I have at least a dozen real bulk propane suppliers, THOSE are the places to get your cylinders filled if you want consistancy.

[fj12ryder]

Stupid forum software.

[copplecrown]

Gdetrailer,

I was attempting to point something out that I couldn't find much information about on the web. I came here because I figured there are people with experience with this, sorry you misunderstood my intention. If I wanted to complain, I'd go to twitter. Instead, ironically, I came to the Good Sam message board. I get your point. It's not a big deal. Sorry to get you all worked up.

[copplecrown]

My experience with TS has always been one person to do the filling. It had never been just anyone working there, and I had assumed they were trained and/or licensed to refill. Not sure what the actual law here is in NH, and not here to bash BR or TS. Just saying 1. BR and Amerigas, apparently, have a sticker for tanks and/or new E2018 stamp and 2. TS may vary from town to town in honoring the sticker. Obviously, a stamp is better than a sticker and a new tank is better than both.

Also, TS is my closest filling station. Our local mom and pop hardware stores are all tank exchange for either BR or Amerigas. It wasn't about better service. I had been very satisfied with TS, but learned they don't all have the same policy or customer satisfaction. I don't see a lot of information regarding white sticker tank certification out there.

[Gdetrailer]

copplecrown wrote:
Thanks. Yes, I definitely agree, you get what you pay for. My tanks were free, I inherited them with propane in them and had the 'white sticker' discussion with a knowledgable employee at the store I had been going to, because they did have a good price/gal of propane. They would have filled the tanks because that was their policy.

The difference in policy at another TS was accidental, I was merely driving to a location that had a new TS and I figured I'd bring the empty tanks. That particular store was totally unfamiliar with those stickers, or at least on that day.

My other 2 tanks are my own and in much better cosmetic shape and are in use, no need to have an aggravating discussion about expiration dates, how they are applied, and whether the policy for filling them is consistently applied within a corporation within a state.

New tanks are about $30 here, but that's New England. The tanks will live out their current E stamp and then hopefully be given back to BR or any neighbor or family member who wants to go that route. My neighbor said people shoot them and then bring them in as scrap metal! I didn't bother to ask whether they used explosive ordinance. That's what Youtube is for.

So, you got them for "free", then COMPLAIN that no one wants to "fill" them :R :S :h



OK, perhaps I need to try a different way to explain this.

You technically DO NOT "OWN" Blue Rhino and any other "exchange" cylinders.

You ARE technically RENTING/LEASING those cylinders.

No other propane supplier is "required" to fill those and in fact back when Blue Rhino started they actually had a special valve setup which would not allow ANYONE ELSE to fill those cylinders. They had a special fill nozzle that had a magnet in the nozzle that no one else had.. No magnet in the right place and the internal tank valve would not allow propane to ENTER the tank.

Quit complaining, you ARE technically breaking the "lease" of those cylinders by having a non Blue Rhino business fill them.

Some businesses will turn you away just at the sight of exchange tanks.

You got them for free, you HAVE gotten your "money's worth" out of them.. Dump the exchange cylinders and BUY the new ones and be done with it. A ONE TIME COST for 12 yrs of use without any hassle, that ought be worth something to you..

The exchange system is for CONVENIENCE, not low cost.

The exchange company had to buy cylinders, has to repair/replace/recertify the cylinders, those costs are built into the "rent" of the tank and they make no guarantee that those cylinders won't expire during your use..

BUT, they (the exchange company) WILL take ANY EXPIRED tank back in for exchange and not charge you for the recert cost.

[eubank]

Again, there will be variation here. Some states, depending on state law, will require the filler to have a propane filling license or to be directly supervised by a person with this license. (In my state, this is called an "LP9" license and permits the holder only to fill cylinders and nothing else.) There is at least one state that I know of where no such license is required.

If your state does have the license requirement, then I suppose you could call the filler a dedicated tech.

🙂
Lynn

Gdetrailer wrote:
Trying to point out that TS stores DO NOT HAVE a "dedicated" propane "Tech".

They simply have one of the other coworkers/stock person that is FREE/not busy at the time of sale to do other things like stock the store or deal with things like tank exchanges/fills..

The clerk at the front of the store IS supposed to be the person that the customer deals with.

The coworker goes out and checks your tank then will come back in a tell the clerk to charge you are not..

They are just simply following the rules that the STORE MANAGER HAS GIVEN THEM TO FOLLOW.

If you WANT better service then go to a real propane dealer..

If you don't want better service then keep going to the TS stores, you DO get the level of service that the TS store is paying for which is pretty bad now days.

My suggestion is to ditch the crappy exchange cylinders and go buy NEW as in BRAND NEW cylinders. Costs about $25 per new cylinder for new 20 lb ones. These WILL be good for 11-12yrs depending on the date and you will not have to dink around with the exchange stuff expiring all the time.

You CAN buy new 20 lb cylinders at TS or Home Depot/Lowes, take them to a REAL propane dealer, tell them they ARE NEW and will need "purged". A real dealer will know exactly what to do.

Once done, you are good to go for many years before needing the tanks to be recertified and then you can decide if you want to buy new or pay the propane dealer to get recertified..

Why keep messing around?

You are not saving money if you are running around from TS store to TS store.

[copplecrown]

Thanks. Yes, I definitely agree, you get what you pay for. My tanks were free, I inherited them with propane in them and had the 'white sticker' discussion with a knowledgable employee at the store I had been going to, because they did have a good price/gal of propane. They would have filled the tanks because that was their policy.

The difference in policy at another TS was accidental, I was merely driving to a location that had a new TS and I figured I'd bring the empty tanks. That particular store was totally unfamiliar with those stickers, or at least on that day.

My other 2 tanks are my own and in much better cosmetic shape and are in use, no need to have an aggravating discussion about expiration dates, how they are applied, and whether the policy for filling them is consistently applied within a corporation within a state.

New tanks are about $30 here, but that's New England. The tanks will live out their current E stamp and then hopefully be given back to BR or any neighbor or family member who wants to go that route. My neighbor said people shoot them and then bring them in as scrap metal! I didn't bother to ask whether they used explosive ordinance. That's what Youtube is for.

[Gdetrailer]

copplecrown wrote:
Thanks for the responses.

Both Tractor Supply stores were in the same state, and not far from one another. I was pointing out the inconsistency within a small region. I usually buy new tanks, but had inherited the Blue Rhino tanks. Had TS's tech actually wanted to talk face to face, I would have been inclined to buy a new tank, but he chose a clerk with no knowledge whatsoever to inform me that particular store would not fill the tanks. Decided I was done with them at that point.

My understanding was also that the sticker was good for 5 years, as well as the new certification stamp on the side, but apparently not all stores are aware of the sticker, which is admittedly faulty.

I believe our town recycling center charges for outdated tanks. I chose to exchange for newly inspected tanks, and have already found a good local alternative for getting them filled at a nearby hardware store. The newly inspected tanks look fine, but when they are up, I'll be 'donating' them back to BR and buy new ones.

Trying to point out that TS stores DO NOT HAVE a "dedicated" propane "Tech".

They simply have one of the other coworkers/stock person that is FREE/not busy at the time of sale to do other things like stock the store or deal with things like tank exchanges/fills..

The clerk at the front of the store IS supposed to be the person that the customer deals with.

The coworker goes out and checks your tank then will come back in a tell the clerk to charge you are not..

They are just simply following the rules that the STORE MANAGER HAS GIVEN THEM TO FOLLOW.

If you WANT better service then go to a real propane dealer..

If you don't want better service then keep going to the TS stores, you DO get the level of service that the TS store is paying for which is pretty bad now days.

My suggestion is to ditch the crappy exchange cylinders and go buy NEW as in BRAND NEW cylinders. Costs about $25 per new cylinder for new 20 lb ones. These WILL be good for 11-12yrs depending on the date and you will not have to dink around with the exchange stuff expiring all the time.

You CAN buy new 20 lb cylinders at TS or Home Depot/Lowes, take them to a REAL propane dealer, tell them they ARE NEW and will need "purged". A real dealer will know exactly what to do.

Once done, you are good to go for many years before needing the tanks to be recertified and then you can decide if you want to buy new or pay the propane dealer to get recertified..

Why keep messing around?

You are not saving money if you are running around from TS store to TS store.