Make Your Own Refillable Aerosol Spray Can

[GulfOnBoard]

TL;DR

Homemade aerosol spray can

Hello. I want to make a own refillable aerosol spray can, but I don’t know really how to do it.

I’ve seen quite a few videos/tutorials on youtube where people attach a bicycle valve with epoxy to a spray can and use compressed air to pressurize it.

But I want the gas to be compressed/liquified, so that the pressure remain constant when emptying the can (compressed air drops from high pressure to low pressure fast and takes up much space inside the can). I found out that propane may be the gas that I’m looking for, since it has very good abilities to be compressed/liquified inside the can.

Propane melts at −42°C / −43.67 °F which means that the spray can will be able to operate even in very cold environments, which is good. The product I will use will be based on denatured alcohol so it will not freeze.

But, how do i realize this idea? I thought about using a pipe nipple with threads in both ends as the main spray bottle, then using pipe end caps with thread seal tape to enclose it.

Attaching a spray can valve/nozzle (from a old spray can) to one cap and attaching a propane adapter to the other.

So, in order to fill the can; close a cap, poor down the product (liquid) and close the other cap, put the can into the freezer, take it out and pressurize the can with propane through the adapter (a calculation by weight need to be done in order to know how much propane to fill the can with). That’s it.

Or is it? Do I need to create vacuum inside of the spray can before pressurizing it with propane? Does the environmental temperature integrate with the weight of the propane? Is there any other issue I need to be aware of?

 

[anorlunda]

What is your purpose with this project?

Couldn't you accomplish that by making a spray nozzle that you attach to a camping size bottle of propane?

There are safety protocols that refillers of propane bottles must obey. Do you know what they are, and are you ready to comply?

 

[dlgoff]

safety

bold by me

I'm glad you caught this and replied, as I was going to report the post after reading:

... where people attach a bicycle valve with epoxy to a spray can and use compressed air to pressurize it.

 

[GulfOnBoard]

What is your purpose with this project?

Couldn't you accomplish that by making a spray nozzle that you attach to a camping size bottle of propane?

There are safety protocols that refillers of propane bottles must obey. Do you know what they are, and are you ready to comply?

To make a refillable spray can that will work in cold environments, without the disadvantage of the usual ”diy” methods of compressed air or co2.

Here’s a very small version of a refillable spray can that’s actually very similar to the concept of my own.

If I simply attach a spray nozzle to a bottle of propane, then I will only be able to spray propane. The point of the propane is only to act as a propellant, not as the product itself. However, It would be possible to make a spray bottle out of a old propane bottle, but I will still have to greatly modify that propane bottle then, just like the pipe nipple version, in order to be able to refill it with liquid. And it will also be somewhat bulky.

Yes, I’m conscious of the safety of handling propane, here’s a video of how to transfer liquid propane are plenty more out there too).

bold by me

I'm glad you caught this and replied, as I was going to report the post after reading:

Pressurized bottles always involves a risk. Many of the diy-videos on youtube are dangerous and I don’t recommend doing everything you watch there..

 

[berkeman]

I think I clicked the Close Thread button. I'll figure out why in a bit...