www.fueloilnews.com | FUEL OIL NEWS | SEPTEMBER 2016 45
A few months ago I heard of a gent
from California who was doing
some interesting things with old
propane tanks. I Googled him, and
the images of propane tank cre-
ations on his website blew me away.
So I called him. His name is
Colin Selig.
I explained my connection to the
propane industry and we spoke for
some time. I asked him how he came
to work with propane tanks, figuring
he must be some sort of a veteran
propane industry guy who owned a
yard of old propane tanks and liked
to weld on the side.
Nothing of the sort, it turns out.
The ideas for his ongoing project
originated in 2010 when he wanted
to dispose of a "junk propane tank"
on his property. He said that he fig-
ured that a lot of energy had gone
into forming the "thick steel" into its shape, and
concluded that it would be "a shame to let it go
to waste."
He said the curved form of the propane tank
stimulated his imagination, and he spent time pos-
tulating ways to take the tank apart and reassemble
the pieces into a seat. The final product, according
to Selig, is composed of "99% post-consumer re-
used content" with very little wasted steel.
Naturally I wanted to know if any of the works
were near me; I really wanted to sit on one of the
pieces to check out the comfort factor. Was it
comfortable? There are a number of pieces on
the East Coast, including some in the Hudson
Valley north of New York City, though I have not
connected with an owner yet. I found it interest-
ing that none of the piece owners were propane
dealers (as far as he knows).
Selig says he has done extensive research to
ensure the comfort of the seats, including tri-
als with numerous test subjects to find an ideal
relative position of the curved seat to the curved
back rest. The goal was to come up with good
lumbar support for a wide range of body sizes.
The combination of curved seat and backrest
allows smaller bodies to slip slightly further back
and down into the seat and receive good lumbar
support, says Selig, and this arrangement provides
an ergonomic advantage over traditional benches
with flat seats.
Colin says he considers many of his designs
to be prototypes created "with mass production
in mind." He has a series of design patents and
a utility patent is pending to protect the concept
and process. At some point he wants to automate
the process to produce selected designs in volume.
These "propane seats" are out there in both
the commercial and residential sectors.
Check out his work at www.colinselig.
com
l F O N
Cool
Factor
BIO:
Shane Sweet is an
energy and manage-
ment consultant with
clients in the heating
oil, propane and motor
fuel sectors, a partner
with the firm of Lake
Rudd & Company.
Sweet is the executive
director and techni-
cal director for the
New York Propane
Gas Association. He
served the industry as
president and CEO of
the New England Fuel
Institute from 2007 to
2011, and as executive
vice president/director
and lobbyist for the
Vermont Fuel Dealers
Association from 1993
to 2007.
CONTACT:
Sweet lives in
Shaftsbury, Vt., and may
be reached at shanem-
sweet@gmail.com or
802-558-6101 cell/text.
Suggestions by readers
for future column con-
tent, as well as general
comments are welcome.
http://www.linke-
din.com/pub/
shane-sweet/7/a52/701
Shane
Sweet
OPERATIONAL INSIGHT
Colin Selig creates sculptural, functional furniture from discarded
propane tanks.
PHOTOS
FROM
WWW.COLINSELIG.COM
