prsmith@navnet.net wrote:
- snip -
> If anyone has any advise on using this model I would appreciate it - also
> if someone has an archive/FAQ on air compressors I would appreciate if it
> were sent to me. In fact, any advise on the use and care of compressors
> in general is solicited
>
Preston,
I think you'll find yourself using the compressor a great deal. Before
you plumb/install your compressor, you might want to look at these two
sites.
http://www.team.net/www/shop-talk/
http://www.tiptools.com/
I had entirely plumbed my shop, but after looking at the diagrams in the
TIP catalogue, I tore it all out and did it right. I have no water
problems now. Using the correct pipe (you must not have been here for
the last pvc vs. coppper vs. iron pipe wars), placing verticals and
using high-quality water traps, you can keep the water out of your blast
material, paint and tools.
I have a similar compressor (6hp Cambell Hausfeld), and modified it a
bit by plumbing in a 3/4" copper, 5 pipe by 24" radiator/heat exchanger
(about 12 feet of 3/4" copper pipe in parallel) between the pump and the
tank to daw the heat out before it gets pumped into the tank. I also
wired up a small "boxer fan" to the compressor relay that turns on the
fan when the pump is running and blows against the radiator. My idea is
to cool the air as much as possible so the water will condense out when
it hits the cold 60 gal tank, and it seems to be working. After making
these changes, the tanks stays much cooler, there is no water in the
downstream lines, and I drain noticeably more water out of the tank
drain.
I did make the mistake of soldering the original radiator with regular
solder--after continuous running, the solder would melt and the pipes
would blow apart. Someone on the list here recommended using silver
solder, which solved my problems. You also could go with compression
fittings, but they are quite expensive.
I have some crude ascii drawings of it if you would like me to email it
to you.
Regarding the noise, yes they are loud/annoying. I found that a good
deal of the noise comes from the air inlet. For this, I bored a hole
through an exterior wall and plumbed a pipe outdoors to the air filter.
This helped quite a bit. There also are some larger, quieter air
filters you can buy which will help out somewhat. The ideal scenario
would be to house it in a shed outside of the shop so that the noise
offends your neighbors instead of you. he, he, he...
Your manual will probably tell you to change your oil after x number of
hours and not to use standard detergent motor oil as it will cause the
valves to stick. I don't know if the motor oil story is true, but I do
use the Campbell Hausfeld air compressor pump oil just out of fear, I
guess, and change it a couple times a year. Keep the oil changed, drain
the tank regularly, and if you use it for personal use, it will last a
very long time.
good luck,
doug
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