Air compressure warning
 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sm_FJ6Pat4I

Saw this on you tube .

Wow.

Yup, first thing i did was shut my 25 year oid compressor off. I will turn it on only when i use it. Lucky the dudes kid was not in the garage when it went off like a grenade as he said .

Man, it is absolutely imperative to have an easy-to-access ball valve on the bottom of the tank to blow that moisture out (OFTEN!) to avoid situations like this. Also, keep a sharp eye on that pressure limit switch that’s easy to adjust or replace if need be!

Yes. Very lucky that nobody was near that compressor.

I have a 42 year old SEARS compressor that i still use i often thought about it giving out

Compressed air, a lot of us take it for granted but it can be like dynamite.

I too have a portable compressor in my shop which is only on when needed. Is there a way to check internally the integrity of the steel chamber?

Paul

Paul you could probably check with a telescopic camera thru the hole on top were switch mounts into, with a bright light along the bottom welded seam and you can make this cheap air dryer and remove a lot of moisture that would otherwise settle on the bottom of compressor.

I bought my Sears air compressor in 1975 when I was in college. It maxes out at 85 pounds, but I'm sure that could cause a problem.

That’s 85lbs pressure per square inch multiplied over the volume of the tank so yeah, it’s still scary to think of the damage that could cause. This is one of the reasons the Europeans have very strict inspection criteria on pressure vessel certifications. Here in the US, not so much unless related to industry/business and even then it is not well regulated..
I work on equipment that had a large pressure vessel certified to 600psi which we operated to 310 PSI. When we decided to have some upgrades done the UK vendor refused to work on it because it had not been recertified within their guidelines.

We've always put a length of air line on the bottom of the tank and then the valve at the end of the air line. It allows water to collect in a rubber hose and not corrode the tank.

That's a good idea.

Thanks Marc, I will look into that.

I appreciate you reminding us all about the dangers of air pressure.

Paul

Thanks Paul , I give credit to the guy that made the video and can only speak for myself and not the 800 views. I feel safer now with that home made copper coil air dryer, less moisture less water to keep draining from the pipe on bottom of compressor. As they say a little goes a long way.

compressed air can do serious damage. I had a fedEx driver needed air in his tire. I was happy to put some air in his tire. I was putting air in and the side wall blew out at 85lbs. right where i was. A 9" gash in the side , It blew me across my lot and sent me to the hospital with internal (liver) injuries. It blew all the buttons off my shirt. Lucky to be alive

Yes you are lucky to be alive and to be able to talk about it. I work in the tire industry and every few years I hear of a horrific tire related accident in my territory while the inflation process is happening.

When a medium truck tire ruptures (zippers) and assuming it has 100 PSI in it, there is 12 tons of pressure looking to get out. That is the equivalent of being hit by a tractor.

Never stand in front of a tire when you are inflating it, always stand parallel to the tire. If a tire is going to explode, it almost always ruptures through the weakest, thinnest point......the sidewall.

Just be careful.

The way I understand how to properly pressure test a vessel is they use liquid, that way there is not much compressive pressure 0f course they over factor the tank by what ever metric they use.

As an aside has anyone seen an excavator or truck tire rupture in one of those steel cages?

Something my Dad taught me a long time ago was to always drain an air compressor when you finish using it. It keeps the tank from rusting on the inside and is a general safety precaution. I don't want a pressurized vessel in my shop when I'm not there for sure!

Better yet, buy an automatic water drain, and pipe it to the outside.

https://eatoncompressor.com/product/...ic-tank-drain/

Wow! Yeah, I’ve got a checklist I run nightly before I close the shop up:

1. Inside air line ball valve: OFF
2. Inside water separator: Drain, relief pressure in lines
3. Outside: Tank drain valve open - drain until empty
4. Outside Compressor: OFF

In the morning, it’s the same thing:

1. Outside: Tank drain valve open - check for moisture overnight
2. Outside: Check tank pressure, turn on compressor
3. Inside: Slowly open air line ball valve and monitor line pressure
4. Inside water separator: Drain, check for moisture.

I call it my “IN and OUT” check. Sort of like the burger place, but not as greasy!:grin: If there’s a rupture in the line or anything, I can catch it right away. Blowing the line and tank out each night gets the main moisture out, then in the AM, gets the remaining moisture out due to cooling condensation. Been very fortunate in the DFW area it’s nowhere near as humid as Houston was, and my tank doesn’t get a whole lot of moisture in it. We’ll see how that goes on the first large paint job I do. That’s the real test. Blasting and using air tools hasn’t really yielded any large moisture issues so far.

So crazy, and scary, to see things like this happen. :thumbsdown:

Cheers
Dave