[1ownerT]

Originally Posted by Old Fool

Very similiar to how I made my latest intercooler. 1 inch fin tube and a 20 inch box fan.

I temp'd it with red hose to confirm function.
It now has stainless braided hose.
I still need to make a decent frame work for it.

On a 72f day it was capable of returning the air to ambient temp before it entered the storage tank.

Nice!
The fan has to help, I considered one but where mine is mounted to the wall and the location of the compressor, the "fan" on the compressor flywheel keeps air moving pretty well around mine.

[Old Fool]

Originally Posted by 1ownerT

Leaving an update on my cooling rack for my compressor.
I have been using my blast cabinet a fair amount and I have to say I am pretty happy with the amount of water I am collecting in the drop leg of the rack vs. a very minimal amount coming out of the compressor storage tank. I am not seeing any moisture past my filter separator during extended run times.
I had posted before of my inlet and outlet temps during one cycle, I had a inlet temp of 128 vs. an outlet temp of 75, with extended running I am seeing inlet temps of 185 vs outlets of 78-80 degrees. This is with the garage being 70 degrees. I am getting my readings with a infrared temp gun at the inlet and outlet fittings.
One quirk that caught me by surprise a little was the first time the compressor shut down after filling the tank, the unloader valve has to bleed off the additional air in the rack.

/

I experianced that same thing, made me think for a minute what I had messed something up, lol.

I installed a Wilkerson auto drain ($65) on the drip leg and an electric auto drain ($90)on the compressor tank.

Someday I am going to get my refrigerated units connected, but . . . .

[ogre]

nice air cooler/dryer...
your a lucky man, i look for that type of used radiant tube every time i go to the scrapyard.

[barry425]

There is a danger in cooling the air going into a compressor tank. The compressor is designed to run the way it is from the factory, and cooling the air going into the tank could cause the pressure to go too high and burst the tank. I have a 60 gallon single stage vertical compressor that works just fine. All my air tools have enough air for continuous running. Why is this intercooler necessary in the first place?

[Old Fool]

Originally Posted by barry425

There is a danger in cooling the air going into a compressor tank. The compressor is designed to run the way it is from the factory, and cooling the air going into the tank could cause the pressure to go too high and burst the tank. I have a 60 gallon single stage vertical compressor that works just fine. All my air tools have enough air for continuous running. Why is this intercooler necessary in the first place?

For a tank to burst it must be subjected to pressures higher than its physical strength, which can happen if the safety relief valve was to fail. Safety relief valves are temp rated, 250f to 500f is common. Cooler air entering the storage tank will keep the air temps more within range IF the tank is equipped with a 250f relief.


Air temps within reason will not harm the structural integrity of a supply tank.

The pressure switch is designed for a normal operating range, which is quite adequate for both low and elevated tempertures it may be exposed to.

Your air compressor may have a Square- D pressure switch as it is very commonly used.

A typical SQ-D pressure switch has an operational temperture of -22f to +257f

130 psi @ 76F will not burst the tank any sooner than 130 psi @ 196f.

Think of it like this, you are using your compressor and it runs and shuts off a number of times, the air tank is now hot and has 125psi in it. It now sets until tomorrow and cools off to ambient temperture. Some air is used and the compressor turns back on, only runs a minute and shuts off again. the temp in the tank didnt rise as much this time due to the short running cycle time. The air pressure is the same 125 psi, but the temp of it is lower.

A concern of tank life is corrosion. hot air when cooled causes condensation to form. This water then lays in the bottom of the supply tank and causes rust. Over time the tank gets thinner and a leak develops.

Corrosion will cause pin holes which leak , get larger leak more, etc.

Some air compressors will have an intercooler between the supply tank and the compressor head. Usually found on 2 stage units.



The intent of my intercooler is to cool the air before it enters the tank, giving the moisture a chance to drop out of suspension before it proceeds to the end usage.
I have an auto drain that trips every 30 seconds for 2 seconds to drain this moisture out of the supply tank.

Drier air is the end result. Since installing the intercooler and auto drain I have not had any moisture accumulate in the water filter/regulator assembly.