Air Compressor WARNING!

[mrmikey]

It's amazing the amount of people that don't realize it's a bomb you're not maintaining. I asked a fella at work just a few weeks ago how often he drains his tank, "what drain" was his answer. I looked but couldn't find a video on you tube of a guy making a tank form an old water tank. It was rusted around the fittings so he cut them out, patched it and put in new ones. I said put in, not welded because it looked like bird crap which was bad enough. Scary that people can be that stupid................Mike

 

[jaxs]

I picked up a free compressor with a couple pin holes in bottom of tank,which do you reccomend,JB Weld or 7013? :laughing:
I've never witnessed a busted air tank but was withing 20 or 30 feet when a split rim come apart while it was being aired up after replacing the tire. It tore a hole through a concrete block wall. For all i know,one of the loafers hanging around the shop might have ran through that wall because there were a bunch of a-holes and elbows when it happened.

 

[Wagtail]

Personally, I'm amazed that everyone doesn't drain their compressor tank after they're finished using it.

Perhaps, for me, it's a hold-over from my Navy days; filling diving/fire-fighting CABA tanks... the compressor was always drained and it's a habit for me to do the same with my shop compressor.:confused3:

 

[Bird]

Personally, I'm amazed that everyone doesn't drain their compressor tank after they're finished using it.

Perhaps, for me, it's a hold-over from my Navy days; filling diving/fire-fighting CABA tanks... the compressor was always drained and it's a habit for me to do the same with my shop compressor.:confused3:

Me, too. I keep my compressor aired up, and use it briefly nearly every day. When I shave with my electric razor, cut my hair with our clippers, run the vacuum in the house, etc. I always step out to the shop and blow clean them. And then I briefly open the valve at the bottom of the tank to blow out any moisture.

 

[RalphVa]

Think I'll bleed the air down a bit before opening to drain water.

Ralph

 

[workinonit]

Not opening any valves myself. I have a timed drain valve on mine. My air compressor is in it's own block enclosure under my rear shop shed. I can hear it blow down every afternoon.

 

[mrmikey]

I have a timed drain valve on mine. My air compressor is in it's own block enclosure under my rear shop shed. I can hear it blow down every afternoon.

Mines in a lean to attached to the back of my garage with an electric auto drain set for 5 second burst every 10 minutes................Mike

 

[ultrarunner]

Wish I had pictures of the fire at the Acetylene plant...

Welding tanks peeled open like bananas and often shooting hundreds of feet in the air...

Same with drums of solvents in a fire... airborne... Awho knew they could fly?

What makes compressed air tanks different is they are innocuous being found everywhere.

An old navy guy wrapped his air tank in heavy wire saying he learned it in WWII... it looked like a spool of thread.

 

[Tinhack]

I've got an 80 gallon vertical. I guess I better check my auto-drain valve and make sure it's draining. It's about 25 years old. It was my body shop compressor so it's got a lot of hours on it. It ran daily for sanding tools and impact wrenches but barely sees an hour a week now. I have two small horizontals in the metal shop. One at mill and one at the lathe. They're only about a year old but I think I'll check those out today.

 

[Industrial Toys]

They give specs on consumer compressors, which BTW are mostly FALSE as far as CFMs are concerned (search EVE/BOLTR) and his discussion on this) but they never mention what gauge the tank is made of, to the best of my knowledge.