Air lines.. what are you using?

[Lucid Moments]

Rapidair
Just an FYI
The 3/4" Maxline kit goes on sale often at Northern Tools
Picked up a couple of their 3/4 kits for around $149 each
Comes with 150' hose and assorted fittings.
I bought a couple of the kits because
You get the fittings for less then if you buy them separately
I also ran a 100' line to a remote area because I had the extra tubing

I did the exact same thing except for the remote area bit.

The only gripe I have with the maxline is that it is a ***** to get it to run straight. At the end of the day mine looks crappy because I didn't choose to put the effort in to make it look good. But it works great which is all I care about.

 

[niget2002]

Anyone thought about running the rapid air tubing inside pvc pipe? The pvc pipe would help keep it more rigid looking.

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[rburke65]

Black pipe.

 

[Firebrick43]

I don’t understand those claiming that their rapid air kits are “tons” cheaper than copper?

I am not going to compare the non ridgid 90500 kit as it’s only two drops and they claim it’s 1/2 but it’s ID is 3/8, it’s not ridgid, and uses push connectors that eventually will leak.

Their m3800 kit has three drops and the pipe has a 1/2” ID. That’s perfectly acceptable to me, it looks ok(but almost impossible to straighten to fastpipe or copper pipe straightness) and has decent compression fittings. It available in the 170-175 dollar range online.

1/2 M copper 20’ long at menards is 17.78. Multiply by 5 for 88.90.
Add $50 for some fittings and 3 ball valves and some mounting clamps and your at $140

If you want to use RapidAir that fine. Don’t try to delude others (or yourself) to thinking it’s cheaper or a better end product. It’s advantage is the “rapid” part.

 

[Jazz1]

1/2” copper is what I installed 20 years ago in my garage. Cheap and easy

 

[EDS01SS]

Not very happy with my rapid air kit. Im not sure if its because the pex tube sat in my hot shed for quite a few years before I used the rest of it or maybe I did something wrong. Mostly new fittings and almost all of them leak.I have tried going back and pushing the tube into the fitting more and sometimes it will stop the leak but it usually will start leaking again.Im probably going to scrap it and go with non rigid copper as mentioned above

 

[mc1984ss]

I used copper. A friend of mine had it in his business for many many years and even moved it to his new shop. Easy to work with and modify if needed. I even scuffed it with a scotchbrite pad and clear coated it to keep it looking nice.

 

[zmotorsports]

Aircom system. Three sets actually to accommodate my 3k square foot shop and RV bay. Aircom is nearly identical to Rapidair with only a few differences in unions/couplers and manifolds. Personally I prefer the rigid aluminum tubing compared to the flexible that you have to straighten and comes on a roll but it's a bit more money.

 

[larry4406]

Not fair zmotorsports - you have a tube bender to make it look nice!

 

[zmotorsports]

Not fair zmotorsports - you have a tube bender to make it look nice!

Yeah, that did help jog around some areas.

 

[bamawildcat]

Some years ago I used Nibco chem aire lines and fittings to outfit my shop.
Well they stopped producing this stuff years ago and It does not hold up well. The pipes are splitting well under the max air pressure they recommended.
I`ve been soldiering on with the supply of extra fittings and pipe but the time to rip it all out and re do it is near.
Soo what are you using?
Cast iron, pvc and prolly copper are out so what else is working?

RapidAir makes fittings to go to ChemAir. Scroll all the way down:

https://www.rapidairproducts.com/accessories

May help you replace the problem areas as you go and save money until longer runs are needed.

 

[wood02]

I ran 1/2" black pipe.

 

[59 wagon man]

copper twenty yrs here and i reused what i had in my rented warehouse before i built my home based shop. so its about 25 yrs old and still looks new

 

[bob15]

I use 1" black pipe.....Canadian-made pipe and US made fittings and valves. If I didn't have a Ridgid 500 pipe threader, I might have gone with copper.

 

[klassenl]

PEX straight from my locally owned Home Hardware. I had the good fortune of being able to run it during construction so none of it shows.

 

[jubilee]

My home system is 30+ years old with never a problem or hint of a leak. Somebody gave me a few hundred feet of 3/4” black pipe to make some gates. I used some of it for airline. Line is all welded and bent with pipe bender. There is one union in the system. Union is the only fitting and it’s welded in, not threaded.
I have two collars welded in to accept drain valves and of course there’s threads at the compressor end.
I was lucky to have the equipment to fab an airline that is far going to outlast me.

 

[coljar]

3/4" black pipe header with 1/2" drops

 

[rburke65]

Black pipe here.

 

[Chezelle]

Currently black pipe with Milton fittings but new shop will be copper.

 

[liliysdad]

I just put installed this kit, and I am completely satisfied. The air line is small, but it suits my needs just fine.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07F1DXGCL/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o01_s01?ie=UTF8&psc=1

 

[jabberwoki]

So what type of copper pipe ie wall thickness etc?

 

[sfanale]

Plain ole’ PEX from Home Depot with ****** fittings and crimp rings. Works perfectly, totally safe, readily available.

If you’re super concerned with straight neat lines, that can be challenging with PEX—so that could push you to rapid air or hard pipe. But if you’re careful, you can get a decent look with PEX and it does the job.


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[brownsmustang]

We just signed a contract on a new home with a much larger shop. I ran the maxline 3/4" system on my current shop and built my own straightener and love the system, but hate the expense of adding drops as the fittings can be pricey.

But I'm leaning heavily towards copper on my new shop. I think I may run 2, 20'x2" lines as the first lines from the compressor, that should give me a bit of extra capacity, give the air some time to slow down and cool down. Not to mention I'll run my blast cabinets directly off it. Then neck it down to 3/4" copper for the rest of the drops.

 

[derek_m]

So what type of copper pipe ie wall thickness etc?

Type K hard copper tube would be best, its thicker than Type L or M.


My garage has copper tube, been in there for ~27 years. Ball valves for drains, quick disconnects in 3 locations. Compressor is connected with a quick disconnect and rubber hose.

A friend put rapidair in his garage, no issues. Another has steel pipe and threaded fittings, no issues either.

 

[LS6 Tommy]

Guys, M is rated for more pressure than any "normal" compressor system is ever going to see. Annealed (soft) 1/2" is rated for over 400 Psi working pressure, 825 Psi burst and 3/4" is rated for over 300 working, 650 burst. Drawn tubing is even stronger.
Save the money.

Tommy

 

[matt_i]

Guys, M is rated for more pressure than any "normal" compressor system is ever going to see. Annealed (soft) 1/2" is rated for over 400 Psi working pressure, 825 Psi burst and 3/4" is rated for over 300 working, 650 burst. Drawn tubing is even stronger.
Save the money.

Tommy

Agree, the thicker copper is for acidic water which can eat the thinnest wall.

Or, more exotic apps like a refrigerant delivery system that thru one of my old plants at around 300psi.

 

[quadrcr87]

Look at the pex air line kits. A ton cheaper than copper or black pipe. Iwas looking at a 100' kit for under$175. It gets very good reviews. I'm switching over to it. I've got pvc and it scares people. I haven't been too worried, it's rated 460psi and still is pliant. But, I have a son in the safety industry who will keep poking till I do it.

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I saw a trick the other day where people cut out the unions but leave the PVC lines mounted to the wall. Then just run the Rapidair lines through the PVC and use their connectors at each opening. Its fast and neat.

Andrew

 

[Rsharp66]

Black iron, 3/4" with 1/2" inch drops

 

[matt_i]

Copper. And some strut channel, and B-Line plastic-y lined 2pc clamps.

 

[fourjeepin]

I looked at 3/4 inch Rapidair.

I ended up just using PEX line. Cheap and quick and has worked great.

Me too. I’ve known for years my pvc lines needed to go and started looking. The 1/2 rapid air was too small an ID and I decided against the 3/4 due to the cost. After a good bit of searching, I found reports from a few others that used regular pex. I had the roll of pex sitting in my shop for probably a year before the pvc broke at a joint and pushed me to install the pex. It was FAR easier to install than the pvc and should last much longer too. Not to mention being safer and having fewer fittings.

 

[rhythim]

3/4" Maxline here. Currently just 3 drops, one built into the workbench, 1 to a reel, and one to the blast cabinet. I have enough materials left for another couple drops, but what's there now has been sufficient thus far.

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[ericm]

I saw a trick the other day where people cut out the unions but leave the PVC lines mounted to the wall. Then just run the Rapidair lines through the PVC and use their connectors at each opening. Its fast and neat.

I did that. The original builder of my house put in PVC air lines in the garage. I'd have kept using them but the siding and window replacement damaged them and required cutting some of the lines. I cut more out and ran rapidair in the remainder.

1/2" rapidair does not flow as well as 3/4 PVC. It's noticeable even with an air impact wrench. When I get my shop built it'll have a larger compressor and more air using equipment, a 3/4" main line with 1/2" drops, in copper.

 

[Jeffh40]

Just a garage and not a business. Copper is my go to. I have Pex water lines in the house and, although they do the job fine, they just look sloppy. I don't mind soldering.

 

[Ilikeike]

Copper. And some strut channel, and B-Line plastic-y lined 2pc clamps.

Imagine all the fun you could have had standing at the pipe threader if you did that in iron

 

[Miss the Pontiacs]

Copper with a combination of PEX. Also used some Sharkbite fittings for ease of adding or rerouting lines in the future.

 

[rayra]

It's funny to see the bias against PVC. Especially with its very low cost and ease of installation. Use sched40 or higher, don't put it where direct sunlight can hit it. A simple painting would also prevent that UV risk

Look at that burst pressure rating for commonly available 3/4" sched40. It's 10X the rating of your air tools, your compressor emergency relief valve.

https://www.pvcfittingsonline.com/resource-center/strength-of-pvc-pipe-with-strength-chart/


And who needs to leave their home garage / shop air system pressurized 24/7/365? Or rather, who can't wait or do something else for the couple minutes it takes your compressor to come up to pressure?

 

[Bigblockyeti]

Look at that burst pressure rating for commonly available 3/4" sched40. It's 10X the rating of your air tools, your compressor emergency relief valve.

What does that chart look like after a few years of compressor blow by allowing direct contact with oil which may or may not contain certain hydrocarbons, ketones, or cyclic ethers?

 

[59 wagon man]

Copper, with 3/4 for the run lines and 1/2 for the drops

 

[jeep63]

Copper, with 3/4 for the run lines and 1/2 for the drops

This ^^^^^

 

[R. Deschain]

RapidAir Maxline as well. Get or build a tubbing straitener. It will save you a ton of time in installation.