Blown up compressor tank

[gearhead9056]

Well like the title says yesterday my compressor tank blew up. Luckily nobody was in there and the damage is mostly cosmetic. The compressor was on a half wall that had 2x12s for a top and I think the energy that the wall absorbed really saved the wall and ceiling.

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[EOC_Jason]

What brand / size was it? How old was it?

Glad nobody got hurt!

 

[Garage Dog]

Wow - that is scary/amazing, glad no one was hurt.

Could you tell us more specs on the compressor like: brand, size, age, etc.

GD

 

[roche]

ouch

 

[n8n]

yeah, that is no joke.

I'm sure a lot of us would like to know what brand/model compressor that was, if it was recent.

 

[Todd.Brock]

Dang dude!! Was that thing moonlighting as an acetylene tank??!!

For all the "drain your tank or you will die" comments around here, that tank doesn't look the least bit rusty. Did you have a pressure switch fail or something?


Glad you are ok, that stuff is scary!

Not sure what your

 

[CheckeredFlag]

Holy cow

 

[WhoWhatNow]

Wow. Glad no one was hurt. That looks like a small compressor too. Not one of the big 60 or 80 gallon 175psi tanks a lot of us have.

More details please. How old was it, size, make, psi of the tank. It almost looks like the tank was coated on the inside.

 

[ahab]

Uhh... brb, building a cinderblock wall around my compressor.

Anyone hear it?

 

[MScott]

Hope those tanks weren't PVC!!!

 

[The Cobbler]

Scary indeed . thankfully no one was injured. thank your lucky stars on that !

 

[Stephenw]

Did the pressure switch fail and the compressor run until the tank exploded? Was there a pressure relief valve?

 

[mrpizza]

When I build a shop I am putting the compressor in a fortified room on its own for sure!

 

[icenfire01]

Wow, after seeing this it make me think maybe there should be a piece of rubber hose or pex after the tank but before the in line shut off. That hose would have burst way before the tank explodes and puts a hole in the side of the garage. It might have burned up the electric motor if no one was home but that would be way cheaper than the carnage this caused.

 

[TheShrine]

Hope those tanks weren't PVC!!!

We have a winner! PVC mentioned within an hour. This disproves the points of any position on piping. At the root of any argument is a "possible" explosion"!

Pay attention, use good sense and be safe my friends! Even then.....stuff happens.

 

[WWIIjeep]

More details please. How old was it, size, make, psi of the tank. It almost looks like the tank was coated on the inside.

Yes, more details. Manufacturer's nameplate on the unit marked with maximum safe operating pressure? Actual operating pressure? Safety valve present and functioning? Pressure switch malfunction? Etc. The 2 photos of the pieces suggest the receiver was non-code (not an ASME/National Board certified pressure vessel). Non-code receivers are common on low-cost light-duty air compressors.

 

[rburke65]

Wow.....you and yours were very lucky. Go to church next Sunday!

 

[kams1973]

Did the pressure switch fail and the compressor run until the tank exploded? Was there a pressure relief valve?

Did you set the pressure switch higher when you bought it? If not, what was the kick out for this unit. From the pictures, the inside of the tank looks new.

 

[Techie1961]

It looks like it was a horizontal unit on a stand. That is pretty intense and lucky no one was nearby. Even if the contact welded shut, the safety valve should have stopped this from happening. Good warning to others out there to make sure your compressors are properly equipped and installed.

 

[38Chevy454]

Any pictures of the bottom of the tank? The one pic with the top of the tank and one end cap look pretty clean, but is there a piece that was the bottom where the drain is located? No matter what that is pretty scary event.

 

[gearhead9056]

It was cheap line off brand made by IR and I believe the plate said about 17 years old. I put a new motor on it about a year ago and I put a new switch and release valve on it at the same time, the tank was rated for 150 and the switch was set at 120 and relief valve was 125, the bottom of the tank looks like here was about a two inch strip of rust along the bottom so I suppose it was just weak enough to blow.

 

[gearhead9056]

Oh yeah it was a 20 gallon tank was all, normally I have a 30 gallon portable tank hooked up to it but I had that up at the house at the time.

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[48fordnut]

I have 2 60 gal ones hooked together. Both of mine are older than 17 yrs.That looks like it would hurt.

 

[Zeke]

Was it horizontal or vert? I can't tell. What other signs of failure do you see? I think I see corrosion but I'm sure it's the pic. Can you figure what hit the ceiling? Scary stuff but it goes to show that this phenomenon is not a myth.

 

[coykiam]

wow...scary thing

 

[Techie1961]

The safety relief valve was set to 125 but it might have been the wrong size. It has to be able to lose more air than the pump can create or the pressure will continue to rise. Could have been a mismatch. Could also have been a legitimate failure of the tank like others have mentioned (rust) at a pressure lower than the tested limit.

 

[WhoWhatNow]

It was cheap line off brand made by IR and I believe the plate said about 17 years old. I put a new motor on it about a year ago and I put a new switch and release valve on it at the same time, the tank was rated for 150 and the switch was set at 120 and relief valve was 125, the bottom of the tank looks like here was about a two inch strip of rust along the bottom so I suppose it was just weak enough to blow.

Again, it is good that no one was injured. Did you have an auto drain on the tank? It sounds like it was simply a failure due to rust. If that is the case, I am surprised that it blew instead of simply got a pinhole leak.

Thanks for sharing the details. This is an important lesson for everyone with a compressor in the shop.

 

[gearhead9056]

No auto drain yet, that was on my list of things to do but I know my next one will sure have one or at least an extended drain so its easy to do


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[gearhead9056]

Yes, more details. Manufacturer's nameplate on the unit marked with maximum safe operating pressure? Actual operating pressure? Safety valve present and functioning? Pressure switch malfunction? Etc. The 2 photos of the pieces suggest the receiver was non-code (not an ASME/National Board certified pressure vessel). Non-code receivers are common on low-cost light-duty air compressors.

What is meant by the receiver? Would that be the manifold where the check ball and pump discharge is?

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[gearhead9056]

Was it horizontal or vert? I can't tell. What other signs of failure do you see? I think I see corrosion but I'm sure it's the pic. Can you figure what hit the ceiling? Scary stuff but it goes to show that this phenomenon is not a myth.

It was horizontal sitting on wall of sorts that my portable tank normally sat in and yes there is a small band of rust at the bottom. As for what hit the ceiling that was the whole compressor. I was on the deck with the dog when it happened and the doors where open so I watched it go flying into the ceiling then land on that heater. Just glad no one was there and it didn't hit my toolbox or pickup

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[WhoWhatNow]

What is meant by the receiver? Would that be the manifold where the check ball and pump discharge is?

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The receiver is the air tank itself. There should be a nameplate on the tank with the manufacture name, date of manufacture and max pressure rating among other things. If the tank is certified to a standard that will be on the plate as well.

 

[gearhead9056]

Oh yeah it had that plate, I cant recall if it had a safety rating or not but the plate is MIA at the moment

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[Zeke]

Again, it is good that no one was injured. Did you have an auto drain on the tank? It sounds like it was simply a failure due to rust. If that is the case, I am surprised that it blew instead of simply got a pinhole leak.

Thanks for sharing the details. This is an important lesson for everyone with a compressor in the shop.

It is a good lesson. I gave an old compressor to a friend a couple year ago. After the last thread about exploding tanks I went over to his house and advised them strongly to scrap it or at least put it behind something formidable. Now I'm going to insist.

Mine is under a heavy workbench but for reasons of good air circulation it is exposed in the front. I think if I see a short section of wrought iron fence I will put it in front. The unit I have is old too. It sat for many years with no use when I bought it. It's a good brand and with a CI pump.

Back to the OP: I guess we can assume the bottom is what gave up sending the unit straight up. You say you saw it, what did that sound like?

 

[C96]

made by IR

Go figure

Is it possible that the compressor simply fell off the wall and the tank ruptured on impact?

That sure is scary, glad no one was injured

 

[gearhead9056]

No it was bolted down and as far as the bang well the county sheriff has a shooting range just down the road from my farm and I'd say it was similar to bomb squad practice day

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[87jeepwrangler]

judging by the fact that you said you were on your deck when it happened, i'm assuming it wasn't an overpressure situation, otherwise you would have heard it running and running?

the tank could simply no longer hold the rated pressure.

 

[JakeKohl]

That's a pretty amazing and scary sight.

It just hit me that of the two or three pictures I've seen of this type of tank failure, they all seem to be small horizontal tanks. I'm beginning to wonder if these tanks are more susceptible to a rust line forming on the bottom of the tank (which, because it's horizontal, will occur in a straight line) creating a weak seam whereas a vertical tank with a rounded bottom would more likely see a rounded shape corrosion feature which is less likely to create a massive and sudden rupture?

 

[WhoWhatNow]

No it was bolted down and as far as the bang well the county sheriff has a shooting range just down the road from my farm and I'd say it was similar to bomb squad practice day

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That is interesting. When I got my 1990 Quincy 5hp compressor I called a local compressor company and asked about the tank. The guy I talked to said that they rarely see failures in the tanks except when they have been bolted down. He explained that when the tank is bolted rigidly to the floor the vibration of the motor weakens the welded seams. It seems to make sense but I’m not an engineer. My compressor is sitting on a stall mat from TSC and hasn’t move an inch.

I still think I am going to get a new tank in the next month though. It has been something I have been thinking about for a while now. $600 for piece of mind is pretty cheap. Especially since my compressor is in the basement under our family room.

 

[Fishplate]

When my (small, horizontal) compressor failed due to rust, it got thin and developed pinholes which blew water and air out of the tank. Not a catastrophic failure at all.

This looks more like metal fatigue, not rust. A bad weld after 17 years?

 

[dlcwent]

Thank the compressor gods. They were smiling down on you if no one was hurt.