Compressor aftercooler DIY

[scoob8000]

I've been tinkering around with a aftercooler on my cheapo 60 gallon Porter Cable TSC special compressor. Just running for 6 minutes to fill the tank from empty results in the top of the tank nearing 150 degrees!

I build a simple setup with computer fans, old ****** cooler, 3/8 copper tube and some misc fittings.

I'm concerned about the copper tube that runs from the compressor head to the cooler. It gets too hot for my IR thermometer to read (over 250) and it's beginning to discolor.

Should I be concerned with it, or find a better type of tube/hose to use? FWIW, the compressor head is a 1/4 NPT threaded fittting and I have a 3/8 steel tube with compression union on the input to the cooler. I have maybe $25 in the whole cooler setup so far. I really don't want to put a small fortune into my cheapie compressor.

 

[devildog93]

Is it a single stage? I hear the single stage compressors can get up to 300 degrees at the outlet. I designed mine with 350 degrees and 200 psi being the specs i needed to reach going into the cooler. I have a belt guard aftercooler and the temperature drops well below that on the output of the cooler, so i could use a tractor supply hydraulic line from the output of the cooler to the tank. The main thing was the input line to the cooler. I went with a braided single strand ss hose and carbon steel fittings on the hot side of the cooler. Might be overkill, but i didn't want to mess with it and wanted it over-engineered if possible. I'm getting 100 degrees coming out of the cooler, so i could probably use anything on that side. The tractor supply hose was relatively cheap and made installation a little easier.

I know you are trying to go cheap, but messing with fittings again or a busted piece of copper or pipe wasn't really appealing to me. You could always run a copper coil out of the compressor head to a tub of water. I was looking for copper at lowe's and home depot. Lowe's copper was only rated to 150 psi at 1/2", so i looked at home depot and found some type L hard temper that handles 400 degrees and 900 psi. I chose to go another route to avoid brazing, but that would be doable.

Another question...why 3/8" copper? Everything i read says you need 1/2" to run 2-15 cfm at under 25 feet. I would think you are choking yourself off at anything under that.

 

[scoob8000]

Is it a single stage? I hear the single stage compressors can get up to 300 degrees at the outlet. I designed mine with 350 degrees and 200 psi being the specs i needed to reach going into the cooler. I have a belt guard aftercooler and the temperature drops well below that on the output of the cooler, so i could use a tractor supply hydraulic line from the output of the cooler to the tank. The main thing was the input line to the cooler. I went with a braided single strand ss hose and carbon steel fittings on the hot side of the cooler. Might be overkill, but i didn't want to mess with it and wanted it over-engineered if possible. I'm getting 100 degrees coming out of the cooler, so i could probably use anything on that side. The tractor supply hose was relatively cheap and made installation a little easier.

I know you are trying to go cheap, but messing with fittings again or a busted piece of copper or pipe wasn't really appealing to me. You could always run a copper coil out of the compressor head to a tub of water. I was looking for copper at lowe's and home depot. Lowe's copper was only rated to 150 psi at 1/2", so i looked at home depot and found some type L hard temper that handles 400 degrees and 900 psi. I chose to go another route to avoid brazing, but that would be doable.

Another question...why 3/8" copper? Everything i read says you need 1/2" to run 2-15 cfm at under 25 feet. I would think you are choking yourself off at anything under that.

Where did you buy the stainless line, and what is it actually sold for?

I only went with 3/8 as that was what the factory tube from the compressor to the tank was.

Another thought was to use Teflon/stainless hose with an fittings. It's good to 1000psi, and 400 degrees. But isn't cheap.

This was kinda just a test to see how a trans cooler would work. I'm pretty impressed.

 

[devildog93]

http://www.amazon.com/Flexible-Connector-compressor-stainless-braided/dp/B004S4FEE6/ref=sr_1_2?s=hi&ie=UTF8&qid=1463340451&sr=1-2&keywords=air+compressor+stainless+hose

That is the hose i bought. I was turned onto it by a local shop who had just finished his plumbing on a new compressor install. After the cooler i think you can use just about anything good for the psi you expect to run as temp isn't much of an issue. The tractor supply hydraulic hose i used on the cold side was maybe 25 bucks.