Intercoolers and aftercoolers???

[Ike Carlson]

I am getting my 705 compressor clone back together and was looking at the cooler design. There is a cast iron intercooler and a small aftercooler. Being thick heavy cast iron, how much heat do they actually pull out of the air?

If they cool it enough, then there would be water in the coolers, correct? And the water from the intercooler would be feeding into the high pressure stage, correct?

I was thinking about putting a very small wet tank between the stages, with a better intercooler to drop the temp to the condensing level. I could plumb this tank into my auto drain. I would also have a wet tank between the aftercooler and reservoir. It makes sense to me anyway.... Is there anything wrong with this or am I overthinking again? I know that would mean more air to unload at the end of a cycle, but the compressor would run a LOT cooler, and the air should be dry. It just seems that cooling the air between stages would help the pump and efficiency.

 

[Ike Carlson]

Can I bump this?

 

[930dreamer]

I'd just keep the tank drained and run filters down the line to remove moisture.

 

[isb cornbinder]

If you are not an engineer, just put it together and get on with your shop life.

 

[pcmeiners]

"Is there anything wrong with this or am I overthinking again? "

Have a compressor with a large intercooler and aftercooler. A large intercooler will give a small increase efficiency over the present intercooler with water drop out. A large intercooler will give 10-15% more effiency, but you already have the manufactured intercooler already.
Water drop out is a major concern as it must be removed before it hits the second stage. Overall I would NOT do it again, for the small efficiency gain, high expense of water removal. As a note to cast iron, as a radiator of heat (not talking conductor of heat) , dark cast iron or black painted cast iron is one of the best radiators, better than copper.
Do not over think, concentrate on a decent aftercooler and filter setup.

 

[matt_i]

Applying water to the outside of any air-to (?) radiator improves its efficiency dramatically.

One can see this with an overheating vehicle if its near a garden hose or bottled water is near. Pour the liquid over top of the radiator and the temps come down right quick.

It might be undesirable for other reasons lke the mess or corrosion, but its an easy way to jump the heat transfer.