Old compressor tank - hydro or not?

[MagKarl]

It sounds like you're pushing grease into an enclosed cavity. Tell us more about this plate welded to the pipe.

It needs to be open, and yes you should be pushing grease into the water if your goal is to use grease to pressurize the tank. Right now I'm thinking you're "testing" your standpipe, not the tank.

 

[sberry]

A hand grease gun pumps 1000.s of # remember with pressure washer need a relief valve. You can air over hydro too if you can pump it.
Here is a hydro test valve for a washer.

 

[86turbodsl]

It sounds like you're pushing grease into an enclosed cavity. Tell us more about this plate welded to the pipe.

It needs to be open, and yes you should be pushing grease into the water if your goal is to use grease to pressurize the tank. Right now I'm thinking you're "testing" your standpipe, not the tank.

As i stated, the cap on the bottom of the pipe is not waterproof OR greaseproof, it's just intended to stop grease migration from the standpipe into the tank if possible. It's just a disc of 1/8 steel tacked to the bottom of the pipe. It's got leakage for 90% of the circumference of the pipe. As i mentioned, the water heights were equalizing when i allowed it.

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[86turbodsl]

A hand grease gun pumps 1000.s of # remember with pressure washer need a relief valve. You can air over hydro too if you can pump it.
Here is a hydro test valve for a washer.

Yes, so basically i am looking for a good way to increase pressure in the tank to 200psi. The grease gun thing is not working properly and i'm tired of trying to troubleshoot the damn thing. Air pressure from my other little compressor got me to 125 no problem.

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[lakeroadster]

Either your grease gun is bad, or your piping arrangement is incorrect.

Might help if you posted a photo of the tank and the current piping arrangement so we can help you to trouble shoot it.

Check your grease gun by building a simple manifold with the pressure gauge on it... independent of the tank.

Then, once you have verified that you can indeed build the 200 psi with your grease gun, use it to pressurize the tank to its MAWP.

Using a pressure washer is dangerous unless you know how to pipe up the relief valve arrangement that sberry is discussing.

And the relief valve arrangement should be sized based on the pressure washer capacities and tested prior to being piped into the tank... using a dual gauge arrangement.

A lot more complicated than needed for a one time test.

 

[86turbodsl]

Either your grease gun is bad, or your piping arrangement is incorrect.

Might help if you posted a photo of the tank and the current piping arrangement so we can help you to trouble shoot it.

Check your grease gun by building a simple manifold with the pressure gauge on it... independent of the tank.

Then, once you have verified that you can indeed build the 200 psi with your grease gun, use it to pressurize the tank to its MAWP.

Using a pressure washer is dangerous unless you know how to pipe up the relief valve arrangement that sberry is discussing.

And the relief valve arrangement should be sized based on the pressure washer capacities and tested prior to being piped into the tank... using a dual gauge arrangement.

A lot more complicated than needed for a one time test. Heck the piping, relief valves and ball valves will cost more than a new grease gun.

I'll get a picture uploaded when i can, but i think you're all failing to grasp that the grease gun i have makes pressure and injects grease. Well enough in fact that i was able to overstress and break the zert fitting off the cap on the standpipe. The ball was blown right off. It's making pressure, but doesn't seem to affect the gage on the other port. I use the grease gun on my vehicles and farm equipment no problem. The open standpipe didn't change anything either, the gun was just as hard to push with no disc welded to the bottom of the standpipe. When i took it apart i found lots of grease inside and also found floating grease in the tank when i used the open pipe. I even tried it after i had pressurized the tank to 125 and still found it hard to pump. That's when the zert blew in half after i really leaned into it.

If there's air left in the tank, i won't be able to get it out. It's too heavy to lift or move around at this point. The cap on the other end of the tank from the gage is frozen in place and isn't coming out. There might be a little but under that cap. If i get a chance i could try picking up a new gun, but i'm dubious that is going to work at this point.

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[86turbodsl]

I'll get a picture uploaded when i can, but i think you're all failing to grasp that the grease gun i have makes pressure and injects grease. Well enough in fact that i was able to overstress and break the zert fitting off the cap on the standpipe. The ball was blown right off. It's making pressure, but doesn't seem to affect the gage on the other port. I use the grease gun on my vehicles and farm equipment no problem. The open standpipe didn't change anything either, the gun was just as hard to push with no disc welded to the bottom of the standpipe. When i took it apart i found lots of grease inside and also found floating grease in the tank when i used the open pipe. I even tried it after i had pressurized the tank to 125 and still found it hard to pump. That's when the zert blew in half after i really leaned into it.

If there's air left in the tank, i won't be able to get it out. It's too heavy to lift or move around at this point. The cap on the other end of the tank from the gage is frozen in place and isn't coming out. There might be a little but under that cap. If i get a chance i could try picking up a new gun, but i'm dubious that is going to work at this point.

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I'm an idiot. It just occured to me, i have a graco 390 airless sprayer. Pressure controlled piston pump, it will adjust down quite low. I can probably add a fitting to dump this in and get the rest of the pressure i need by dialing down the set point. I will add a pressure relief valve though i think. Should get the job done. it pumps water quite well.

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[86turbodsl]

Threw caution to the wind tonight and did this. The pressure was easily controllable with the stock graco pressure contoller.

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[86turbodsl]

Threw caution to the wind tonight and did this. The pressure was easily controllable with the stock graco pressure contoller.

Threw caution to the wind tonight and did this. The pressure was easily controllable with the stock graco pressure contoller.

Incidentally, how long should i keep pressure on the tank? Couple of hours? Overnight? It does have a little bit of a drip from some of the connections. Nobody is perfect.


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Proof of the pudding

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[sberry]

The sprayer is a good idea.

 

[86turbodsl]

How long should i keep the pressure on? couple hours? Overnight?

 

[lakeroadster]

Wipe it down so it is good and dry. Leave it sit a couple hours should be good for a thin wall tank like yours.

Then look for leaks at welds and fittings.

Look at attachment welds too.. like where the motor / compressor plate attaches to the vessel, and where the legs attach to the vessel.

Congrats on reaching the 200 PSI.

 

[davejo]

Threw caution to the wind tonight and did this. The pressure was easily controllable with the stock graco pressure contoller.

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So in the course of performing a safety test, you threw caution to the wind?

For those talking of ultrasonic testers etc, I tested a few tanks tonight

My 80 gallon tank was about .020 thicker than what was stamped on the id plate (10 to 15 % corrosion allowance, apparently)

my harbor freight soda blaster tank was .085 thick

my 10 gallon portable tank was about .090 inches thick

my argon welding cylinder was .225 thick

 

[86turbodsl]

Well, maybe i overstated the caution part. I was tired of waiting for parts and tested the tank without the 200psi safety valve i ordered. Still full of water, so pretty safe. I didn't know how fast the painter would bring up the pressure. It was actually quite slow and controllable.

 

[86turbodsl]

Here's what i've setup to recondition the tank insides. I had everything sitting around except the bearings, pipe and pulley. Now that i've got it setup i can see that i don't have enough motor to turn it. So i think i'm going to pull it back outside and drive with the tractor pto. It should go slow enough and have enough grunt to spin it.

I will be putting a gallon or so of gravel in the interior and spinning for cleaning.

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[laser3kw]

going the extra mile - I like that!
That's the GJ way, start with a small project and make it big. Then, when complete, you own it!

 

[lakeroadster]

Now that i've got it setup i can see that i don't have enough motor to turn it.

An electric variable speed drill would likely work...

 

[86turbodsl]

An electric variable speed drill would likely work...

Good idea, but i don't think my drill or my stamina would last for the few hours this will take. This thing is quite heavy. It keeps spinning from inertia for about 5 minutes once i let it go.

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[pancho400cid]

One guy I saw on the youtubes used a pipe threader to drive a setup very much like what you're doing. I thought that was a very clever idea and it was a very good driving speed.

Thread a long pipe stub-out in one threaded end hole of the tank and chuck that up in the threader.

You may even be able to rent a threader from a box store if you don't have one....

 

[86turbodsl]

One guy I saw on the youtubes used a pipe threader to drive a setup very much like what you're doing. I thought that was a very clever idea and it was a very good driving speed.

Thread a long pipe stub-ut in one end of the tank and chuck that up in the threader.

You may even be able to rent one from a box store if you don't have one....

Yeah, i saw that video. I don't have a threader and can't find one for rent around here.

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[dkmc]

So what ever happened with the tank?
Did you end up putting it in service??

 

[metalmagpie]

If you give up you can always do this with it:

 

[86turbodsl]

I didn't complete it yet. Been very focused on setting up shop heat. Trying to beat the end of cold weather so i can turn on the floor and see where my lines are and get the lift setup this year. It's coming, sometime this spring. Be patient.

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