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PVC airline explosion - pictures

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Kellyblues

Well-known member
Joined
Jul 27, 2015
Messages
139
Location
Indiana
Spent part of the day tearing our PVC from a large cabinet shop. They had two large compressors. The older pvc you could just give it a quick tug and it would break apart. The newer stuff I had to cut. Given time it would be the same. Can't believe they never had any explode.

Thank you very much for sharing the story and providing pictures. Pvc gets brittle the older it gets. The more its heated and cooled the faster it happens. Add different kinds of light and it adds to it deoending on what type of pvc it is.

Im glad its getting replaced and you get to see it first hand. I've seen it also. Only takes seeing it once to make a firm believer out of ya for sure.
 
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HoosierBuddy

Well-known member
Joined
May 9, 2006
Messages
2,932
Location
Southern Indiana
Reading from several posters that they work in shops with PVC air lines...just an FYI especially if you are in management over one of those shops.

OSHA has jurisdiction over anyone that has employees in the United States.

OSHA doesn't allow PVC to be used for compressed air.

If a worker feels their employer is not providing a safe work environment, I would suggest they bring those concerns to management and give them a legitimate chance to correct the issues brought forward. Heck, I'd give them a few chances.

If that doesn't work, there's always this:

https://www.osha.gov/as/opa/worker/complain.html

They'll have to replace the air lines then and may face a fine...but sometimes that may be what it takes to prevent a catastrophe.

Good luck everyone!

Phil

p.s. Here's a link where OSHA made this determination in 1988.

https://www.osha.gov/dts/hib/hib_data/hib19880520.html
 
Last edited:

Doug1

Well-known member
Joined
Feb 23, 2011
Messages
160
Location
Charleston, SC
The Rapid Air Maxline is the way to go. Metal, coated with plastic and rated for burial. Since it is aluminum, you don't have to deal with rusting issues. I've been very happy with it. I ran it over 100 ft underground to my shop in the back. LOVE, LOVE, LOVE it.
 

TheEquineFencer

Well-known member
Joined
Jan 15, 2009
Messages
9,278
Location
Farmville, NC 27828
Personally, I just went to HF and bought a couple of 100 ft rolls of 1/2 inch airline, two 50 ft hose reels, a water separator and bought a brass T fitting. I put a a reel at the front of the shop and one at the rear. I zip tied the airline so it was up hill as long as I could then down to the reels with a drop at the reel and pull air from the top and have a drain at the bottom. 300 PSI ait line. It was the safest, cheapest, easiest way I could think of to do it. When I cut the air compressor off the separator drains itself.
 
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