Seeing the " air comp pipe leakdown" and "insurance" close together..

[Nivekdodge]

Seeing the " air comp pipe leakdown" and "insurance" close together..

When you shut off your compressor , throw the tank valve. If a fire starts, As soon as the first air hose burns through..... Fanning the flames is not something you want to do.

 

[PassnThru]

Re: Seeing the " air comp pipe leakdown" and "insurance" close together..

Sorry - I understand your point but there are thousands of things we could do every day to reduce risk. We could spend our entire day doing those things. We all have to decide the point where the effort outweighs the risk because we simply cannot live risk free. Part of that evaluation is how likely that particular situation will occur. If it is unlikely to happen then it gets less attention.
I will keep my compressor charged.
I will let my kids ride shotgun with me even though the back seat is safer.
The list goes on.

 

[cvairwerks]

Re: Seeing the " air comp pipe leakdown" and "insurance" close together..

Least of your worries, unless you are goofy enough to use that unmentionable for air piping...

 

[Musicinabottle]

Re: Seeing the " air comp pipe leakdown" and "insurance" close together..

I mean, if you get a fire going that's hot enough to burn through your air hose, then you probably are beyond little details like air fanning the flames. I know that my garage has enough combustibles such as gasoline containers and paint cans that a little bit of breeze flying out of a melted hose isn't gonna be a problem in retrospect.

 

[red61cj5]

Re: Seeing the " air comp pipe leakdown" and "insurance" close together..

I'm hoping the explosion from the bursting PVC will blow out the fire.

 

[MushCreek]

Re: Seeing the " air comp pipe leakdown" and "insurance" close together..

I don't use my compressor that often, so I am in the habit of draining the tank. Lots of water in our humid climate.

 

[tom-ky]

Re: Seeing the " air comp pipe leakdown" and "insurance" close together..

I would think what air is in a tank would make a fire much worse than it already was if it got bad enough to melt hoses or other lines, by that time it would have gotten the wiring unless the fire is way away from the compressor. That said I try to turn my ball valve off at the tank when not in use, I do forget sometimes.

 

[n20junkie]

Re: Seeing the " air comp pipe leakdown" and "insurance" close together..

If a fire is hot enough to melt any kind of line, chances are you lost the shop already. Just stand back and call your insurance company.

 

[Showkey]

Re: Seeing the " air comp pipe leakdown" and "insurance" close together..

Let’s go with turn the compressor off.........so when the hose breaks the compressor does not run for 30 hours straight and “burn up” .

Called on dealership where the oil delivery line broke over night.........dumping 1500 gallons of oil on the shop floor. No fire, just a huge mess........

 

[finn]

Re: Seeing the " air comp pipe leakdown" and "insurance" close together..

I always flip the tank switch to off and close the ball valve, as course of habit.

When I had an attached garage which contained my compressor, it would start up in the middle of the night, waking the baby.

Got into the habit of powering down and flipping the ball valve lever 32 years ago.

There’s a wide range between over cautious and negligent.

 

[PNWguy]

Re: Seeing the " air comp pipe leakdown" and "insurance" close together..

I drain my acetylene tank at night, so it won't burst if there's a fire.

 

[Crazyjake8493]

Re: Seeing the " air comp pipe leakdown" and "insurance" close together..

I don't use my compressor that often, so I am in the habit of draining the tank. Lots of water in our humid climate.

Same here, every time I'm done I drain the tank. But it's only a 26 gallon, and I'm not using it every day.

 

[bad_idea]

Re: Seeing the " air comp pipe leakdown" and "insurance" close together..

It is good practice to secure the tank outlet valve and the power to the pump. If you have a hose rupture while you are away (it happens), the compressor will run until it doesn't. Also, it is less wear and tear on the hoses to depressurize them when not in use. Close the tank outlet valve and bleed the system down. It doesn't take much air to refill at next use and only takes a moment to do. Plumb a drain valve immediately following the tank outlet valve. Close one, open the other.

 

[PassnThru]

Re: Seeing the " air comp pipe leakdown" and "insurance" close together..

I drain my acetylene tank at night, so it won't burst if there's a fire.

Don't forget about your propane tanks

 

[BruceMc]

Re: Seeing the " air comp pipe leakdown" and "insurance" close together..

It is good practice to secure the tank outlet valve and the power to the pump. If you have a hose rupture while you are away (it happens), the compressor will run until it doesn't. Also, it is less wear and tear on the hoses to depressurize them when not in use. Close the tank outlet valve and bleed the system down. It doesn't take much air to refill at next use and only takes a moment to do. Plumb a drain valve immediately following the tank outlet valve. Close one, open the other.

And another potential point of failure is the auto drain valve (if you have one). I have mine set up on a wall timer and, while I'm in the habit of shutting down the tank and bleeding the rest, I tend to forget this one. I have a couple of the Flexzilla hose reels and the internal clearances must be pretty tight. The reels retract much better when the hoses aren't under pressure, so that's gotten me into the habit of relieving the pressure in the lines when putting stuff away.

 

[James-W]

Re: Seeing the "air comp pipe leakdown" and "insurance" close together..

I tend to look at it the way "PassnThru" looks at it. I think sometimes we get paranoid over things where in reality the odds against it happening are more than the odds of winning the lottery. Obviously, it COULD happen. But by the same token I COULD be the next Pope too, but I really don't think it is likely.

 

[BADSIX]

Re: Seeing the " air comp pipe leakdown" and "insurance" close together..

Let’s go with turn the compressor off.........so when the hose breaks the compressor does not run for 30 hours straight and “burn up” .

Called on dealership where the oil delivery line broke over night.........dumping 1500 gallons of oil on the shop floor. No fire, just a huge mess........

THIS ^^ I to worry about a ruptured line. I have a solenoid valve right at the tank and the switch is right next to my man door. if i'm leaving the shop for some time I just flip the switch it shuts off the air right at the tank. the tank stays charged so it doesn't have to pump up the next time I need it. works great
Jay D.

 

[RVDan]

Re: Seeing the " air comp pipe leakdown" and "insurance" close together..

There's natural gas lines running under my house. They are plastic. How do I shut them off? What if my neighbor is still using it?

 

[tdcisco1]

Re: Seeing the " air comp pipe leakdown" and "insurance" close together..

My compressor is powered down and shut in when the garage is unoccupied. Arent unattended compressors a common source of garage fires ? Maybe Nuttsgt will chime in ?

 

[Ji m]

Re: Seeing the " air comp pipe leakdown" and "insurance" close together..

I leave the compressor switch on all the time,
but shut the breaker off when I'm not using it, since the panel is close by, and the compressor is on the opposite side of the garage.

 

[Spareparts]

Re: Seeing the " air comp pipe leakdown" and "insurance" close together..

Pluses and minuses on both points, if my shop catches on fire and melts the air lines that is letting the air in the tank go away. The power is going to go off when the electric cable melts and shorts out, the potential of a 80 gal. tank with 175psi in it is a bomb. When it ruptures it will acelerate the fire a lot faster than a 3/8'air hose, along with the parts and pieces flying in all directions risking life and limb of anyone close. This is one of them Damn if you do and Danm if you don't things.

 

[cbacres]

Re: Seeing the " air comp pipe leakdown" and "insurance" close together..

I think it's a good idea to drain tank at night, it releases at least 120 pounds a square inch, so that takes a lot of stress on the floor.

I shut mine in at tank and make sure power is off too. Like the others have said, I have a fair amount of thinners and such, they'll go off long before the tank ruptures from overheating. I don't rememder for sure, but the pop off may have a lead piece to release in a heat scenario. I could be thinking of something else though .

 

[Milton Shaw]

Re: Seeing the " air comp pipe leakdown" and "insurance" close together..

I just finished installing a new compressor after 26 years on the old one. I installed a 120 volt motorized valve on the air outlet that is controlled by the garage light switch. When I am in the shop, lights and air are on. This keeps all but a 24" hydraulic (3500 psi rating) as the only hose with air on it when the lights are off. Have not heard the compressor run unless I am in the shop.

 

[Itsjustdirt]

Re: Seeing the " air comp pipe leakdown" and "insurance" close together..

I just finished installing a new compressor after 26 years on the old one. I installed a 120 volt motorized valve on the air outlet that is controlled by the garage light switch. When I am in the shop, lights and air are on. This keeps all but a 24" hydraulic (3500 psi rating) as the only hose with air on it when the lights are off. Have not heard the compressor run unless I am in the shop.

What valve/switch are you using? Sounds interesting.

 

[BruceMc]

Re: Seeing the " air comp pipe leakdown" and "insurance" close together..

My compressor is powered down and shut in when the garage is unoccupied. Arent unattended compressors a common source of garage fires ? Maybe Nuttsgt will chime in ?

A simple Google search on "air compressor" and "fire" makes for some interesting reading.

 

[Git]

Re: Seeing the " air comp pipe leakdown" and "insurance" close together..

What valve/switch are you using? Sounds interesting.

RapidAire sells one for $99
http://shop.rapidairproducts.com/3-4-female-npt-compressor-shut-off-valve/

Video
https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=9&v=YVJ0KjuWhTI

These are all rebranded Chinese made valves. I found basically the same thing with a 2 wire DC for $50, but they are currently out of stock on Amazon. The Bayco version even has a manual override. They should also be available in 110v and they come in different flavors. Mine for example opens up when it is powered on and has a spring to close it when the power is off. I had tried another brand (US Solid) but it failed after a couple of months and they gave me my money back and I bought this one which appears to be a better-built valve with metal gears, the indicator and override

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00SAFM5U0/?tag=atomicindus08-20

I am using a z-wave switch to turn it off and on - its' about 50 from the garage in my shed

 

[nehog]

Re: Seeing the " air comp pipe leakdown" and "insurance" close together..

When you shut off your compressor , throw the tank valve. If a fire starts, As soon as the first air hose burns through..... Fanning the flames is not something you want to do.

Once the hose burns through, it is way too late to worry about it...

 

[Itsjustdirt]

Re: Seeing the " air comp pipe leakdown" and "insurance" close together..

Git, thanks!!!!!!

 

[pcmeiners]

Re: Seeing the " air comp pipe leakdown" and "insurance" close together..

"Once the hose burns through, it is way too late to worry about it... "

Should a shop be fairly air tight, should a fire start, it will self extinguish. What if a compressor pipe or hose feeds the fire or worse if it creates an explosive atmosphere upon a pipe or hose letting loose, as in flash over.

See nothing wrong with adding a shutoff valve to a compressor output. In a well used shop, it would definitely pay for itself in leakage cost alone.