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Ghetto air dryer?

Toreadorranger

Toreadorranger

Atomic Test Lab Rat
Joined
May 21, 2020
Member Number
874
Messages
1,070
Loc
CT
I'm looking to run some airlines in my garage, I dont use a ton of air but I just picked up a chinese plasma and run my HF blaster occasionally. It's not in the cards to run an actual dryer. Is some black iron pipe with drop legs and a good desiccant filter enough? Any other budget methods?
 
I have 4' vertical legs with 3 drops with ball valves to empty drops and I still get moisture. Almost to the point of trying one of the HF dryers.
 
cagcig said:
I have 4' vertical legs with 3 drops with ball valves to empty drops and I still get moisture. Almost to the point of trying one of the HF dryers.
Click to expand...

I was hoping to avoid buying a dryer since I so infrequently use air. How much piping do you have between the compressor and the drops?
 
Toreadorranger said:
I'm looking to run some airlines in my garage, I dont use a ton of air but I just picked up a chinese plasma and run my HF blaster occasionally. It's not in the cards to run an actual dryer. Is some black iron pipe with drop legs and a good desiccant filter enough? Any other budget methods?
Click to expand...

Ok this is apparently a Tuesday type question, but I used to work at a body shop, and maybe there were systems at play that I was aware of when i was 16, but the little orange ball things you screw on right at the paint gun, sand blaster, etc..aren't enough? I know there were occasional glass bowl things in the line to catch water very so often too.
 
I bought a harbor fright water trap and a quart of rechargeable desiccant beads off of eBay to run my plasma.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/283327757232
https://www.harborfreight.com/industrial-air-filter-regulator-unit-68247.html
https://www.harborfreight.com/industrial-air-filter-regulator-unit-68247.html
https://www.ebay.com/itm/283327757232

Opened the canister up and up and packed the bead inside. Bought a short whip hose to run from the output back to the input to keep the unit sealed when not being used.
 
Being on the east coast, I don't think piping will be enough to draw moisture out of the air, not if the plasma is continuously used.

An after cooler inbetween your compressor outlet and tank is a good first step. You could build a franzinator if you wanted even cheaper. Even with that, I get moisture in my lines that catch in the filters/dryers.

Dessicant works, but you need a lot of it for it to last, and the air system needs to be tight so that the dessicant doesn't just waste away when you're not using it.
 
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