Dry air from an air compressor.
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Livyx
I stumbled upon the site while looking for a DIY solution to get clean, dry air into and out of my compressor. Store bought stuff is always so expensive! I like to see reasonable solutions from regular folks!
I've been working on the same issue. From what I've read and been able to figure out on my own, the only effective way to dry the compressed air is to cool it first. That is why they build expensive air cooling machines for this purpose. I also don't want to spend a fortune to do this. My idea is to use a college size refrigerator to build one. I would run the line directly from the compressor head into a coil inside the refrigerator. I would run the coil through a water, tank inside the refrigerator, to take advantage of the liquids ability to remove heat much faster than a gas.
Next the pressure line would run from the coil, outside of the fridge, into a drying canister. I would build the canister myself, because I want it to be much larger than standard sizes are, but one could purchase one. HF sells a divilbiss knockoff that I have used with good success.
Finally the pressure line would run from the canister into my compressor tank. That way, the moisture is gone before it gets to the tank, and the air is cool in the tank, which should give the tank a slightly larger capacity.
The only problem I can think of, is that the refrigerator would have to turned on all the time, to maintain the temperature of the water. It shouldn't raise your electric bill much, but I'm sure it will be noticeable. Right now, this is all theory for me, but when I get a chance, I think I will try it. If anybody can improve on this idea or give me a reason why it wouldn't work, please let me know.