Air Lines (pipework)

[NeilH]

has anybody got the PVC air pipework in their workshop?

its only been on the market for a few years and im a bit doubtful of it. especially leaks on the joints (hissing)

im soon to be buying a new compressor and am going to be running new lines. its a bit expensive, but if its good stuff ill pay the money.

what i was going to use is copper pipe, the stuff thats intended for household water plumbing.

 

[NeilH]

http://www.toolstation.com/shop/Power+Tools/Pneumatic+Workshop/d40/sd2791

its all on that page. connections, stops, wall clips, elbows etc etc...

i tihnk it will look very neat to drop one down every wall coin in the garage

 

[Delgado]

Fitted out a workshop with it a few years ago, easy to work with, quick to assemble and works great as long as you remember to push the joints in nice and tight. The only down side is that it aint cheap. I've got some tube, a few elbows and wall clips left over, if you want them maybe we could come to some kind of agreement.

 

[tigler]

Also fitted a bike workshop out with it about 5 years ago, it's been fine. Quick and easy but fairly expensive, but you save on time to install and don't need to thread pipes.

 

[NeilH]

cheers for replys. like i mentioned in my first post, im not worried about the price. i always save up and buy what i want rather than settle for somethin i wont be happy with.

delgado - i may be interested, what size diameter is the pipe, and how much do u have. i need 40ft.

 

[Delgado]

I think I've got 4x 3 meter lengths of 19mm tube , about 25x 19mm wall clips, 2 x 22mm elbows and a bag full of 22mm wall clips (50 I think?). I'll double check for you tomorrow.

 

[NeilH]

do u think 19mm might be a bit too narrow to get good air supply through to the air tools?

i have been told the bigger the better (ohhh errr) but i need to be aiming for about an inch ID pipe.

only what i was told.

 

[Delgado]

The way I did it was, I came out of the compressor with 22mm, up the wall and into the building, put a "t" in and ran a complete ring around the top of the workshop (in the false celing), then "t"ed off that with the 19mm and dropped down the walls where required. I guess the size of tube you use depends on what and how much you're going to be running.

 

[NeilH]

mine is going to come out of the compressor hush house (behind sheet of polycarb in pic), piped into the garage through the stainless pipe. see pictured.

then i want it travelling accross the wall towards you (in pic) to a wall coin, dropped down to a retractable air hose thats long enough to use all over the garage.

i thought it would be easier to do that than have outlets all over the garage? and cheaper!

 

[brightspark]

retractable air hose over a length isnt 2 clever i never use it it restricts the volume and flow and also builds up water in the rolls when retracted .
i prefer to keep lines short and strait and large bore

 

[NeilH]

i just thought it would look neat and tidy.

ive always thought the retractable ones used the same ID hose as the "normal" hoses.

 

[shenion]

Mine is 1/2" copper from outside compressor to the bench. There is 3 taps. One with reg/trap/filter/oiler. Another is for the plasma cutter (has its own trap/reg.)

Then 25' 3/8" to hose reel in front of garage with its own reg/trap. Reel has 25' of 3/8" hose. Works well and was surprised it runs the 1/2" impact wrench with no problem.

I do plan on extending the 1/2" copper to the front for the hose reel.

1/2" (12mmID) should supply a DIY setup with no problem. It allows my blaster to suck the tank dry (11CFM FAD.)

PVC? Don't you mean something like PEX?

 

[NeilH]

i knew some body would pick up on the PVC lol its actually nylon pipe, specific for air lines, see link posted above.

im not STRICTLY diy. car repair is my profession. im also an MOT tester. but this is my personal garage....where i do..errrr.....favours?

how are u finding the copper?

 

[shenion]

i knew some body would pick up on the PVC lol its actually nylon pipe, specific for air lines, see link posted above.

Looked at the link and it never said what the fittings were.

how are u finding the copper?

Works great, half is HVAC tubing, half is pipe (5/8" OD tubing == 1/2" ID plumbing pipe.) Stuff I had lying around.

I like the idea it keeps the air at room temp. I did use lead-free solder on the fittings. Lead solder will corrode and can fail under high pressures.

15 or 18mm should be fine. I think I calculated the 1/2" I use is rated at 33CFM over the distance, almost 3x what my compressor does.

 

[langy]

I used 15mm copper to do my shop, cost was minimal and its been in a fair few years now.
I have drop downs every 10ft along both walls, my main airline is 16 ft long as thats all i need but have a 100ft line if i have to go to the front of the house. I also have a dedicated supply line for painting and another for my plasma. All have water traps on them.

 

[malcolm]

I used copper for mine - a good run of copper pipe with drop downs gets most of the water out of the air before it reaches the filters. I reckoned it was also cheaper than using the plastic fittings. I reckoned 1/2 inch pipe (15mm) would be OK for a fair old distance.

 

[NeilH]

lol malcolm i love your set up. but its overly complicated for what i want and beyond my creative ability.

what i want is a BEAST of a compressor. im thinkin 200/270 litre. (yes i have 3 phase)

1 single line made out of either copper water pipe or that nylon pipe.

plumbed into my garage to where i want it then going into my all in one regulator/water trap thingy.

then from there into a retractable air hose long enough to go anywhere in the garage?

nice and simple. i havent got the skills to do a diagram like yours but it will basically be:

compressor>hard pipe>water trap/regulator>air hose>air tool.

 

[tigler]

Bigger is better, as much as is practicable. Another advantage is that a larger bore pipe system adds volume, like a small receiver.
Having said that, when selecting a compressor, don't look at receiver size in isolation, you need as much CFM FAD as possible, air delivery from the pump is the main objective.

 

[hardtop]

i have read other forums on the use of plastic pipes for compressed air as some people were scared when it let go under pressure they had visions of shards of plastic firing off in all directions,

guess i'll be using old fashioned copper when i do mine

 

[tigler]

If you use the correct stuff, designed for compressed air, it will not burst !! It has to meet regs and EN standards.