Compressor oil

[ned]

hi all

So I bought a workzone 3hp 50L compressor a few months back, and its a great bit of kit. I bought it to use with my plasma, but I found that I could only cut about 1 foot of 8mm plate before the compressor kicks in, and then the combined draw of the compressor and the plasma cutter is too much for my power supply, so the switch in the house trips.

What this means then is that I can cut 1 foot, and then I have to stop while the compressor refills. I cannot use the plasma and the compressor at the same time.

So I went and bought a 200L tank yesterday. Am now looking into connecting them, am going to buy fittings later today. The combined 250L capacity should be more than enough for me.

But, my compressor pump is going to be working much harder, so I will have to take care of it.

For this reason I want to buy the right oil for it. Here is what the manual says regarding oil:

Can I ask you guys, is this regular 10W40 oil, the same as is used in cars?

That would simplify my life greatly.

 

[colnerov]

Yes.

 

[ned]

great stuff Colnerov thanks )

 

[eSCHEn]

What pressure are you running on the plasma Ned? I've got a 2HP 25L one and on 6mm mild I'm getting much better than a foot at a time. Originally I wasn't and the slag was atrocious, I dropped the pressure down to ~70psi and it was much better in both ways.

 

[ned]

roundabouts 100 psi. I have a hypertherm powermax 45 and it was fiddly about the pressure, had to regulate it to between 90 and 100, but since i moved the compressor to an outhouse 30 feet away i havnt needed to regulate it from the compressor, there must be a pressure drop in the line at that distance. works fine now.

if it drops too low the plasma wont work, these machines seem pretty picky about pressure. Had a couple of freak outs when i first got her, i was like, its broken!!! but it wasnt, it was just the pressure was wrong, so the machine said no.

 

[MoreWellie]

regular 10w40 can be fully synthetic, part synthetic or old fashioned mineral oil

so "Yes" it is the same stuff but it looks to me like your compressor is asking for the fully synthetic version

 

[knighty]

keep an eye on the pressure gauge on the plasma cutter when you use it, there's a decent chance the regulator built into the compressor is too restrictive and not letting enough air through (little compressors often do that)


I normally remove them completely and run at full pressure... fine as long as you're not spray painting etc.. and I assume the plasma has a built in regulator anyway ?

 

[rikrobson]

My plasma cutter has never drained the compressor (3hp Wollf 90l)

I usually run at 40-60 psi on the cutter's regulator depending what is being cut. the supply is direct from the ~ 150psi max from the tank.

If the air flow is to great for the cutting cuttent then it will cool the cut.

As for the oil dedicated compressor oil is usually SAE 30 monograde. They blurb seems to be stating the obvious where the summer/winter "characteristics" stay the same.
Motor oil has variable viscosity for cold starting and will be quickly warmed by the engine.
Compressors tend to be in a workshop that will have a limited temperature range compared to a car sat outside in all weathers (prepared for a big toping on hot/cold/freezing/boilding workshops)
Motor oils also contain detergents and additives designed to complement the engines requirements. Cold starts, motorway driving, urban driving, etc.
I don't think that the type of oil is that important in the grand scale of things. as long as its present and at about 30 weight it should be fine.

 

[arther dailey]

fully synthetic is best in my book.Arther

 

[ned]

cheers guys. I have more questions but am in work at the mo. Yah it has an inbuilt regulator. I had a tough time initially getting the plasma to work, so i m kinda paranoid at going near the internal regulator. But that's dumb so I will.

I'll take pics of the ports on the tanks later. I dont know much about plumbing.

From what i can figure both tanks have a 1/2" BSP port on them, so i was going to buy two '1/2" thread to 1/2" tail' connectors and connect the tanks with re-enforced hose with a 10mm internal diameter.

I've read the 1/2" tail is approx 12mm so should suit the 10mm inside diameter hose. Want to connect them with flexible hose so that I can move them about if needed.


I would like to build a water trap but I dont know the first thing about plumbing!! havnt the foggiest.

 

[123hotchef]

I am just about to connect my 2 tanks together too I opted for a Y pcl quick release fitting so I can use a short air hose from each tank to my water trap and filters

 

[ned]

Hi there, you got a pic of that plz ?

 

[123hotchef]

ill take a few later for you just about to venture out into the garage i started tiding last night now cant get in there

 

[123hotchef]

Well its looking better

 

[123hotchef]

The Green ones are the inputs

 

[arther dailey]

yup,tidy up ,looks better eventually, just cant find anything without searching

 

[tinman123]

regular 10w40 can be fully synthetic, part synthetic or old fashioned mineral oil

so "Yes" it is the same stuff but it looks to me like your compressor is asking for the fully synthetic version

wise words there.

as morewellie says, your compressor states that its after 10w/40 synthetic oil, best to give it what it wants.
as for getting it, take a walk into your local halfords and pick up a ltr of mobil ( if you want to be good to it ) oil.
they dont actually do a 10w/40 fully synthetic but the mobil 1 diesel oil is a 0w/40, the latter number being the most important to stick to as its the viscosity of the oil at 100 degrees, the 0 and the 10 in the first number is the viscosity of the oil when its cold, the lower the number there the better so reducing it from 10 to 0 is ok for what you want it for.
the W just stands for winter.


as for an air drier, you could try a car radiator ( that id be fit to take the pressure ) and plumb your air into it at the bottom and take off it at the top, leave the 12v fan on it for better results and have it working.
loads of videos on u tube for you to watch how its done.
its not the best option out there but its one of the cheaper ones and from what ive read it works ok at taking a lot of the moisture out of the air.
i use a norgren water trap filter here, on its own its fit to dry the air a lot more than i even thought it would, i was well impressed with how good it works compared to the cheaper versions.
i use a la-man filter at the end of the pipe going to the plasma, they are stupid money but do exactly what it says on the tin.
there are other variations of air driers on u tube too, many to chose from, hotchef's cooler is a simple cheap design too with what i believe are good results iirc.

 

[123hotchef]

yes i dont get any water in the filters or traps thought I would this time of year but I was pleasantly surprised. Not bad for mostly scrap

 

[123hotchef]

oh and i put this in both of my compressors http://www.toolstation.com/shop/p94582

 

[tinman123]

oh and i put this in both of my compressors http://www.toolstation.com/shop/p94582

personally i wouldnt use that oil myself, its a hydraulic oil more than an engine oil, id rather use a 10w/40 in it or the 0w/40.