Hi The compressor is only a couple of months old and I drain the tank after each use. The other day I noticed the water was rusty. Is there a way of stopping rust or is this just par for the course ? TIA Gordon
Drain it daily.
Yes & No.
A certain amount of rust is par for the course; however, leave the drain open when not in service to minimize rust.
HTH
Lew
I think if you added a pre filter to remove moisture it would help. Once, I tried adding a motorcycle gas tank sealer in the tank and made a real mess. The solution is for the manufacturers to coat the inside or use non ferrous tank material. max
sigh...
Despite what the others have said there is the fact that when the compressor is compressing the act of compressing causes the air being compressed to become very hot. When the compressed air goes from the piston chamber to the tank it cools. This heating and cooling causes condensation so no amount of doing things on the outside of the tank will change things.
Draining the tank only empties what has settled to the bottom of the tank. There will still be condensation on the tank sides and this will continue to rust the tank from the inside out. Not saying draining is worthless, just that you aren't getting all the condensation.
My advice (advise in wreckspeak) is live with it.
Now, keeping the condensation from entering the lines, that's a whole nudder kettle of fish and can be dealt with by adding a separator.
UA100
It's par for the course Gordon. Moisture is a byproduct of compressing air. Your tank is the perfect environment for moisture to collect as water. It's going to happen. Drain your tank frequently, or install an automatic tank drain that pops off every time the compressor cycles. Those cost around $20 (I believe) at Harbor Freight. FWIW, your tank will last for years and years and years if you drain it on some regular basis. It does not have to be every day. Drain it weekly or even a little longer and that tank will last almost forever. You'd be surprised how many compressors have never been drained and they still pump air 15 years later.
Are there any safety issues with a rusty tank, such as a situation where you can't tell that the integrity has been compromised to due to rust, and it explodes? I worry about that with my compressor.
Wrong, If you have rust thru, it will start as a pin hole leak and not explode. Unless the static from your DC jumps over and blows it up.
r.
Your tank will NOT explode....at least because of rust.... at some point it may blow out and loose all the air, making a lot of noise etc. BUT it will not explode...
I use my compressor almost daily and I drain it and leave the think open when not in use... lasted me 40 years now...no signs of rust YET... Figure my grandchildren may be using it when it finally rusts thru...long after I am pushing up weeds..
Bob Griffiths
No, I think it's safe. Have had several compressors fail. Generally you get a pin hole leak and the thing won't shut off. Each time it has been at the weld on the very bottom of the tank. Tanks are usually certified and very safe. I have tried welding the leaks. Doesn't work. max
This is possible, but it's incredibly rare. Mainly it can be avoided by good design. You can tell where the cylinder will begin to rust, and the design should ensure that area is strong enough that you don't get a "zipper" failure. A pinhole leak can be so small that you hear it whistling before you notice the leakage.
I've seen the aftermath of a couple of explosive compressor failures. One was enormous (a compressor big enough to have its own building), but the other was a small paint-sprayer, assembled from scrap parts. This had a flat-ended tank which had been stood on end. Pooled water had caused rust around most of the welded seam, so when it failed, the whole end of the tank came off. No injuries, but there would have been if anyone had been near the tank when it went.
Replace the tank at that point or just buy a whole new compressor?
I have done both. If it is a high quality compressor I will try and find a tank. Usually parts are more expensive than the whole thing. You have to add in the labor of moving everything over. I usually sell the old compressor with the bad tank and it makes it economical to buy a new one. max
My first tank I never drained. 7 years later it got a pin hole leak. When I finally drained it nearly two gallons of rusty muck water drained out. I replaced the tank (not that expensive, repairing air tanks is a real dangerous thing to do I am told), and now I drain it every week or so.
In my experience, the motor/pump will go before the tank does. I base this statement on the surplus of tanks from used compressors, and the absence of surplus pumps for same. Maybe it's a local, isolated thing in my area, but I don't think so.
Dave Hinz
On Fri, 12 Nov 2004 05:29:05 GMT, "Gordon W" calmly ranted:
AFAIK, it's PFTC. OTOH, you might ask these guys if the stuff works on compressor tanks. Tank expansion might be a problem.
I doubt is a local or isolated thing, probably more in line with how much the compressor is used. One used daily will probably wear out before the tank rusts through.. If the compressor tank rusts out first it may have only been used occasionally and the water not trained.
Not saying it is impossible, but usually when a steel air tank rusts out, it gets pinoles or small cracks near the bottom, where water accumulates. I've seen a few where this happened, but have never seen or heard of a tank exploding because of rust. As long as you drain the tank regularly you should be OK. Sometimes consumer-grade tanks have a "stop using on" date marked on them.
Thank you all for your time and advice.
Consensus:- par for the course, drain regularly. Will do. It's comforting to know I'm not alone in this boat.
Thanks again
Gordon
Automatic drain valves are available. They "burp" the drain valve each time the compressor starts, forcing out water.
Barry
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