Slightly OT: Draining Portable Air Compressors - Are We Just Kiddng Ourselves?

[DerbyDad03]

Fake news.

[Markem]

You know just take the attitude elsewhere.

[OFWW]

LOL, try typing it into your search engine. The link above was just one of many, and I am not denying that the explosive part of the air bag is the pertinent part, and that rust plays a key factor in it. But like the air compressor you never know when it will fail.

[DerbyDad03]

If a bunch of people are wrong, does that make it right? Is it not proper to try and set the facts straight? Most of the sites that call it an "exploding airbag" are news sites, consumer organizations, ambulance chasers, etc. Go to the auto company sites, government sites, etc. and you find that (most) use proper terminology.

Go back to Mike's "buried pipe" thread, which you participated heavily in. Look at the level of detail that that thread went down to. Why is is OK to be so correct in terminology, use, cause and effect in that thread, but it's not OK for me to attempt to correct misinformation when it comes the air bag inflator recall?

Please the report I linked to. Rust was not a factor. Nothing rusted. The chemical composition of the propellant changed due to the introduction of moisture. That increased its "explosive power" causing the inflators case to blow apart.

I'm not sure how that last comment relates to this specific discussion: "What was recalled and what was the cause."

[Leon]

Just to jump in on this LOL. If the headlines say it, always remember the media's motto. Never let the facts get in the way of a sensational story. And then there is always false news.

[Jack]

Wow! A government law that went away... that's amazing in itself...

Don't remember ever seeing that. I know high pressure stuff needs to pass some sort of inspection before being refilled, but never knew it once existed for standard air compressors.

[DerbyDad03]

+1

We might as well add "Dumb it down for the general public".

"Exploding air bags" is easy for everyone to understand.

"Air bag inflators that burst under very specific situations" is way too deep for most viewers.

[Jack]

I'll say. Check this out:

[Leon]

Kinda like woodworkers that don't like Gorilla Glue. they automatically think polyurethane. Gorilla has for years made a regular wood glue too, much like Elmers and TiteBond I,II,III.

[Leon]

Ah memories....

Many years ago near Corpus Christi, as teenagers, we would go out to a deserted area along an area known as Oso. We took water filled anti-freeze bottles and shot them at about 100 yards with large caliber rifles.

The bottles held up remarkable well, an entry and exit hole showed up on all. What we did not expect is that only the cap flew off and no damage to the bottles, other than the entry and exit holes.

[OFWW]

You inadvertently brought up a good point there. Rust a common term used by many inappropriately when corrosion was actually meant. For example stainless steel does not "rust". But just try and explain that to some and it goes right over their head.

So "generic terminology" makes for a common ground with those in the know, and those that are lacking. The difficulty lies in those that are lacking claim they know beyond a shadow of a doubt even when facts are shown to them. This seems to be common in misunderstandings.

It relates because neither events can be predetermined as to when they will happen. Sort of like Russian Roulette.

"The government's auto safety agency is now warning 7.8 million car owners that inflator mechanisms in the air bags can rupture, causing metal fragments to fly out when the bags are deployed. The original warning Monday covered 4.7 million vehicles."

"Automakers have been recalling cars to fix the problem for several years, but neither Takata nor NHTSA have identified a firm cause. The agency opened a formal investigation into the problem in June, and agency documents detail a theory that the chemical used to inflate the air bags can be altered by high humidity, making it explode with too much force while deploying."

"Toyota said it's working with Takata to pinpoint the cause of the rupture and to gauge the influence of high absolute humidity, which is a measurement of water vapor in the air.

I posted this C&P for common understanding, not to argue about.

This is my basic understanding of the problem and my Jeep had both air bags recalled.

I apologize to you for my insensitivities of using a generic term, especially one that you said was flawed.

[OFWW]

You mean it isn't? ;)

[Bob La Londe]

The main reason I drain my big compressor is not about tank life. Its so there is less moisture going into my drying system. I need pretty dry air for my CNC machines, so I run a filter drier, refrigeration drier, and another filter drier right at the tank. The second filter drier is to make sure the refrigeration drier is working. Then each machine has a filter drier.

Then I can also use the shop air to paint, airbrush or run fluid beds with no worries about moisture. It does take me several minute to go through my start up and shut down routines each day though.

[John Grossbohlin]

I generally open the valve and leave the compressor running for a bit to blow the moisture out... I have done that with my pancake and always did it with my father's Ingersoll Rand (120 gal tank).

As an aside, when I was a kid (during the not so memorable car era... Pinto/Vega/K-cars LOL) I worked as a clerk in a pretty big auto dealership. A new department supervisor in the used car prep dept. was apparently never told it was his job to drain the tanks on the compressors. They were big industrial compressors... 4 of them as I recall. One morning one of the compressors failed. The story I heard was that water backed up into the pistons... put a huge crimp in operations. Oops!

[Leon]

No, it isn't LOL

[Ed Pawlowski]

Either way, I find their commercials annoying and dumb. Seems like it sells glue though.

[G Ross]

The metal looks thin to me, but I don't see much rust.