Air Compressor Air Drier on the Cheap

How many of us have a shop/garage air compressor and after using it for a bit it turns into more of a water pump than air pump? This is not good for our air tools or painting or sand blasting so what do you do? What you need to do is cool the air to get the water to “drop out” of it before you use it. This can be done in many ways.

You could buy a refrigerated type drier but I find you have to dig deep in the pocket for them and if you use a lot of CFM dig even deeper.
Internet I found something (frananizer?) that takes since & math to make and even then it may not work as it should.
Some have used long plain metal pipe mounted to the wall on an angle for the water to drain to 1 end. I could not do that in my first small garage.
I also found you could coil hose or tubing in a bucket with ice water but you have to then figure out how to drain the water out of the coil and make sure the water/ice stayed cold.

Along that same line of coil I have seen people using car AC condensers with good luck. I sort of went in that direction and used fin tubing used in base board heating and some solder fittings to make my “loop”. I first made this for a very small 1 car garage to fit on the side of a shelving unit next to the compressor and why it is the size it is.
I was able to pick up the fin tubing from a scrap metal yard and some of it was brand new. The used tubing looked newish and clean inside.
Fin tubing
[img]http://cars.grantskingdom.com/var/resizes/Compressor-%26-Drier/Air%20Drier%20001.jpg[/img]

Unit soldered together
[img]http://cars.grantskingdom.com/var/resizes/Compressor-%26-Drier/Air%20Drier%20003.jpg[/img]

Mounted to shelf
[img]http://cars.grantskingdom.com/var/resizes/Compressor-%26-Drier/Air%20Drier%20005.jpg?m=1368922445[/img]

I did find after using it for a long time on a hot humid day in that small garage I had water coming out of the sander I was using. I was using it just outside the garage door, when I went back to check on the drier I could not believe how hot it was back there, no air flow. I set up 2 box fans blowing on the fin tubes and opened a little window and the drier started working as it should.

When I moved I took the compressor & drier with me for my new garage, this time mounting it to the wall. If need be I can use box fans blowing on it but so far have not needed to.
[img]http://cars.grantskingdom.com/var/resizes/Compressor-%26-Drier/Compressor%20Dryer%20001.jpg[/img]


What is a garage without air hose drops? I have 5 drops-1 in each bay (2), 1 on each side of bays (2) and 1 up front between the 2 bays. Each drop has a drip leg for draining water if it ever gets that far.
[img]http://cars.grantskingdom.com/var/resizes/Compressor-%26-Drier/Air%20Supply%20kits%20001.jpg[/img]


 [img]http://cars.grantskingdom.com/var/resizes/Compressor-%26-Drier/Compressor%20Piping%20Drop%20%20001a.jpg[/img]

[img]http://cars.grantskingdom.com/var/resizes/Compressor-%26-Drier/Compressor%20Piping%20Drop%20%20002.jpg[/img]

So far I am very happy with the system and how it works. I get most of the water out of the tank as it off longer than on and only had a little water from the drier, none from any of the drop drip legs.

I should also point out some people have put the “coil” between the compressor pump and the tank to pull most of the water out then as that is where the air is the hottest.
Dave ----

darn the img tag does not work?

Dave - As admin I can't edit your post, so can't help you.  But, I can say that you have to use the Insert Image button as that uploads a file to Nabble, so you can't just use image tags.

Anyway, I tried a dessicant dryer system for several years, but it was a pain.  The pellets were getting wet and I had to frequently heat them at up to 300 degrees to drive off the moisture.  And it was expensive as it was $200 initially and I had to put another $100 in it two different times.  In the end I did what I should have done from the outset, and bought a Harbor Freight refrigerated dryer.  Yes, it was $400, but it just sits there and works.  No fuss, no muss, just dry air.

Gary, I worked on it last night and got the picture to show up.
It was not as bad as I thought it would be, I just had to copy the link and then put it in the "insert image" line.
I also found there was no cheating trying to copy the "nib" tag and add the needed image information.
We (me) are good now lol.

The dessicant dryer system is good as a final filter for water when painting and guy use it just for that and by pass it all the other times.
I would say most people could just use something like I made or a just a long metal pipe, any thing that can take the heat out of the air.
Then have some way to drain the water out. Could have a 2nd tank that would trap the water and let the air pass thru.
Dave ----

Dave - Glad you got it worked out.  I, too, am learning the ins and outs of Nabble's photo posting.  What seems to work best for me is to add width="100%" to the code after Nabble drops it in.  That way the pic seems to be full width on whatever screen the viewer is using.  I hope.

On the drops and the line itself for that matter, I ran copper tubing at a slope down away from the compressor, with a drip leg and valve at the far end.  And each "drop" goes up for 6" before going down.  That way there's essentially no way to get water into the drop, and no need for a drip leg on them.  I've never had water in the system and have never even gotten water out the drip leg at the far end.

"In the end I did what I should have done from the outset, and bought a Harbor Freight refrigerated dryer.  Yes, it was $400, but it just sits there and works.  No fuss, no muss, just dry air. - Gary Lewis"

Ooooooo......ahhhhhhh.........Now that is on the list Gary.