My New House & Workshop

[Robertmangrum.rm]

Our older shop is done in black pipe. The top shop was built about 5 or 6 years ago. They used some aluminum 3/4" pipe (blue like thin rubber coating on it.) With 1/2" drops. They did a 12" extension with below the outlets with a ball valve to drain. We added the water separators in line before the drops because after using an air drill for a few minutes it would start spraying water. Thats after draining every evening and morning. But the aluminum is way easier to use and the plastic pen style fittings make it easier to install as well. I can grab some pictures later when I get to the shop.

 

[sgtsandman]

Our older shop is done in black pipe. The top shop was built about 5 or 6 years ago. They used some aluminum 3/4" pipe (blue like thin rubber coating on it.) With 1/2" drops. They did a 12" extension with below the outlets with a ball valve to drain. We added the water separators in line before the drops because after using an air drill for a few minutes it would start spraying water. Thats after draining every evening and morning. But the aluminum is way easier to use and the plastic pen style fittings make it easier to install as well. I can grab some pictures later when I get to the shop.

I've never seen aluminum used but I can see it. All I've ever seen is black pipe and copper.

 

[Curious Hound]

Mine is aluminum that has plastuc inner and outer coatings.

Here is the drop coming down behind my drill press.

The kit came with these cool wall-mount outlets. I should extend the bottom part to give more volume for condensate. But it works as long as I remember to empty them.

 

[franklin2]

Georgia is frequently humid, so when I ran my PVC airlines around the shop, I have a little tiny bit of fall on all the horizontal runs, and I put a T on the bottom of all the turns instead of an elbow.

On the leg that points down, I just put a cap over it. I drilled the caps and put a tire valve in, so I can bleed all those spots quickly.

Just a thought

If you want to make your install safer, cover your lines over with something. If it decides to let go, say you accidentally drop a piece of metal against it, it will shatter and sharp pieces go flying everywhere. If you can cover it with something, even a screen of some sort, it helps prevent the flying pieces of plastic.

Sorry to say, just like most codes, this code came about because of a bad event that happened somewhere.

 

[Rick W]

I’m not challenging anything or anyone here. I personally also think the lined and coated Aluminum is probably the best choice. I’ve used it in industrial applications many times. But I’ve also used PVC, and sometimes iron.

Zillion years ago at Frito Lay, they used black iron, but that was because there was a lot of commotion around a lot of the utilities. You could also weld a coupling on it while it was hot, and then drill through the coupling and screwed in a valve for a new drop, without shutting down the air system. I don’t know how safe that was, but they did it all the time.

The PVC is like any other material or any other thing you work with. You have to select the correct grade, and you have to install it properly. The biggest mistake that has led to disasters is using a low schedule pipe, like a schedule 10, instead of schedule 40, which is easy to over-pressurize. Or it may be at a location where it’s easy to damage. The other big problem is people don’t clean it and install it correctly. You have to follow the instructions on the solvent cleaner, which actually isn’t the cleaner, it softens the pipe microscopically so when you put on the glue, it gets a better deeper bond.

Then, like concrete, there’s a waiting period before you stress it. Concrete sets to 80 or 90% in a couple days, but actually doesn’t reach a full cure for 27 days, assuming a “standard” mix. To put PVC under cold pressure, I believe the waiting period is 2 1/2 or 3 days but I’d have to look it up.

Any critical or suspect pressure system should also have a blow disc or a relief valve in addition to the relief valve on the air compressor. They’re cheap.

Probably a couple other specs that I’m not remembering, but again, like anything, you have to use it properly. And of course it’s very budget friendly.

 

[Robertmangrum.rm]

Mine is aluminum that has plastuc inner and outer coatings.

Here is the drop coming down behind my drill press.
View attachment 138113

The kit came with these cool wall-mount outlets. I should extend the bottom part to give more volume for condensate. But it works as long as I remember to empty them.View attachment 138114

That's the same stuff we have at the shop.

 

[franklin2]

As far as PVC in a air system, just don't use it. Can you use it? Yes. Will it hold up? Probably for years and years. But that one time when something bad happens, it is really bad. You might have PVC shard stuck in your head.

 

[scotts90ranger]

Yeah, that blue stuff isn't really that bad to buy, I bought two kits for my shop just to have the parts which makes it enough to do a full circle around the top and have a bunch of drops... Hopefully this year I'll get to plumbing and powering my new to me good compressor to get the smaller 30 gallon out of the shop... that one is treating me well but having the space (new one is in the shed 20' away from the shop) would be nice.

 

[Shran]

Where do you guys get the blue air line at?

I need to redo mine in the worst way. Right now I have a 50' rubber air hose attached to the ceiling with pipe clamps and about 10' of it is rolled up next to the compressor. It was supposed to be a temporary deal that I didn't get back to. I would really like another hose reel on the back wall so it would be a great time to just redo it all the right way.

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

Where do you guys get the blue air line at?

I need to redo mine in the worst way. Right now I have a 50' rubber air hose attached to the ceiling with pipe clamps and about 10' of it is rolled up next to the compressor. It was supposed to be a temporary deal that I didn't get back to. I would really like another hose reel on the back wall so it would be a great time to just redo it all the right way.

I was just going to do hose for mine lol.

I am tired of stringing a hose from the back of my garage to the front every time I need to air up a tire.

 

[JohnnyO]

As far as PVC in an air system, just don't use it. Can you use it? Yes. Will it hold up? Probably for years and years. But that one time when something bad happens, it is really bad. You might have PVC shard stuck in your head.

You’ll shoot your eye out.

 

[Curious Hound]

Where do you guys get the blue air line at?

I use the Rapid Aire stuff from Northern. There are other, less expensive brands. But I wasn’t entirely sure about quality.

 

[scotts90ranger]

I got mine on Amazon, the one Eric posted with the threaded couplers instead of shark bite type like I got look better, haven't put mine together yet, it's just up in the loft right now...