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PVC piping for air compressors?

GMCYA

GMCYA

Resident Coonass
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I just picked up a speedaire 5f563 that was no longer being used at our office:D. I have seen mechanics shops use PVC piping ran along the walls with "T"'s and fittings spaced here and there. Is this safe? What amount of pressure is PVC able to safely handle? My plan is to run a 1" feed to my driveway(approx 90') for airing up tires etc. PVC is certainly cheaper than Galv. pipe. Thoughts?
 
Sched 80 Pvc works fine, 175 psi in my shop. Ran 1" with T's as I needed, they make a special mountin clip that is used every 12-16" to prevent stressing the pipe. I bulit mine and let the glue cure for 2 days prior to applying pressure. works great. They also male a geen nylon air line with push fittings.
 
X2^^^^ and I used my the same day I glued it and that was five years ago now with zero problems.

Also alot easier to run and I have multiple fittings and dryers and feed lines. Seperate ones for air tools and spray guns to keep contamination to a minimum when paintimg cars.

BTW that's at 210 psi.
 
the one I saw come apart was probably 5 + yrs old when it did and that was at 175 psi. This was in southern utah and maybe the high temps affected it but even the pipe was starting to get brittle. This was inside a building so no UV.
 
I wouldn't use PVC. It might be OK for a few years, but PVC gets brittle with age and it will eventually blow apart. We had a pipe freeze in our hog barns a few weeks ago as the heater in that hallway went out, and it didn't just crack, it exploded into a billion pieces for about a 7 foot section. When we do our shop air I'm going to use the Garage Pak setup, all aluminum tubing and plastic connections.

Compressed air is nothing to mess with. 9 or 10 years ago I had a compressor blow up on me when the safety valve failed, and if it hadn't been on the other side of the shed door, I might not be here right now. In the long run, what you save now won't pay off.
 
There's as many opinions as there are buttholes out there. I said earlier that I've been told many times over that PVC is wrong for compressed air but, in fact, that's what I have in my shop. The farm sells and it comes out. I wouldn't let the buyer take the risk. I have 2 drops with drains at the end and a coalessing filter at the compressor outlet. Next shop will have galvanized or copper. I do know that any commercial building or farm shop that is subject to an OSHA audit, because there are employees, cannot have PVC air piping.
Oh,... also, I shut off the main valve to the system at all times I'm not using it and crack the drain at the tank every time I open the main valve.
 
We put it in my grandfathers shop 15 years ago now, and it has held up great. I wouldn't hesitate to use PVC if it was mine. Just make sure and use SCH 80 pipe, good primer to clean it up, and a high quality PVC cement with plenty of set-up time.
 
I've done some research and decided not to use the PVC. I do not want a regulator before the piping so all 175 psi will be applied to the piping. It seems that @ 110* PVC loses half of it's pressure capacity. The thermometer in a shop can easily reach 100* on a hot July day and any piping exposed to sunlight I would bet reaches at least 110* or more. One of my friends is a licensed plumber and he advised against it also. He has a pipe rack full of 1" galv iron pipe that was stripped out of an old building of different lengths. He told me to take what I needed along with the threader:).

Pep, I looked into pex also but it is only rated for 160 psi @ 73* and it degrades as the temp rises also.



Nominal Pipe Size

(psi) Maximum Operating Pressure

Schedule 40 Schedule 80
1/2 358 509
3/4 289 413
1 270 378
1 1/4 221 312
1 1/2 198 282
2 166 243
 
galvanized pipe is bad for compressed air as the coating gets older it will flake off and get into the fittings and tools messing them up.......black iron or copper is the preferred pipe to use
 
I figured that black iron would rust from the condensation? Damn...looks like I am going to have to hit him up for some copper. That's gonna cost me at least a fifth or two.
 
GMCYA said:
I figured that black iron would rust from the condensation? Damn...looks like I am going to have to hit him up for some copper. That's gonna cost me at least a fifth or two.
Click to expand...


Not suffering an injury has to be worth that much.....:agreed:

At my last job we had an all copper air system. The system probably had 300 to 400 feet of copper to make the complete system. The thing held up flawlessly for 10 years with around 150+ LBS. on it for ten hours a day five to six days a week..

When/if I ever get around to my own garage it will be copper, no doubt.
 
You have to have a drain for the water, and a dryer wouldn't hurt either. Help keep the inside of your tools clean and shiny too.
 
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