I have a new 10 gallon pressure pot blaster....problem is I am running through a ton of media...in like 15 minutes the tank is empty. I notice at times it seems the blast pulsates softer and then harder. I am running a 55 gallon tank around 13 scfm 125 psi pressure. I also am going through ceramic tips like butter and I am blasting with a fine sand. What's the deal? I have tried different nozzles, smaller holes, bigger holes, etc, but nothing seems to help. I do have the mixing valve wide open.....am I not supposed to? Should I only open the mixing valve slightly? It's gotta be something I am doing wrong. Help?

 

I just bought a sandblaster and the instructions said to start with the mixing valve half open. I havn't used it much but that might help.

 

Thanks...that dawned on me when I was sitting here typing this...I will try that, but if anyone else wants to chime in please do so...my unit was a floor model and had no instructions. I have a small handheld siphon feed that does good on small parts, but I needed this unit for larger parts. I have to get a few new nozzles and then I will cut the mixing valve back to like 1/4 to a half turn and start from there.

 

The best way I have found is to completely close the mixing valve and pull the triger. When the air is flowing start openning the mix valve until it starts cutting good.

 

78250Crew is correct. Regulate with the valve. I've found that I usually have to play with it a bit to get the results I want and as I run low on sand, have to open it a bit more. I've used the medium tip for everything I've done so far.

Also, be sure to put a water catch between the tank & hose. It will save you a ton of time, trust me. I had sooooo many clogging problems until we put the catch on.

Good luck and have fun, if that's at all possible with blasting. (And wear your masks.)

 

water, water, water.
really I don't know if that is it, but when my big unit (IR John Deere diesel 185) pulsates, it is because it is wetting the media. I use glass beads, and wet beads are junk.
Make sure your dryer / seperator is working, and you should have better results.

 

You can find manuals for sandblasters at Harbour Freight's web site. (I also got a sandblaster without a manual... and also without the plastic bowl for the air filter. ...something I didn't spot until I hooked up the air.)

 

I am actually using two water traps...I think my air is pretty dry. I have one trap mounted on the wall that my compressor always runs too...and then there is one mounted on the pressure blaster. I have noticed a problem with clogging, I think the media is dry. I have to pick up some more media and nozzles and I will try regulating the mixing valve...I'm sure that was my problem. How long should you be able to blast with a 10 gallon tank full? I had heard somewhere around an hour or so? I was getting like 15 minutes on the first couple of tanks, but again my valve was wide open.

 

hey fellas,
i just bought a 10 gallon blaster today from tsc. and my air is always wet and i just tryed it and it was pulsing. and there is this little plastic or glass bowl on the tank. is that a water/ air seperator or what ever?
thanks
Mitch

 

The glass bowl is most likely a water trap and you should empty the water from it every time you use your blaster and more often if you blast for extended lengths of time. Water is always an issue with compressed air, but there are ways to minimize the amount of water in your air lines.

• long runs of metal piping, preferrably 3/4" black pipe with U-traps that can be drained plumbed into the piping. The heavy metal pipe helps to cool the air coming from the compressor and causes the moisture to condensate, so it can be removed from the air supply.
• Place your water separators down stream from your compressor to remove the water condensate. Add additional water separators at the point of use as well.
• If your compressor is too small (Not enough CFM) and has to run all the time. it will generate a lot more heat. More heat equates to more water condensate in your lines. Most home air compressors were not designed for continuous use (100% duty cycle) and will die an early death if operated like this for extended lengths of time. If the money is available buy a compressor that can deliver twice the required CFM of your most demanding air tool.
• There are refrigerated and desicant style water eliminating devices you can purchase to totally remove the water from your air supply, but they are not cheap. The cheapest refrigerated unit I've seen costs ~ $300.
• I just heard the other day about a cheapier way to remove water from your air supply. Plumb your air system through an automotive A/C condensor and use a fan to blow accross the condensator. Then you can rermove the condensate with your water separators.

 

Tried it again yesterday opening the mixing valve until is was cutting good and left there. Stayed on the trigger and had no pulsing and sand usage was much better. The glass bowl is the water trap and should be emptied, although some automatically discharge the water when pressure is off. I think the pulsing was coming through having too much sand coming through the lines, not moisture, at least with mine, as I have two traps set up in the manner cujo8 recommended.

 

The reason I know so much about the water problem in compressed air lines is that I've been plagued by it for many years. I have been able to reduce it, but I have yet to completely eliminate it. I currently use 1/2" galvanized pipe (didn't know at the time that I should have used black pipe) with the built in U-traps and multiple water separators as I described earlier and when I was pressure blasting my truck frame last summer I still had to drain my water trap from time to time and at the end of the day I had problems blasting because I was not removing the water completely.
My problem was that my current compressor was not adequate for media blasting. I currently have a Porter-Cable 3HP, 60-Gallon, 9.7CFM@90psi vertical compressor and when I am media blasting it runs non-stop as long as I'm blasting (not good for the compressor BTW). The compressor and tank get very hot and this makes the water condensation problem worse.
I recently ordered an Eaton V-twin, 5-Hp, 80-Gallon, 19.5CFM@100psi vertical compressor and I should receive it Monday. I can't wait to blast something with this bad@ss compressor. I was all set to buy an Ingersoll-Rand compressor that had similar specifications until I read the information about the Eaton compressors on their website http://www.eatoncompressor.com/catal...747/172993.htm
I am always skeptical of vendor website product descriptions for obvious reasons. They all say they have the best product since sliced bread!, but the points Eaton makes about their compressors compared to their competitors compressors seem on the money to me. For example, the compressor I am buying produces the same CFM rating as the IR compressor I was looking at, but at half the RPM. Eaton's 99lb 5-Hp motor turns the pump at 1750rpm and IR's 49lb 5-HP motor turns their pump at 3450rpm to deliver the same 19.5 CFM Air Flow. The slower rpm of the Eaton compressor means less heat, quieter operation, and less water condensate. Eaton talks about other differences between Eaton compressors and their competitors compressors on their web site, so if you want to learn more, visit the link I posted above. I will let you folks know how well this Eaton compressor works after I get it installed next week. I am really interested in how well this compressor reduces the water in my air system. I think I will try the automotive A/C condenser trick I mentioned in my last post before I invest in an air dryer. The reason I am so **** about removing water from my air lines is that I plan to start painting some of my project vehicles using HVLP spray guns and you do not want any water in your air lines when you are painting. With the high cost of paint and the many hours invested prepping the vehicle for paint you don't want it all ruined, because you had water in your air system.
I am glad you have improved your sand blasting issues 73FOMO! Sand blasting does a great job cleaning up rusty metal such that it looks like brand new when your done, but if your blasting system is not functioning well, it can take what seems like forever to blast larger parts (like a truck frame for example). I don't even know how many whole days I spent just blasting parts and I know I will cut my blasting time down by 2/3's with my new compressor. Like most of you, I can't work all the time on my automotive projects, so anything that will save me time is a good thing. I often wonder when I finally finish my truck if they will still have any gasoline left, so I can start it up and drive it:-)

 

Just a few tricks that have REALLY helped in this water in line problem here in humid and hot Georgia for me and others untill spending the money on a good system..

#1..run the hose downward directly off the compressor,run it around in circles downward around a tomato cage or anything like that,dont run the hose in a tight formation so the cooler air will cool the hose,put a fan of some sort blowing on it to cool the hot air in the hose,at the end of that hose on the ground(lowest point of that hose) put your water seperator there,the fan will cool the hose and air tremendously thus bringing the water out of the air and laying in hose so the trap can catch it,after that you can run the second hose upwards and back down to the hose that is being connected to your spray gun or blaster or tank
#2 i always have a cheap box fan running on my comressor pump to help keep it cooler than without,this helps save wear and tear on it and also helps keep the air a bit cooler inside the tank but fact is compressed air creates heat so this part for me is to mostly help in prolonging the life of the pump
#3 those little cheap plastic throw away water traps put right before your gun or blaster works well

Ive used these little rigs before i got an AC condensor and it has worked so well if i decide to let it all hooked up and grab a DA sander or inline sander or ratchet..etc,the air is so dry i have to unhook it for the air tools because the air tools are so dry even after oiling that within a short time the air tools run very slow and causing dry seal damage

Another thing i always do,i ONLY use certain hoses for painting and sand blastin and nothing else,that keeps oil and water out of those hoses so no worries of oil setting in there and coming out during painting or blasting

(i know im gonna get blasted here for "rigging" up but it this DOES work untill you can afford a good water and contaminate system)

 

As long as it works for you is all that matters.