OT - the quest for dry air...
 

Having recently spent too many hours trying to soda blast with what I thought was reasonably dry compressed air, turns out it was not dry enough. So research got me to the piping arrangement below and a HF refrigerated dry air cooler. Installation done and will try out the soda blaster tomorrow to see if the frustrations are gone!!

Attachment 218089

I spose the fridge has some coils the air passes over which condense the water? Interesting. I can imagine the soda would pick up any moisture in the air.

Assume what you added was just the leg coming off the right hand drop going through the filter and regulator then to the cooler, etc, yes? What is the orange unit to the right? This is something I'll face too when I'm ready to get serious with the soda blaster. Stu

Betiful set up

I installed the pre dryer pipe work as extra insurance to be sure the refrigerant cooler would do a good job, belts and braces as we say in the UK. The orange thing to the right is a final filter before I use the air for blasting or spraying. I'll add another leg to include a lubricator for the air tools when I get time.

My old boss when I worked at a welding and powder coat place used old refrigerators as dryers. He would take an old freon can and weld a pipe fitting on the top and side. He would then run several loops of soft copper pipe horizontally in the fridge and connect it with the top of the freon can. Another fitting welded on the can exited the air. two holes drilled into the side of the fridge to run the air supply in and out and he had a functioning air dryer. He said he never paid more than $20 for all the parts. The one shelf left in the fridge would keep beverages cold too, unless you were working the air a lot.

what was the purpose of the freon can, is that where he drained the water out?

I would be hesitant to run an auto oiler in case you wanted to paint something.

The "pre-cooler" piping should be horizontal, so that condensate is able to continuously flow towards the drip legs. On a humid day, you could get slugs of condensate if you don't keep after the drains.

I like your “pipe air dyer” before the frige dryer.

I kind of did the same thing but no wall room for just piping. Mine was made out of fin tube baseboard to fit on the side of a shelving unit in my first vary small garage. I would use 2 box fans on the shelfs to blow air across the dryer as there was little air flow in the back of the garage and the compressor was next to the unit so it got hot back there also.

I now have a much larger garage and have the unit mounted to the wall. I can still use box fans to blow air across it but so far have not needed to. Then again have not used it much in summer in the new garage as it gets too hot to work inthere.
http://cars.grantskingdom.com/var/re...rier%20003.jpg
http://cars.grantskingdom.com/var/re...ping%20001.jpg
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My fin tube pipe dryer has 2 drip legs and I pull the air off the side about half way up the last leg. The air supply around the garage is a full loop with 5 air hose drops. Each drop also has a drip leg if water ever makes it that far. Come time to do a full paint job I will plug in a final filter / dryer at 1 of thehose drops.

My compressor max psi is 175 and what the dryer is as the regulator is after the dryer. IIRC the fin piping is ¾” copper. The blue piping is 3/4'” and is a kit, took 2 kits and a few extra fittings to pipe my big garage.
http://cars.grantskingdom.com/var/re...Kits%20003.jpg

I have also seen posted of using a 5 gal bucket of ice water and either hose or copper coiled inside it. It then goes to a drip leg type thing to drain water before it goes to what you need it for. I have not used this so don’t know how well it works but if you can cool the air you will condense the water out.
Dave----

Nice Dave, like it!!

Nice setup. I remember when I was in high school back East and working in a body shop there...water in the air lines was always a PITA. Living in SoCal now and water is no longer an issue but I still make all the preparations in the lines to keep it that way.

How the refrigerated air dryers work: