Compressor tank leak

cjensen · #1 02-13-2006, 02:41 PM

i brought this compressor home yesterday (the borrowed one)

http://www.rivetbangers.com//cgi-php...serialNumber=1

i found out after starting it that it has a pin hole leak in the bottom of one of the tanks. probably corroded inside. is it dangerous to keep using it? ever heard of a tank exploding under pressure?

rv9aviator · #2 02-13-2006, 03:11 PM

Run Far Away!!!!! It can kill you and anyone standing close.

jcoloccia · #3 02-13-2006, 03:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cjensen

i brought this compressor home yesterday (the borrowed one)

http://www.rivetbangers.com//cgi-php...serialNumber=1

i found out after starting it that it has a pin hole leak in the bottom of one of the tanks. probably corroded inside. is it dangerous to keep using it? ever heard of a tank exploding under pressure?

Yeah...tanks can explode. There are a couple of household appliances I don't fiddle with. My furnace is one of them...the other's my compressor.

flyeyes · #4 02-13-2006, 03:33 PM

Quote:

is it dangerous to keep using it? ever heard of a tank exploding under pressure?

YES and YES

This can be a problem with older air tanks, especially if they haven't been drained regularly. The instructions that come with the compressor say to drain it daily, although this is frequently ignored.

The amount of energy stored in a typical compressor tank at 120 psi is very, very dangerous.

I have taken care of patients with blinding and/or disfiguring injuries from failures of air tanks or lines. Another often overlooked hazard is truck tires, which can be lethal if they fail suddenly.

I'm aware of at least one fatality in the NTSB reports caused by a failure of a nosewheel assembly on a Beech Queen Air (shrapnel killed a lineman who was directing the plane into a parking space).

Please be careful--that tank is now junk.

James Freeman

avaviat · #5 02-13-2006, 03:47 PM

If it was mine I'd unbolt the compressor section and mount it to a new tank (or tanks). You can buy air tanks of various sizes from a number of sources, though they tend to be expensive compared to hardware store compressors.

You could also research the pressure ratings of propane tanks to determine for yourself whether they would be safe to use as air tanks.

Once I'd done that, I'd start wondering if the old tanks were really unsafe. I would probably briefly consider hydrostatic testing.... I certainly wouldn't use them as anything but cutting torch practice until/unless I'd tested them.

robertahegy · #6 02-13-2006, 04:29 PM

Extremely DANGEROUS!!!! You do not want to see the devastation a tank like that can do when it catastrophically unravels. Compressed air at 120 psi is much more dangerous than hydraulic pressure at greater psi due to the expansion of the air.

Roberta

cjensen · #7 02-13-2006, 06:11 PM

i talked to my welder today, and he is going to look at it. they'll give it their test to see if it's worth fixing. if they say so, they'll weld the spot. there are no signs of corrosion anywhere else so we'll see what they say tomorrow.

szicree · #8 02-13-2006, 06:48 PM

If there's enough rust in that spot to go clean through, there's got to be some crappy areas elsewhere. I'd save the welder's fee and go looking for a new tank and/or compressor.

compren · #9 02-13-2006, 08:31 PM

An exploded air tank with a similar story...

cjensen · #10 02-13-2006, 08:53 PM

okay...point taken.