Category: exair

Accessories for Your Compressed Air Products

Published on by Al WooffittLeave a comment

Here at EXAIR we are very proud of our Intelligent Compressed Air Products. We have spent a lot of time discussing their many benefits, including their efficiency, the fact that many have no moving parts, little to no maintenance, meeting or exceeding OSHA safety standards for noise or dead end pressure. One thing we don’t talk as much about is the accessories that go along with and complement our products. Several of these accessory items are the reason why our compressed air products can boast about having little to no maintenance, or reduced noise levels. In this blog I want to cover some of these unsung heroes.

From left to right, a few value-added accessories for your Vortex Tube: Hot Muffler, Cold Muffler, Automatic Drain Filter Separator, Oil Removal Filter, and Solenoid Valve/Thermostat Kit.

Some of the most popular accessories we offer are our compressed air Filters and Regulators. We suggest using these with all our products (or even with ones that aren’t ours).

The Filter Separator is designed to remove moisture, dirt, and rust from your compressed air system. The 5-micron filter element ensures that contaminants don’t clog or harm your compressed air equipment.

An Oil Removal Filter (which should always be installed after our Filter Separator) provides even more precise filtration by getting rid of oil and solid particles with a 0.03-micron element.

Our Pressure Regulators let you choose the operating pressure. At EXAIR, we always advise running at the lowest pressure necessary to complete the task. Pressure Regulators help you achieve that, reducing unnecessary air usage and fine-tuning the performance of EXAIR products for your specific application.

We have some accessories designed specifically for certain products. For our Line Vacs, there’s the Line Vac Hose. You can also find Thermostats and Solenoid Valves that work great with our Cabinet Coolers, and if you’re using Vortex Tubes, we suggest checking out our Mufflers.

When it comes to our Air Knives, we offer a variety of fantastic options:

If you’re looking for a simple and dependable way to mount your Air Knife, our Universal Air Knife Mounting System is just what you need.

If your project needs something longer than our stock Air Knives, or if you want to manage different sections of the air flow separately, our Coupling Bracket Kits are ideal.

And if you want to simplify the plumbing for your Air Knife, don’t miss our Air Knife Plumbing Kits. They’re suitable for all Air Knives that are longer than 24 inches.

If you’re looking for plumbing options, we’ve got a range of compressed air hoses and fittings that will simplify things for you.

Our Coiled Hoses work great with our Safety Air Guns, giving you more freedom of movement while you work.

Our Compressed Air Hoses are often used alongside our Industrial Housekeeping products to provide the necessary reach for the drum and dolly.

Finally, if you’re looking for a way to mount or position your Air Nozzles, check out our Magnetic Bases, Stay Set Hoses, and Swivel Fittings that can help create a complete setup.

No matter what your application requires or the product you need, we’ve got a variety of complementary accessory products that will simplify installation and adjustments. If you have any questions about these or any other EXAIR products, don’t hesitate to reach out to us.

Al Wooffitt
Application Engineer

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November’s Press Release: EXAIR Filter Bags Get an Upgrade

Published on by Al WooffittLeave a comment

At EXAIR we are constantly trying to find ways to improve our products or services. One recent improvement we have made is to our filter bags, or more specifically, the material that they are made from.

Our Model 6804 Filter Bag is used with our Chip Vac, and Heavy Duty Dry Vac systems. We have written several blogs about these product lines, but in summary, they are compressed air-operated industrial duty vacuums designed specifically for vacuuming up chips or shavings. Both are powerful options that are perfectly suited for the most demanding industrial environments.

Our Model 6584 Vacuum Bag with shoulder strap is used with ourVac-U-Gun Systems. These systems create a versatile and efficient option for lightweight material transfer and vacuuming. The new filter bag material for both the Chip Vac and Vac-U-Gun can be seen in the video below.

The previous Filter Bag provided all-around performance, but we wanted to do better. Our new Filter Bag is now constructed from a 10oz. Singed Polyester Fabric. This upgrade provides several notable benefits including:

  1. Improved dust capturing performance
  2. Improved dust release — less prone to clogging from dust buildup
  3. More durable fabric — sturdier, less prone to tearing due to regular use
  4. Purpose-built filter material — this fabric is engineered to be used in filtration applications
  5. Particle filtration as small as 30 microns

In addition to these great benefits, the new material will not impact performance; so our Chip Vac and Heavy Duty Dry Vacs are just as powerful, efficient, and quiet!

Al Wooffitt
Application Engineer

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EXAIR’s VariBlast Precision

Published on by Al WooffittLeave a comment

Air Guns are one of the most common and most trusted tools in manufacturing facilities that use compressed air. There are many options out there on the market, so what makes EXAIR’s VariBlast Precision Safety Air Gun a cut above the rest?

As with all of EXAIR‘s Safety Air Guns, the VariBlast Precision takes safety seriously. All models when used with an EXAIR Safety Air Nozzle are in compliance with OSHA standard 1910.242(b). This means that the airflow that exits the nozzle cannot be blocked, and the static pressure will never exceed 30psig, even when supplied with shop pressure.

The other key safety feature is the low noise level. OSHA noise exposure standard, 29 CFR 1910.95(a), states that protection is needed for continuous exposure to noise levels above 90dBA. Our VariBlast Precision options are all below 75dBA (some configurations are as low as 58dBA!). This is well below the minimum allowable level stipulated by OSHA.

Beyond safety, the VariBlast Precision has many other benefits. Not only is it lightweight and durable, being made of a high-impact, glass-reinforced nylon that is resistant to breakage. It is also easy to use with a comfortable, full-finger trigger and a convenient hanger loop built into it. This trigger also allows for variable flow, giving you a range of forces and flows at your fingertips.

The VariBlast Precision comes standard with a 6″ extension.  For greater reach, we also offer a 12″ or a 20″ option. All extensions are made of Type 316 stainless steel, and are compatible with our Atto, Pico, or Nano Super Air Nozzle. These nozzles come in both Type 316 stainless steel (for durability and corrosion resistance), or in PEEK plastic for non-marring applications. They can also be outfitted with an impact resistant polycarbonate Chip Shield.

If you would like to discuss your blowoff application, and see how EXAIR’s VariBlast Precision, or any of our other Safety Air Guns can help you out, give us a call!

Al Wooffitt
Application Engineer

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Super Air Amplifier vs Fan

Published on by Al WooffittLeave a comment

One of the more common applications we work with is cooling. In most instances, the goal is to cool the part as quickly as possible. In order to cool faster, you would think that blowing the coldest air possible would be the best option. Our Vortex Tubes can produce air as cold as -50°F! However, in many instances, more effective cooling will be achieved through larger volumes of air. As long as the ambient air temperature is lower than the target temperature, larger volumes of ambient air will outperform a small volume.

Our Super Air Amplifier is a great option for producing large volumes of laminar (non-turbulent) airflow for minimal compressed air consumption. Using a Coanda profile along with a patented shim, compressed air exits the Amplifier in a manner that generates a low pressure zone, which helps pull in the surrounding ambient air. This creates an amplification ratio of up to 25 times! Due to the laminar output flow having the same speed and direction, it is very effective at removing heat from a target. It also helps keep noise levels down.

The most common, non-compressed air alternative to our Amplifiers is an electric fan. Fans utilize motors and blades to direct air towards their target. When air comes in from behind the fan, the blades push the air forward to the target. This action generates turbulent air flow, as well as a lot of noise. Due to the use of motors, there are parts that can wear out over time, leading to additional maintenance costs over the lifetime of the fan.

Ultimately, when it comes to cooling, what we care about most is how quickly a given solution will get the job done. Is a Super Air Amplifier going to cool faster than a fan? In the video below we put both options to the test. As you will see, the Super Air Amplifier is significantly faster:

If you have a cooling application that you would like to discuss, give us a call!

Al Wooffitt
Application Engineer

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