Category: Static Elimination

EXAIR Ion Air Gun in Photo Printing Industry

Published on by Jordan T ShouseLeave a comment

In the high-precision world of photo printing, even tiny specks of dust or static can ruin a perfect print. From professional labs to industrial photography printers, quality and consistency are everything. That’s where the EXAIR Ion Air Gun steps in, a tool that’s quietly revolutionizing how photo printers manage static charges, clean surfaces, and ensure flawless prints.

While it might be a “perfect” application for a Super Ion Air Knife, the Ion Air Gun works better if the product is stationary.

The Challenge: Static and Contamination in Photo Printing

Photo printing — whether inkjet, laser, or large-format — is highly sensitive to the environment. Two of the biggest issues that professionals face are:

Static electricity: As paper moves rapidly through printers, it can accumulate static. This attracts dust, causes paper jams, and leads to print defects.


Particulate contamination: Even microscopic dust or fiber can show up as marks, dots, or streaks on glossy prints.

Traditional air blowers or manual wiping often redistribute dust rather than removing it — and they do nothing to neutralize static charge.

The EXAIR Ion Air Gun is engineered to solve both static and contamination problems in one tool. Here’s how it stands out:

Active Static Neutralization

The gun emits a stream of positive and negative ions that neutralizes static charges on surfaces instantly. This helps:

  • Reduce paper jams
  • Prevent dust attraction
  • Improve media handling through print engines

By eliminating static, prints come out cleaner and production runs flow more smoothly.

Ionized Clean Air Blast

Instead of just pushing air around, the ion air gun combines ionization with a strong, focused airflow. This:

  • Removes dust and debris from paper or film
  • Prepares surfaces before printing
  • Cleans out nooks and crannies where particles hide

The result? Cleaner prints with fewer re-runs and less waste.

In the competitive world of photo printing, attention to detail defines success. The EXAIR Ion Air Gun offers a practical, effective solution to two persistent problems — static and contamination. Whether you’re running small-batch professional prints or large industrial photo runs, it can help ensure every print meets the highest standard.

Jordan Shouse, CCASS

Application Engineer / Sales Operations Engineer

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On Demand Ionization with the Gen4 Ion Air Jet

Published on by Al WooffittLeave a comment

Static can be a big issue, whether it is shocking operators, causing jamming of machines, or collection of dirt and debris. This is especially true in the colder months. At EXAIR we have a wide range of Static Eliminators that can handle just about every static problem. However, sometimes the issue can be concentrated in smaller areas, and the solution needs to be more precise. For these types of situations, our Gen4 Ion Air Jet is perfect.

The Gen4 Ion Air Jet is a combination of our High Velocity Air Jet, and our Gen4 Ionizing Point. The Air Jet generates a high-speed air stream using a specially designed Coanda profile. This design creates a low pressure at the Air Jet’s entrance, allowing it to pull in surrounding air at a ratio of 5:1. As a result, the Air Jet operates efficiently, producing more ambient air in its output than compressed air. Additionally, thanks to the engineered design, they produce a smooth laminar air stream that can treat a surface up to 15 feet away.

Due to the laminar nature of the airflow, the ions generated by the Ionizing Point will be carried by the air stream all the way to the targeted area. When operated at a pressure of 80psig, the Ion Air Jet is capable of dissipating a 5kV charge in under 0.18 seconds. Although for more sensitive applications, the pressure can be regulated down to adjust the airflow from a blast to a breeze.

Ion Air Jet

In addition to being efficient in its use of compressed air, the Ion Air Jet boasts several other advantages. Due to the engineered design of the High Velocity Air Jet, and the laminar airflow produced, the Ion Air Jet is very quiet compared to other compressed air blow off options. At 82dBA (when operated at 80psig), the Ion Air Jet is well below OSHA’s allowable noise level. It also meets OSHA’s dead-end pressure requirements.

The Ionizing Point used in the Ion Air Jet takes advantage of a shockless design, so it is safe to handle while in operation. As it utilizes the corona discharge method, there are no radioactive materials needed to produce the static neutralizing ions.

In addition to our standard Ion Air Jet Kits, we also have systems that combine our Ion Air Jet with our Stay Set Hoses, making hands-free operation even easier. Whether you are looking for a new solution, or looking to upgrade an existing process, give us a call and see if our efficient, low-cost Ion Air Jets can help solve your static issues.

Al Wooffitt
Application Engineer

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Getting Prepared for Static

Published on by Al WooffittLeave a comment

Here at EXAIR we are finally starting to experience cooler weather. Over the coming weeks we will start to see the temperature steadily drop (with the occasional spike here and there just to make things difficult!). One thing that inevitably comes with cooler weather is static issues. Before we get to that point, it is always good to review what options we have to remove static. There are two primary ways to eliminate it — Active Static Elimination, and Passive Static Elimination. But which method is better? To answer this we need to know the difference between them:

Passive Static Elimination, as the name implies, gets rid of static passively. Typically, this solution comes in the form of a bare wire or some conductive material like copper, which helps create a path for the static charge to disperse. The benefit of this method is that once it’s set up, you can pretty much forget about it (well, sort of — we’ll touch on that later).

Passive Static Eliminating Bar

This kind of static elimination doesn’t require any power and has virtually no operating costs. However, the downside is that the conductive material has to maintain contact, often dragging along surfaces. This can cause the eliminators to wear out over time, meaning they will eventually need replacing (so you can’t completely forget about it). If your product is fragile, the contact from the eliminator might harm the surface. Plus, passive eliminators tend to gather dust and debris, which could end up on your product. Lastly, a passive eliminator struggles to maintain contact with objects of different shapes and complexities.

Active Static Elimination, like the Static Eliminators Product Line from EXAIR, provides several methods to effectively remove static from a surface without any physical contact with the product. This immediately addresses the drawbacks of the previously mentioned passive eliminators.

Gen4 Static Eliminators

If your product has an intricate design, the ionized airflow from many of our Gen4 products can be aimed to reach every part of it. Since there’s no direct contact, Active Static Elimination won’t harm your product’s surface. Plus, you won’t have to worry about contaminating the product because of this non-contact approach. In fact, our line of Static Eliminators that operate on compressed air is excellent at clearing away dust and debris from surfaces.

Lastly, our Active Static Elimination products are built to last and won’t degrade over time like Passive solutions do.

On top of these great benefits, EXAIR will honor a 30 day guarantee to test our products in your facility.  As well as honor a 5 year built to last warranty on compressed air products and a 1 year warranty on any electrical component.

If you have an issue with static that you would like to discuss, please give us a call.

Al Wooffitt
Application Engineer

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Banner Image by Ben Kerckx from Pixabay

The 30-Day Guarantee Gives You Confidence.

Published on by Al WooffittLeave a comment

When you make a purchase, you want to have confidence that the solution that you’ve spent money on is going to work. With many of the applications that we discuss with customers, the solutions are tried and tested. If your electrical panel is getting too hot, then an EXAIR Cabinet Cooler is exactly what you need. If there’s static on your assembly line, a Gen4 Static Elimination product is the way to go. And if you need to blow off excess water from an extruded pipe, a Super Air Wipe is the perfect fix.

There are plenty of situations where the solution isn’t clear-cut. We believe our products can make a difference, but with so many variables, it’s impossible to just plug everything into a formula and predict the exact outcome. The only way to know for sure is to test. That’s where EXAIR’s 30-day unconditional guarantee comes into play. Every one of our cataloged products is covered by this guarantee. Once you buy one of these items, you have a month to really test it out; change the angle, tweak the operating pressure, or swap out shims. If you manage to find the right setup to fix your issue, awesome! If not, we’ll gladly take it back and give you a full refund! The only thing you need to cover is the shipping to return it to us.

A great example of where testing is key is our Line Vacs. There are several factors to consider: the bulk density of the material, its size, whether it’s abrasive, the desired conveyance rate, and the distance for conveyance – both vertical and horizontal. By using the data we’ve gathered from our controlled in-house tests, we’re going to be able to give you a solid recommendation on which model will suit you best. However, to truly understand how our Line Vac will perform with your specific material and operational conditions, it needs to be put through its paces at your facility. When you buy from us, you get 30 days to try it out risk-free.

At EXAIR, we want to ensure you are getting the best possible solution. Our 30-day unconditional guarantee is one way that we make that a reality. If you would like to discuss how our products can help with your application, give us a call!

Al Wooffitt
Application Engineer

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Twitter: @EXAIR_AW

Banner Image by Bruno from Pixabay