Tag: air gun selection

Safety Air Guns: Chip Shields, Extensions, and More

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Over the last several weeks, you may have read blog posts regarding the EXAIR Safety Air Guns.  You can find the blogs here, here and here. We are also in the midst of a Safety Air Gun Promotion, please click HERE for more details on how you can get a free 1″ Flat Super Air Nozzle. Today, I want to review a few available options for the Safety Air Guns.

Protect Workers From Flying Debris! – Chip Shields are durable polycarbonate shields that protect the operator from flying debris often seen when blowing off chips from machined parts. They are also useful to prevent coolant from splashing back, creating a mess during drying processes.

Chip Shields
Chip Shields

The Chip Shields are available for EXAIR’s VariBlast, Soft Grip, and Heavy Duty Safety Air Guns. The Chip Shield can be used on Safety Air Guns with or without an aluminum extension. They may be purchased as part of a new air gun system, or retrofitted as a Chip Shield Kit.  Consult an Application Engineer for selection assistance.

 

If you have a blow-off process where the air is to be directed at a distance away from the operator, or into a hard to reach location an extension is the solution. Available in lengths from 6″ (152mm) to 72″ (1829mm), with sizes as shown below, a length to meet most any requirement can be found. To add an extension to an air gun, simply add -xx to the current part number.

extensions
Aluminum Extensions, Available in Sizes of 6″ (152mm) up to 72″ (1829mm)
1210-6-CS
Model 1210-6-CS, a model 1210 Soft Grip Safety Air Gun, with 6″ Extension and Chip Shield

And, if you need a 12′ coiled air hose, to use with your Safety Air Gun, we have them available and in stock. Available with 1/8 NPT, 1/4 NPT or 3/8 NPT male end swivel connections. Avoid tangled and messy air lines and keep things neat!

Coiled Hose
Coiled Hose, 12′ Long, With 1/8 NPT, 1/4 NPT or 3/8 NPT Male Swivel Connections

To discuss your application and how an EXAIR Intelligent Compressed Air Product can improve your process, feel free to contact EXAIR, myself, or one of our other Application Engineers. We can help you determine the best solution!

Brian Bergmann
Application Engineer

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Safety Air Guns – Using Engineered Air Nozzles For High Performance

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Inexpensive air guns can be picked up just about anywhere, and you generally get what you pay for. Most will be very noisy and waste lots of compressed air.  And many will be unsafe, violating two of OSHA’s standards put in place to protect worker safety. The first is Standard 29 CFR 1910.95(a) which sets limits to the maximum noise exposure, and the second is Standard 29 CFR 1910.242(b) which says that the nozzle cannot be dead-ended, or exceed a 30 PSIG pressure limit.

These guns may seem like a perfect fit for a handheld blowoff application. The truth is, the cost saved up front will easily be paid throughout the cost of ownership.  This is due to the lack of an engineered nozzle which meets and exceeds the OSHA standards mentioned above.   The “cheap” guns often have a cross drilled hole to meet or exceed the OSHA standard for dead-end pressure. While this may be true, it causes a large wind sheer which escalates noise levels to well over the allowable noise level exposure set by OSHA.  These tips sometimes offer large force outputs because they are equivalent to an open pipe.  We have publicized numerous times about how an open pipe blow off does not permit pressure to be utilized all the way to the point of blowoff, and is also a waste of energy.

In order to determine how much compressed air your current blow guns utilize, the level of noise they product, and the sound level they produce, consider taking advantage of the EXAIR Efficiency Lab.  The Efficiency Lab is a free service that you can read more about here.

An EXAIR Safety Air Gun is engineered and designed to comply both of the OSHA standards mentioned above, ensuring safe operation for company personnel.  On top of the safety designed into the guns, we also ensure all of our guns are efficient by offering only engineered nozzles on them.

EXAIR offers (4) types of Safety Air Guns – the VariBlast, the Soft Grip, the Heavy Duty, and the Super Blast.  Each type of Safety Air Gun is offered with a plethora of nozzles, as well as varying length extensions, with or without the Chip Shield.

Safety Air Guns
The VariBlast, Soft Grip and Heavy Duty Style of Pistol Grip Safety Air Guns
Super Blast
The Super Blast Style of Safety Air Gun

 

We invite you to try out an EXAIR Safety Air Gun, and get the free 1″ Wide Flat Super Air Nozzle as a bonus. Click here for more details about this special promotional offer.

To discuss your application and how an EXAIR Intelligent Compressed Air Product can improve your process, feel free to contact EXAIR, myself, or one of our other Application Engineers. We can help you determine the best solution!

Brian Bergmann
Application Engineer

Send me an email
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Twitter: @EXAIR_BB

Safety Air Guns – True Cost of Ownership

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There are many inexpensive, cheaply made air guns out on the market.  If evaluated solely on purchase price, the decision of what air gun to buy seems obvious.  Only when you consider all the cost of ownership and operation, does the best direction become apparent.

A popular thumb lever operated air gun, readily available online has a base purchase price of $6.11.  The List price of the EXAIR model 1210 Soft Grip Safety Air Gun is $81.00. Wow- big difference you think, I am surely not going to spend that kind of money on a simple air gun.  Let’s take a look of the true cost of ownership for each of the guns.

IMG_6967
Thumb Operated Air Gun
1210
EXAIR Model 1210 Soft Grip Safety Air Gun

We tested both the model 1210 and the other gun utilizing our Efficiency Lab service. We tested at 80 PSIG of supply pressure and measured and recorded air consumption, force and sound levels. Results of this testing is shown below.

Capture

From the test data, the other gun is able to provide 9% more force, but at a cost of 35% greater compressed air consumption, 5.64 SCFM more, along with an 18 dBA sound level increase (a sound level where hearing protection is needed, an additional cost to be incurred.)

If we examine the compressed air consumption, we can calculate the yearly compressed air usage, considering 4 hour per day of operation, 5 days per week, for 50 weeks out of the year.

Capture

 

A general rule of thumb for industry is that 1000 SCF of compressed air costs $0.25 to produce.Capture

As you can see, after 1 year of operation the Soft Grip Safety Air Gun has already paid for itself with compressed air savings, not to mention significantly reduced sound levels, well within the OSHA Standard 29 CFR – 1910(a) for Maximum Allowable Noise Exposure. To read more about the OSHA Standard, see this EXAIR blog. An EXAIR Safety Air Gun will continue to bring you benefits after this ROI period, and includes many other feature you do not receive with the cheap air gun.

You get the EXAIR 5 Year Built to Last Warranty which covers defects in workmanship and materials.  EXAIR’s safety air guns lead the way in standards and certification – we meet or exceed relevant OSHA standards, carry the CE mark and utilize a conflict mineral free supply chain.  We offer (5) types of Safety Air Guns, all offering ergonomic, comfortable, lightweight operation.

Safety Air Guns are also available with optional Chip Shields and Extensions (in lengths of 6″ to 6′) along with many different nozzle sizes (2.5 SCFM to 460 SCFM of air flow) and a variety of materials (Zinc Aluminum alloy, Stainless Steel, brass and PEEK plastic) to allow the configuration of the best air gun for your application.  EXAIR Safety Air Guns are great for use in applications ranging from light dust removal from delicate circuit boards to large scale, long distance, wide area blow off, cooling and drying applications and everything in between.

Be sure to check out the new VariBlast Compact Safety Air Gun for variable flow with the squeeze of the trigger!

If you have questions regarding the Safety Air Guns, or would like to talk about any EXAIR Intelligent Compressed Air® Product, feel free to contact EXAIR and myself or one of our Application Engineers can help you determine the best solution.

Brian Bergmann
Application Engineer

Send me an email
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Twitter: @EXAIR_BB

Engineered Air Nozzles Reduce Noise Levels and Outlet Pressure, Meeting OSHA Requirements

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“My operators are complaining that our air guns are too loud, how can you help me?” – is a very common inquiry we receive here at EXAIR on almost a daily basis. Many open end blowoffs or air guns fitted with nozzles that have cross drilled relief holes create high pitch wind shear, resulting in excessive noise levels, sometimes exceeding 100+ dBA. This not only is a safety concern but also an OSHA violation.

Variety of Air Nozzles that produce dangerously loud noise levels

Loud noises and the length of exposure time can lead to significant health concerns such as long term hearing loss, increased stress levels and potential injury due to lack of concentration. The Occupation Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) introduced Standard 29 CFR 1910.95(a) as a way to protect workers from job related injuries associated to potentially dangerous sound levels. Per the Standard, at 90 dBA an operator is limited to a maximum of 8 hours of constant exposure. As noise levels increase, the allowable exposure time decreases, in some cases slowing production, costing a company on their bottom line.

 

EXAIR’s Air Nozzles are engineered so they entrain surrounding air across the profile of the nozzle, which produces a smoother airflow, ultimately reducing wind shear, resulting in much lower sound levels, meeting the OSHA Standard.

Illustration showing the air travel of our Super Air Nozzles

 

In addition, our Air Nozzles also meet the OSHA Standard 1910.242(b) for 30 PSI dead end pressure. All of our engineered Air Nozzles provide a relief or a safe path for the air to exit if the nozzle were to be blocked or pressed against an operator’s body so the exiting air pressure will never reach 30 PSIG.

All of EXAIR’s Air Nozzles are available with standard NPT threads to easily adapt to existing air guns. We also off our full line of Safety Air Guns which are fitted with our engineered nozzles, providing an “off-the-shelf” OSHA compliant solution. For help selecting the best product to replace your existing device or if you have a new application you would like to discuss, give us a call at 800-903-9247.

Justin Nicholl
Application Engineer
justinicholl@exair.com
@EXAIR_JN