Tag: compressor maintenance

Why Engineered Air Nozzles Outperform Open Pipes (And Cut Air Use by Up to 70%)

Published on by Jordan T ShouseLeave a comment

Compressed air is one of the most expensive utilities in any manufacturing facility—yet it’s often treated as “free.” One of the biggest contributors to wasted compressed air is the continued use of open pipes, drilled pipes, or homemade blowoffs for cleaning, drying, and cooling applications.

While these methods may seem simple and inexpensive, they are inefficient, unsafe, noisy, and costly over time. EXAIR Engineered Air Nozzles are designed to solve these exact problems. Often reducing compressed air consumption by up to 70% while improving performance.

Open pipes release compressed air directly to atmosphere with no control, no amplification, and no optimization. This creates several major issues:

Excessive Air Consumption

An open 1/4″ pipe at 80 PSIG can consume 25+ SCFM continuously. Multiply that across shifts, days, and multiple stations, and the cost quickly adds up.

Poor Performance

Open pipes create turbulent airflow that dissipates rapidly, requiring higher pressure and more air to achieve acceptable results.

High Noise Levels

Uncontrolled air release produces noise levels that can exceed OSHA limits, creating safety and compliance concerns.

Safety Risks

Open pipes can generate dangerous dead-end pressures and flying debris, posing serious injury risks to operators. Creating real situations where

What Makes EXAIR Engineered Air Nozzles Different?

EXAIR Engineered Air Nozzles are precision-designed to maximize force while minimizing air consumption. Instead of wasting compressed air, they use advanced airflow geometry to do more with less.

Air Amplification

EXAIR nozzles use the Coandă effect to entrain surrounding ambient air. For every unit of compressed air used, multiple units of free air are pulled into the flow—creating higher output force without increased air usage.

Optimized Flow Patterns

Rather than chaotic turbulence, engineered nozzles produce laminar, focused airflow that delivers better cleaning, drying, and cooling results at lower pressure.

Significant Air Savings

It’s common to see 30–70% reductions in air consumption when replacing open pipes with EXAIR air nozzles—often with improved performance.

Eleminate Safety Risks

Air nozzles and jets are designed to operate well above 30 PSIG while creating dead end pressures well below the OSHA limits. Giving you better performance safley.

EXAIR Model 1100 Super Air Nozzle Replaces Open Copper Pipe Blow Off

Replacing open pipes with EXAIR Engineered Air Nozzles is one of the simplest and most cost-effective improvements you can make to a compressed air system.

If you’re serious about:

  • Reducing energy costs
  • Improving safety
  • Lowering noise levels
  • Getting more from your compressed air

…it’s time to stop blowing money into the air.

EXAIR Engineered Air Nozzles prove that better design beats brute force—every time.

Jordan Shouse, CCASS

Application Engineer / Sales Operations Engineer

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Maintaining Your Compressed Air System

Published on by Jordan T ShouseLeave a comment

A poorly maintained compressed air system wastes energy, increases operational costs, and risks unexpected failures. Common issues include leaks, pressure loss, contamination (like moisture or oil). Studies suggest that up to 30% of compressed air is lost to leaks in an average system, while contaminants can damage downstream equipment or spoil products. Routine maintenance tackles these problems head-on, ensuring reliability and cost-effectiveness.

Key Maintenance Practices

  1. Monitor and Replace Intake Filters
    The air compressor draws in ambient air, which is often laden with dust, dirt, and water vapor. The intake filter is your first line of defense, protecting the compressor’s internals from wear. Over time, debris buildup increases pressure drop, forcing the compressor to work harder and reducing efficiency. Check the filter regularly—typically monthly—and replace it when the pressure differential exceeds the manufacturer’s recommended limit (often around 5-10 psid) or at least annually.
  2. Manage Moisture with Dryers and Drains
    Water vapor in compressed air condenses as it cools, leading to rust in pipes, damage to pneumatic tools, and quality issues in applications like painting or food processing. A dryer—whether refrigerated, desiccant, or membrane—is crucial. For smaller systems or point-of-use applications, inspect and clean dryer coils or replace desiccants as per the manual (usually every 1–2 years). Automatic drain traps should also be checked quarterly to ensure they’re removing condensate effectively.
  3. Audit for Leaks
    Leaks are silent efficiency killers. Even a small 1/8-inch hole at 100 psig can cost over $1,000 annually in wasted energy. Conduct a leak audit every 6–12 months using an ultrasonic leak detector. Focus on fittings, valves, and older piping sections, where vibration or corrosion often takes a toll. Repairing leaks promptly can save 20-30% on energy costs. EXAIR’s 9207 can help with this task.
  4. Optimize Pressure Settings
    Over-pressurizing the system to compensate for downstream losses wastes energy—every 2 psig increase adds about 1% to power consumption. Use pressure regulators at the point of use to deliver only what’s needed. Monitor system pressure monthly to ensure it aligns with demand, adjusting as equipment or processes change.

How EXAIR Products Enhance Maintenance and Efficiency

EXAIR’s Intelligent Compressed Air Products are engineered to complement these maintenance practices. Here’s how some specific items can help:

  • Ultrasonic Leak Detector (Model 9207)
    Pinpointing leaks in a noisy compressor room can feel like finding a needle in a haystack. EXAIR’s Ultrasonic Leak Detector uses sound wave detection to identify leaks with precision, even in high-decibel environments. Regular use during audits—say, every 6 months—helps maintenance teams catch and fix leaks early, slashing energy waste. Its portability and ease of use make it a must-have for proactive upkeep.
  • Automatic Drain Filter Separators
    Moisture and particulates in the air stream can clog tools or ruin products. EXAIR’s Automatic Drain Filter Separators (available in various port sizes, e.g., 1/4″ to 1-1/2″ NPT) feature a 5-micron filter and centrifugal separation to remove bulk liquids and debris. The auto-drain feature expels collected water without manual intervention, reducing maintenance time. Replace the filter element annually or when the pressure drop hits 10 psid to keep air quality high and downstream equipment safe.
  • Oil Removal Filter
    For applications requiring ultra-clean air—like electronics assembly or pharmaceutical production—the Oil Removal Filter takes filtration further. With a 0.03-micron coalescing element, it traps oil vapor and fine particles, coalescing liquids for gravity drainage. Pair it with a Filter Separator for a two-stage approach, and replace elements yearly to maintain performance. This ensures sensitive equipment stays contaminant-free with minimal upkeep.
  • Pressure Regulators
    Excessive pressure at the point of use is a common efficiency drain. EXAIR’s Pressure Regulators (included in many product kits) let you dial in the exact pressure needed—e.g., dropping from 100 psig to 80 psig can cut air usage by nearly 20%. Install them downstream of filters for accurate control, and check settings quarterly to match evolving process demands. They’re a simple, maintenance-free way to optimize demand-side efficiency.

A well-maintained compressed air system isn’t just about avoiding breakdowns—it’s about maximizing efficiency and minimizing costs. By pairing routine checks with EXAIR’s engineered solutions, you can tackle leaks, contamination, and over-pressurization head-on. The result? A system that runs smoother, lasts longer, and keeps your energy bill in check. Whether you’re blowing off parts, powering tools, or cooling processes, these strategies and tools ensure your compressed air works as hard as you do.

For more insights or help selecting the right EXAIR products for your system, reach out to an Application Engineer. Let’s keep your air flowing intelligently!

Jordan Shouse
Application Engineer

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Twitter: @EXAIR_JS

Clean Up Clean Up… Everybody Do Your Part

Published on by Brian Farno2 Comments

Okay, if the title doesn’t get the song stuck in your head, maybe the YouTube video will. Whenever our kids were younger, my wife and I would start to sing this song when the kids didn’t want to help clean up, and then we would just be singing and trying to get them to clean up with the words. Eventually, they would help…

1 – Clean Up – Barney

So what does this have to do with industrial compressed air? Well, the compressed air system generally starts in a remote corner or location in the facility that not many people venture to. It is often where there is minimal routine cleaning that can directly impact the well-being of the air compressors for a facility.

We’ve blogged about this many times on critical ways to improve your compressed air system, and we often touch on ensuring you have clean compressed air. That all starts with the room or areas the compressors are housed in. If you keep the area clean and keep the air exchanging there, then the compressor has clean, fresh air to entrain and begin the compression process. If your compressor condensate drain just goes into a puddle and oil dry gets thrown on top of it, then that dust and debris all begin to become airborne over time. That gets entrained into the intake and not to mention the smell and biomass that begins to generate is rather foul. If oil or some other lubricant gets spilled and not cleaned up when it happens, then when a real leak develops on the compressor it can’t be found because the area is already covered in oil and grime that never gets cleaned.

The notorious “Compressor Closet” that never gets opened in a small shop.

When trying to perform preventative maintenance and the area is littered with debris, oil dry, unused parts, and dimly lit, you can’t easily see or find all the maintenance points on the equipment and will often spend more time trying to clean the area up than the actual maintenance takes. Adding a cleaning process to the weekly routine of the area is one of the best things that can be done for the compressor room/area. It makes operators more aware of where the compressed air is coming from and should anything not look right, it makes it easier to see and report.

If you would like to talk about other key components to optimizing your compressed air system, contact an Application Engineer today.

Brian Farno, Application Engineer

General Guidelines for Maintaining Your Compressed Air System

Published on by Tyler DanielLeave a comment

Performing regular maintenance on your compressor system helps to keep everything operating in peak condition and ensures you’re not wasting unnecessary energy. Just as you perform regular routine maintenance on your vehicles, a compressed air system also needs a little TLC to keep things running smoothly. Neglected maintenance items can lead to increased energy costs, high operating temperatures, and coolant carryover. Much of these issues can be eliminated simply by performing routine maintenance on the components of the system.

According to the Best Practices for Compressed Air Systems by the Compressed Air Challenge (1), components within the system that need maintained include: the compressor, heat exchanger surfaces, lubricant, lubricant filter, air inlet filter, motors, belts, and air/oil separators.  

The compressor and all surfaces of the heat exchanger need to be kept clean and free of contaminants. When these components are dirty, compressor efficiency is greatly reduced. Any fans and water pumps should also be regularly inspected to ensure that they’re functioning properly. The air inlet filter and piping should also be cleaned. The quality of the air in the facility will impact the frequency, refer to the manufacturer’s specifications for ideal intervals for performing scheduled maintenance.

The lubricant and lubricant filter must also be changed per manufacturer’s specifications. Old coolant can become corrosive, impacting useful life and damaging other components while reducing efficiency. While synthetic lubricants are available that have an extended life compared to standard coolants, this does not extend the life of the lubricant filter itself.

Belts should be routinely checked for tension (every 400 hours is reasonable) to alleviate bearing wear. Belts will stretch and wear under normal operation and must be adjusted periodically. It’s a good practice to keep some spares on hand in the event of a failure.

End use filters, regulators, and lubricators should also be periodically inspected and filter elements replaced as needed. If left unchecked, a clogged filter will increase pressure drop. This can cause both a reduction of pressure at the point of use or an increase in the pressure supplied by the compressor, leading to increased energy costs.

Another often overlooked maintenance item is leak detection and repair. Leaks contribute to unnecessary air usage, pressure drop, and increased energy costs. EXAIR offers an Ultrasonic Leak Detector that can be used to identify the leaks in your system and allow you to make the necessary repairs.

EXAIR Ultrasonic Leak Detector

In order to keep your system running in peak condition, regular maintenance is critical. By paying close attention to the manufacture’s recommendations, and implementing a regular maintenance schedule, you can ensure you’re getting the most out of your system components.

Tyler Daniel, CCASS

Application Engineer
E-mail: TylerDaniel@EXAIR.com
Twitter: @EXAIR_TD

(1) Scales, W. (2021). Best Practices for Compressed Air Systems : Second Edition (2nd ed.). The Compressed Air Challenge,.

Compressor system image courtesy of Compressor1 via Flickr Creative Commons License Attribution-NoDerivs 2.0 Generic