Tag: DSIRE

Save Money With Engineered Products, Then Save More Money With Rebates

Published on by Russ BowmanLeave a comment

One morning last summer, I turned on the water in the shower and waited for it to warm up. And waited…and waited. It was clear something was wrong, so I checked the water heater to find it emptying its contents into the floor drain, through the bottom of the tank, which I found later had rusted away. Between my better-than-average plumbing skills, having a son home from college, and finding out I could keep about $800 in my pocket if I bought a new one and replaced it myself, I woke the boy up (which turned out to be one of the more difficult tasks in the process), drove to my friendly neighborhood home improvement center, and bought myself a new water heater, and we had hot water by the time my wife got home from work that afternoon. Considering the way it started, it turned out to be a pretty good day. Not only was it more efficient (and therefore cheaper to run) than the one I replaced, the water heater I bought also qualified for a rebate, which increased my savings on the project to almost $900. That was some FANTASTIC icing on an already pretty decent cake.

Rewards like this for being energy conscious have been routinely offered by utility companies for years now. One time, I got a box of LED light bulbs, enough weather stripping for TWO houses the size of mine, and water-conserving shower heads, for free, from my electric company as part of a home energy audit. That was a pretty good day too.

Many utility companies across the country have similar programs for residential customers, and commercial ones too. Duke Energy (my free light bulb folks), for example, has a program they call Smart$aver that offers rebates and other incentives to companies for making energy-efficient improvements. Equipment that qualifies for these incentives includes process pumping systems, insulation for injection molding machinery & pellet dryer ducts, low friction v-belts for rotating machinery, and compressed air equipment.

That last one is what I wanted to write about today. It includes improvements to the supply side:

  • Receiver tanks
  • Cycling air dryers
  • Zero-loss condensate drains
  • Compressed air system audits

And the demand side:

EXAIR can help you out with the ones on the demand side. Consider:

Ultrasonic Leak Detector: this handheld device allows you to quickly & easily find leaks in your compressed air system.

EXAIR Model 9207 Ultrasonic Leak Detector filters out audible sound waves and focuses on the ultrasonic sound generated when compressed air finds its way out of a loose fitting, crack, etc. The parabolic disc (left) lets you find the area of the leak(s) and the tube extension (right) directs you to the precise location.
The copper tube used to have a crimped end that was aimed at the part in the chuck. They simply cut it off and used a compression fitting to install the Super Air Nozzle.

Super Air Nozzles: not only will these products get you a rebate, they’ll cost less to operate and will ensure OSHA compliance with regard to your use of compressed air. And they’ll do it quieter, to boot.

Replacing open-ended blow offs with Super Air Nozzles is oftentimes quick and easy. Compression fittings can be used to install them directly onto the ends of existing copper tubing. Stay Set Hoses can replace modular hose, which is great for machine tool coolant delivery but often misapplied for air blowing.

And frankly, I think the engineered products just look better too.

The Duke Energy Smart$aver program is for their customers in North Carolina, South Carolina, Indiana, Ohio, and Kentucky. If that’s not you, though, North Carolina State University’s NC Clean Energy Technology Center has a comprehensive Database of State Incentives for Renewables & Efficiency – DSIRE – that’ll help you find what’s available in your area.

Compressed air isn’t free. Heck, it isn’t even cheap. If you want to find out how much you can save by optimizing your compressed air system in Six Steps, give me a call. And if you want to sweeten the deal with rebates and incentives, contact your local utility company.

Russ Bowman, CCASS

Application Engineer
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1126 1" Flat Super Air Nozzle and 1122 2" Flat Super Air Nozzle

Flat Super Air Nozzles… Safe, Efficient, and Rebates?

Published on by John BallLeave a comment
1126 1" Flat Super Air Nozzle and 1122 2" Flat Super Air Nozzle
Left 1122 2″ Flat Super Air Nozzle and Right 1126 1″ Flat Super Air Nozzle

The EXAIR Flat Super Air Nozzles are manufactured to blow a wide, forceful stream of air.  Their engineered design creates a high-velocity, laminar air stream with minimal air consumption and low noise levels.  They come in two widths; 1” (25mm) and 2” (51mm).  EXAIR offers a standard Flat Super Air Nozzle and a High Force Flat Super Air Nozzle in two different materials: zinc-aluminum alloy and 316 stainless steel.  And with a metal construction, breakage is not a concern, and performance is not sacrificed even in the harshest of environments.  The unique patented shims inside the EXAIR Flat Super Air Nozzles will give you three improvements to the design and function.  First, they come in different thicknesses to create a wide range of forces.  In conjunction with a regulator, you can “dial” in the correct amount of force from a breeze to a blast without overusing your compressed air system.  The patented design also allows an even flow across the entire width of the air nozzle.  Lastly, the design helps to entrain the free ambient air, so that less compressed air is required, saving you money.  The EXAIR Flat Super Air Nozzles are effective in uniform blowing with safety and efficiency in mind.

Flat Super Air Nozzles have replaceable shims to vary performance.

To expand more on force adjustments with the Flat Super Air Nozzles, EXAIR has an easy way to change the shim to better suit your application.  You can increase or decrease the force of the nozzle by just removing two screws and changing the thickness of the shim inside.  EXAIR offers a Shim Set to give you a range of forces with the nozzles.  For the standard Flat Super Air Nozzle, they come with a 0.015” (0.38mm) shim for both the 1” and 2” sizes.  The corresponding Shim Sets will include a 0.005” (0.13mm), 0.010” (0.25mm), and 0.020” (0.51mm) shim.  The High Force Flat Super Air Nozzles will come standard with a 0.025” (0.64mm) shim, and the Shim Set will include a 0.020” (0.51mm) and a 0.030” (0.76mm) thick shim.  This is a unique feature, as the competition’s plastic flat nozzles do not have this option.

In addition to the features and benefits, the Flat Super Air Nozzles come with a lip for safety reasons.  Occupational Safety and Health Administration, OSHA, has a federal regulation, 29CFR 1910.242(b) to eliminate dead-end pressure.  This states that pressure over 30 PSIG (2 bar) can penetrate the skin and can cause injury or death.  With the safety lip on the Flat Super Air Nozzles, it eliminates that concern, even above 30 PSIG (2 bar) inlet air pressure.  Unlike pipes and copper tubes where the skin can cover and block the exit, the lip on the Flat Super Air Nozzles will allow the air to escape.  So, you cannot block the exit (reference photo above). 

EXAIR Safety Air Nozzles are engineered to be safe, quiet, and very efficient.  They are so efficient that many electrical companies offer rebates for efficient products to help reduce energy consumption.  EXAIR offers ways to calculate ROI (Return on Investment) and energy savings by using our products.  We even offer an Efficiency Lab to measure with calibrated equipment to do comparative analysis.  But if your local energy company has a rebate program, then you can receive even more money back.

EXAIR has partnered with Energy Star, a program of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).  For statewide programs, The NC Clean Energy Technology Center has created a website that consolidates this information for you on their website: www.dsireusa.org.  “DSIRE is the most comprehensive source of information on incentives and policies that support renewable and energy efficiency in the United States”.  Since EXAIR’s products fall into this category, rebates can be applied to the use of our products. If there is a rebate available, you will find it on this site.

With the EXAIR Flat Super Air Nozzles, you can take advantage of their durability, safety, and efficiency for your blow-off devices.  And depending on the state that you are in, you may be awarded a rebate.  If you need any help with drawings, performance, or setup of our Flat Super Air Nozzles, you can speak with an Application Engineer at EXAIR.  We will be happy to help you.

John Ball                                                                                    

Application Engineer

Email: johnball@exair.com

Twitter: @EXAIR_jb

EXAIR’s Super Air Nozzles Qualify for Energy Rebate Incentive

Published on by Tyler DanielLeave a comment

The patented design of EXAIR’s 1” and 2” Flat Super Air Nozzles makes them a highly efficient option when seeking a powerful, flat airflow. A precise air gap across the width of the nozzle provides a forceful stream of high velocity, laminar airflow without consuming high amounts of compressed air and also resulting in a greatly reduced sound level compared to some of the alternative flat nozzles available in the market.

Did you know that upgrading to an efficient engineered air nozzle, such as the 1” or 2” Flat Super Air Nozzle, can make you eligible for an incentive from your energy provider? Similar to other energy-saving programs for upgrading to LED light bulbs or high-efficiency HVAC systems, these are made available to you as an incentive to start using more energy efficient products.

The energy costs associated with the generation of compressed air, often referred to in industry as a 4th utility, can make it expensive. These programs are offered to encourage you to use engineered products that are more energy efficient due to the reduction in compressed air consumption. Essentially, they’re offering you free money to implement a solution that will also save you money. It almost sounds too good to be true!! But these products, after implementation and receiving the incentive, will continue to save you money year after year.

The US Department of Energy, in conjunction with the NC Clean Energy Technology Center, provides a website that allows you to search the various programs available to you in your state. The DSIRE® website allows you to select your state, then select your energy provider to determine what programs are offered.

In Southwest Ohio, Duke Energy provides an incentive that offers $40 USD each per engineered air nozzle that is installed. When replacing open pipe or tube, these nozzles generally pay for themselves relatively quickly. But, when combined with a $40 USD rebate, that return on investment happens even quicker!!!

Don’t leave free money on the table. If you’re using open pipe or tube, or inefficient plastic flat nozzles, replace them with an engineered air nozzle from EXAIR. If you need help determining what rebate programs are available to you in your area, we’re also here to help. Contact an EXAIR Application Engineer today!

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

Engineered Compressed Air Nozzles and Utility Rebates

Published on by Jordan T ShouseLeave a comment

When EXAIR started to manufacture compressed air products, we created a culture in making high quality products that are safe, effective, and efficient.  Being leaders in this industry, we created a program, the Efficiency Lab, to compare blow-off devices with EXAIR products in noise levels, flow requirements, and force measurements.  With calibrated test equipment, we compare the data in a qualified report to share with our customers.  This information can be helpful to determine the total amount of air savings and safety improvements that EXAIR products can offer.

Flat SANs 1in
Zinc Aluminum models are suitable for general purpose blow off (left) and 316SS models are specified for food/pharma and high heat applications.

In conjunction with the Efficiency Lab, we created a Cost Savings Calculator.  It is a quick way to view payback periods and annual savings when using EXAIR products.  As an example, I used a 1” Flat Super Air Nozzle, model 1126, and compared it to a 1/8” open pipe.  (The reason behind the comparison is that the model 1126 can screw onto the end of the 1/8” NPT pipe.)  With an operation of 24 hours/day for 250 days a year, the amount of air used by an 1/8” open pipe is near 70 SCFM (1,981 SLPM) at 80 PSIG (5.5 Bar).  The model 1126 has an air consumption of 10.5 SCFM (297 SLPM) at 80 PSIG (5.5 Bar).  By putting the information in the Cost Savings Calculator, it determined that the ROI was in 2.1 days.  The annual savings was $5,355 USD per year.  Imagine if you replaced ten blow-off spots in your facility, the amount of money that could be saved.  Here is the worksheet below:

flat 1

The people that started to notice the savings were the utility companies that make electricity.  Depending on your location, electrical suppliers initiated a rebate program to use engineered nozzles in your facility.  Similar to other energy saving rebates, like LED light bulbs and high efficiency furnaces, the electrical providers notice a big savings when using EXAIR products.  If you qualify, the total cost to purchase and implement the EXAIR Super Air Nozzles are reduced.(Even if a rebate program has not been implemented in your area, the idea of saving energy and compressed air makes it very profitable and environmentally sound in changing over to EXAIR products).

To see if your utility offers rebates on compressed air optimizations, go to the DSIRE database. This database is easy to search and informative.

For Example, here in Ohio Duke Energy has a Prescriptive Incentive Program for its customers. The Prescriptive Incentive Program makes it easy for Duke Energy customers to receive an incentive for their natural gas and electric energy efficiency projects. Prescriptive Incentives are energy efficient measures paid per-unit, reimbursing the customer up to the total cost (including materials and labor) after the measures have been installed. See the image below for their incentives for using Engineered Nozzles;

capture.jpg
Ohio Duke Energy Prescriptive Incentive Program

https://www.duke-energy.com/business/products/smartsaver/industrial-equipment

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

Jordan Shouse
Application Engineer

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