Whenever spring rolls around, spring-cleaning comes to mind. It’s the time of year that we are reminded, or perhaps motivated, to start cleaning and de-cluttering. We experience this here at EXAIR with an increase in inquiries about our Industrial Housekeeping Products. We have a great line of drum vacs designed for use with dry materials (Chip Vac and Heavy Duty Dry Vacs) or liquids (Reversible Drum Vacs – RDVs, and Chip Trappers), or both (EasySwitch Wet-Dry Vac). What we don’t often think about are cleaning or maintenance routines for our cleaning products.
As long as you supply our intelligent compressed air-operated products with clean, moisture-free compressed air, they can run near indefinitely with little to no maintenance. Due to the nature of the kinds of jobs drum vacs are being used in, even with the cleanest compressed air systems, there is some need for preventative maintenance to keep them working like new. In this blog I review some basic cleaning routines to keep your RDV or Chip Trapper working as new:
Ensure you are supplying enough compressed air. We recommend 80-100psig. This will consume at least 19scfm. If your supply line is too long, or too small in diameter, you will suffer line loss. This will lead to poor performance. It is also important to avoid any restrictive fittings like quick connects.
Ensure there are no vacuum leaks. A loose vacuum hose, leaky hose cuff or a loose fitting drum adapter will prevent the pump from being able to evacuate enough air from the drum. Even small hairline cracks in the drum can allow air in and cause vacuum performance to suffer. A visual inspection of these areas is a great first step. We stock all replacement parts if you need to replace a gasket, or quick connect fitting.
Ensure your compressed air supply is clean. The tight passages in the venturi chamber can become contaminated, limiting the RDVs’ ability to draw a vacuum. We recommend the use of a 5-micron automatic drain filter (EXAIR Model 9001) to prevent this. If the RDV has become dirty inside, it is relatively straight forward to clean it. This video takes you through the steps.
Ensure the safety shutoff valve float is moving freely. The plastic float provides overflow protection. It will rise when the drum is full, which will break the vacuum. If the float becomes stuck, it will impede vacuum performance. Cleaning out this chamber and the float, allowing it to move freely will ensure that RDV can function properly.
Finally, for Chip Trappers, ensuring that the directional valve is clean and clear of chips. With frequent use or when filtering out long stringy chips, the liquid flow passageways of the EXAIR Chip Trapper may become blocked with swarf. The following video walks you through cleaning this valve:
All of these steps will keep your RDV and Chip Trapper running like new. If you would like to learn more about our other Industrial Housekeeping Products, feel free to give us a call!
The other day, I heard someone say, “It’s like winter & spring are in a custody battle with us” and that describes Ohio weather in March to a “T”. But make no mistake, spring’s warm weather is coming and with it comes the quintessential ritual of spring-cleaning.
I know this to be true, because just like we tend to see upticks in Cabinet Cooler System sales in early summer (when external heat loads rise) and Static Eliminator sales in early winter (when colder temperatures decrease humidity and increase the propensity for static charge), we start getting more frequent calls in early spring about Industrial Housekeeping Products. Some are repeat customers who need additional equipment. If this is you, THANK YOU for your confidence in our products! Others want to find out which Industrial Vacuum is best suited for their applications. If THIS is you, read on.
The first step in selection is…wet or dry? Or both? If you’re going to use it for liquids sometimes, and solids vacuuming at other times, the EasySwitch Wet-Dry Vac allows for that. If you’ve ever used a shop vac to clean up your garage or workshop after cutting a bunch of wood for a project, you likely know that you can remove the filter and use it to pump out a clogged deep sink or your sump pump’s sump. The EasySwitch works just like that, but it’s easy to switch (as advertised) from wet to dry because the ‘dry vac’ filter is on a hinged plate in the lid:
Not that it’s particularly difficult to change the filter in a shop vac, but this is indeed “Easy Switch”.
The EasySwitch Wet-Dry Vac is made for use with an open-top 55 gallon drum, and comes with the option for a standard filter for exhausting the vacuum air flow, or a HEPA Filter for critical dust containment, when used in ‘dry’ mode.
If you’re going to use it consistently for liquids, the Reversible Drum Vac is what you’re looking for. It’ll fill a 55 gallon drum with water in a minute and a half, and with a simple turn of the knob on top, it’ll empty it just as fast. The standard Reversible Drum Vac generates a suction head of 96″ H2O. If the liquid is viscous, or is below grade (say, in a deep sump), the High Lift Reversible Drum Vac is rated for liquids with viscosities up to 1,400 cP, and generates a suction lift of 180″H2O. They work with 5, 30, 55, and 100 gallon drums.
The Chip Trapper Systems are Reversible Drum Vacs with a Filter Bag that all the incoming liquid passes through. The standpipe is outside the Filter Bag, so when emptying the drum, solids are retained in the Filter Bag, and only freshly filtered liquid is pumped out. They come with the standard, or the High Lift, Reversible Drum Vac as well. They come with 30, 55, or 110 gallon drums.
The vacuum hose (1) is attached to the barbed connection of the Chip Trapper (2). The directional flow control valve on the top of the drum (3) and knob on the pump (4) are set to the “fill” position. The air supply valve is opened to permit compressed air at 80-100 psig (5.5-6.9 BAR) to flow through the pump which pulls the liquid through the hose, then into the reusable filter bag (5). When all liquid is in the drum, the air supply is turned off. The filtered liquid can then be pumped out by setting the directional flow control valve on top of the drum and the knob on the pump to the “empty” position. Once the air supply valve is opened, the air pushes the liquid back through the hose while all solids remain in the reusable filter bag.
EXAIR also has a number of industrial drum-mounted vacuums for ‘dry’ pickup too. By ‘dry’, I mean loose solid particulate. It can be wet – coolant soaked chips on or around a machine tool are a prime example – but as long as they’re not in a volume of liquid, the Industrial Housekeeping Products below will all work just fine. If they ARE in a volume of liquid, the Reversible Drum Vacs & Chip Trapper Systems above are what you’re looking for.
Chip Vacs are ideal for general cleanup. The Chip Vac itself is made of aluminum, and systems are made for 5, 30, 55, and 110 gallon drums. Vacuum air flow is exhausted through a filter bag attached to the top of the drum.
From left to right: 5 gallon, 30 gallon, 55 gallon, and 110 gallon Chip Vacs are sized for any cleanup need.
If you’re vacuuming up abrasive material, there’s a good chance it will wear out the relatively soft aluminum construction of the Chip Vac pretty quickly. The Heavy Duty Dry Vac, however, is made of a hardened alloy for superior abrasion resistance. They also have higher vacuum power than the Chip Vacs for particularly dense material pickup. They’re made for 30, 55, and 110 gallon drums (sorry; no 5 gallon option for the Heavy Duty Dry Vacs!)
EXAIR’s Heavy Duty Dry Vacs turn ordinary drums into high powered, rugged industrial vacuum systems.
If critical dust containment is desired (or required), the Heavy Duty HEPA Vac offers the same performance as the Heavy Duty Dry Vac, but the vacuum air flow is exhausted through a HEPA (High Efficiency Particulate Air) cartridge filter. These Filters are 100% tested for compliance with IEST-RP-CC-007 for 99.97% filtration at the 0.3 micron level to meet HEPA standards. A Pre-Filter (included) serves to keep the HEPA filter working properly for as long as possible, and Filter Protectors (optional) are available to do the same for the Pre-Filter.
LIke the Heavy Duty Dry Vacs, the Heavy Duty HEPA Vacs fit standard 30, 55, and 110 gallon drums.
You can use any of these with an existing drum, as long as it meets the requirements:
Reversible Drum Vac drums need to be steel (no fiber, composite, plastic, etc…we’re pulling a vacuum to fill it, and pressurizing it to empty it) and should have a wall thickness of at least 18ga.
EasySwitch Wet-Dry Vacs need a steel 55 gallon drum with the rolled lip on top for the lid to sit on and ensure the gasket has a good seal.
EXAIR Industrial Housekeeping Products have no moving parts to wear or electric motors to burn out. If you supply them with clean, moisture-free compressed air, they’ll run darn near indefinitely, maintenance free. Standard systems come with everything you need to turn an existing drum into a powerful industrial vacuum. Deluxe Kits add a Drum Dolly and more tools. Premium Kits include the drum itself and an upgrade to Heavy Duty Aluminum Tools (Deluxe Heavy Duty Dry & HEPA Vac Kits get you those as well).
One of the most common questions we get related to our Industrial Housekeeping products is how they compare to a standard electrically powered vacuum. Well, there is a reason we call our systems INDUSTRIAL Housekeeping products. They are designed and built with rough and tumble working conditions in mind! But let me expand on that!
EXAIR Heavy Duty Dry Vac Family
There is a lot of “wrong” equipment on the market. Let me ask you a simple question. If your facility has a compressed air system, why would you choose to use any equipment that does not optimize the air that you have, increase safety levels, reduce noise, and never break down? I hear story after story of broken down electric vacuums. Some of these, especially in today’s world, take weeks or months to get parts to repair. Oh, wait – to repair? Yeah, because the motors get clogged with the same dirt you are trying to clean out of your facility, the motor clogs and performs poorly or simply burns out all together. Filters fail, belts break – sometimes we just have to face the fact that we made a bad decision and went with that undependable electric option.
Electric Vacuums are prone to clogging, wearing out, and motor failure.
Here are a few important features about our systems:
80-100 PSIG is needed for optimal performance with each system.
No electricity needed
No moving parts to break
No motor to repair
1.5″ vacuum hose (standard is 10 ft long)
Interchangeable tools from one system to another
Static resistant hose available
Designed to fit on standard 55 gallon drums (5, 30, and 110 gallon drum options are available on certain models).
All have filters for dust / debris – most have options for the level of filtration required.
Quieter than comparable electric vacuums.
The Chip Vac vacuums directly into an open drum. This is primarily a dry vacuum. It is designed to pick up chips from fixtures, floors, lathes, saws, mills, and many other industrial equipment. When I say mostly dry, this will pick up wet chips – but is not the best solution for puddles of liquid (we have other options for this). Designed to run at 80 PSIG. Comes in 5 gallon, 30 gallon, 55 gallon and 110 gallon options.
Pulling debris from a machining operation
Whatever your dry vac needs are, one of these options will be perfect for you. Don’t forget we have several wet options as well, but that is for another blog. Please give myself, or any of the application engineers a call today to discuss your Industrial Housekeeping needs.
In any machine shop, one of the most dreaded tasks is always cleaning out the coolant sumps of the CNC machines. Over time, chips and shavings can make their way up into the coolant lines resulting in a clog. The coolant flow slows down or stops entirely, resulting in premature wear of expensive cutting tools, imperfections in the parts, or unacceptable product finish. When this occurs, if it is even noticed right away, the machine has to be stopped and valuable production time must be spent identifying the location of the clog and removing it. Another problem, one anyone working around CNC machines can attest to, is the rancid coolant smell that is a result of bacteria building up in the stagnant cutting fluid. Regularly cleaning this oil can reduce this smell, prevent premature tool wear or costly shutdowns, as well as extend the overall life of your coolant.
There are some machines out there capable of cleaning the oil and removing any chips or shavings, but these tend to be very expensive and not very effective. We tested a few different methods here at EXAIR in our machine shop. As a result of these tests we determined that the best foot forward would be to develop something ourselves. Enter the EXAIR Chip Trapper. Using either a standard or High Lift Reversible Drum Vac to provide the vacuum source, the Chip Trapper is capable of filling or emptying a 55 gallon drum in less than two minutes. It is able to pick up both the liquid coolant as well as any chips or shavings that are suspended in the coolant. The liquid is forced through a filter bag inside of the drum which contains any solid materials while allowing the coolant to filter out into the drum. Switching the knob on the Reversible Drum Vac and the directional flow valve to empty will allow the clean coolant to be pumped back out of the drum and reused.
After implementing the Chip Trapper in our own shop, we were able to increase the life of the coolant by 6x. In addition to the increased coolant life, a process that used to take up to 2 hours per machine now takes less than 10 minutes. The Chip Trapper quickly and easily pays for itself.
The Chip Trapper is available in either 30, 55, or 110 gallon systems. It’ll also come with (2) 5 micron filter bags, other filter bags are also available ranging from 1 micron up to 200 micron filtration. Using a simple detergent, the filter bags can be washed out, cleaned, and reused multiple times. With no motors or impellers to clog or wear out, as well as no electricity requirement or shock hazard, the Chip Trapper comes with our standard 5-year Built to Last Warranty. Do yourself (and your machine operators) a favor and get a Chip Trapper on order today. They’re in stock, ready to ship and start saving you time and money!
