Tag: sanitary

316SS Sanitary Flange Line Vacs™

Published on by johnball2014Leave a comment

The Sanitary Flange Line Vacs™ are an excellent way to convert pipe systems into conveying systems for moving “sensitive” materials.  This would include materials in the medical, food, and pharmaceutical industries that require frequent and mandatory washing.  The Sanitary Flange Line Vacs allow for easy disassembly and reassembly for hygienic and bacterial-free cleaning, as well as being made from 316L stainless steel for aggressive cleansers.  As a part of EXAIR history, this product line came from a frequent special that we produced specifically for a variety of customers.  And as a manufacturer, we decided to help other customers in this market by adding it to our product line in a variety of sizes.

Model 161200-316 – 316 Stainless Steel Sanitary Flange Line Vac

The Sanitary Flange Line Vac uses ISO 2852-compatible flanges on both the intake and outlet of the Line Vac.  EXAIR offers them in four different sizes, from 1 ½” (38mm) up to 3” (76mm) in stock.  The performance is the same as our standard Line Vacs, which move product without any moving parts or motors.  This provides a compact and easy-to-use design that will last for a long time.  We can upgrade the generator to a high-power version for increased conveyance rates as well as allowing for moving material over longer distances. 

I wrote a blog about a Line Vac application to remove bones from the surface of salmon fillets: “Let’s go fishing with EXAIR Sanitary Flange Line Vac”.  They had pipes and hoses fitted with sanitary flanges already installed.  Since this application was before EXAIR started manufacturing the Sanitary Flanged Line Vacs, this customer actually welded the flanges on to a 316SS Line Vac and attached it to their system.  With requests for opportunities similar to this, EXAIR was able to develop this new product line. 

If you need to move product where cleanliness is a requirement, the Sanitary Flange Line Vacs may work for your application.  They work great for transferring bulk materials within the food, medical, and pharmaceutical industries.  For U.S. and Canadian customers, EXAIR has a 30-day unconditional guarantee to try these out.  If you have any questions, a Application Engineer will be happy to assist you.   

John Ball
Application Engineer
Email: johnball@exair.com
Twitter: @EXAIR_jb

316SS Sanitary Flange Air Operated Conveyors Pull Corn Meal Quality Samples

Published on by codybiehleLeave a comment

Agriculture, it’s a word that invokes a lot of imagery. From the vast rolling fields, to animals roaming, to a simple life of tending to the land. For some it is the perfect life of hard work and simple living. Agriculture can make one think of tractors, heavy equipment, silos, fencing, and much more. But there is one thing that does not typically come to mind, and that is compressed air. Even though compressed air is not commonly thought of being used in agriculture does not mean that it cannot be used. In fact, it can be very useful.

In one application a manufacturer of corn meal needed to take a sample of the product to test the moisture content and quality before it was loaded into a rail car. The lab tech use to have to go out to the silo to scoop up about a pint and transport it back to the lab to be tested. To eliminate the manual retrieval and delivery of the corn meal EXAIR recommended a model #163300-316 3″ St. St. Sanitary Flange Line Vac Kit and was sold to the customer. A system of 100ft of pipe was installed from the silo to the lab so that the test sample could be conveyed by the Line Vac directly to the lab to be tested. This simple fix improved the reliability of the sample and decreased the time it takes to grab a sample. Along with the added benefit that now the lab tech does not need to walk over and scoop the sample out of the container or off the ground.

EXAIR’s Family of Sanitary Flange Line Vacs

Line Vacs are a great product for conveying bulk material from point A to point B and excel with “bucket and ladder” type scenarios where personnel is manually loading or unloading batches of material or scrap. EXAIR’s Air Operated Conveyors have always been well suited for applications involving food as the internal components are smooth and can be cleaned out easily and sanitized. With a 316 Stainless Steel body the unit provides superior corrosion resistance and can withstand most caustic cleaners and oxidants. The flange style connection also makes it easy to hook up and remove for cleaning purposes.

Model 161200-316 – 316 Stainless Steel Sanitary Flange Line Vac

Sanitary Flange Line Vacs are all made from 316 Stainless Steel and come in four sizes: 1-1/2”, 2”, 2-1/2”, and 3”.

If you are interested in more applications, check out our application database on our Website. Or if you have any questions on our Line Vacs give us a call, we have a team of application engineers ready to answer your questions and recommend a solution for your applications.

Cody Biehle
Application Engineer
EXAIR Corporation
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Customizing Air Amplifiers

Published on by codybiehleLeave a comment

EXAIR’s line of Air Amplifiers can be found in a multitude of different applications across the world. They solve problems as simple as blowing debris off parts to exhausting fumes or circulating air. The Air Amplifier comes in two different styles either the Super Air Amplifier or the Adjustable Air Amplifier. Super Air Amplifiers come in a stock Aluminum Body with a diameter that ranges from ¾” to 8”. This differs from the Adjustable Air Amplifier which comes in either type 303 Stainless Steel or Aluminum and are Sized from ¾” to 4”.

The main difference between the Super Air Amplifier and the Adjustable Air Amplifier is the fact the Super Air Amplifier has a shim inside of it that sets the gap for the air flow. The standard shim thickness for the Super Air Amplifier in sizes of 3/4″ to the 4″ is 0.003” which is suitable for most applications. These shims can be exchanged for a thicker shim of thickness of either 0.006″ or 0.009″. The 8″ Super Air Amplifier is the only air amplifier that comes with a standard stock shim of 0.009″ and can be exchanged for a 0.015″ shim if needed.

Flanged Stainless Steel Adjustable Air Amplifier
Sanitary Flanged Adjustable Air Amplifier

Even though there is a wide variety of sizes and materials for the Stock Air Amplifiers they may not meet a customer’s specific application or need. Over the years EXAIR has produced many different custom Air Amplifiers for a customer’s specific need and the images throughout this blog are just a few of what we have done.

High Temp Air Amplifier

• Depending on the environment certain specific materials may be required like the food industry which requires specific Stainless Steel for various applications. One customer had a special PTFE plug made for the Adjustable Air Amplifier to help pull a sticky material through the process. The PTFE helped prevent the material form depositing on the Amplifier.
• For applications were mounting may be an issue, special attachments have been made to assist. For instances were an Amplifier may need to be mounted to a pipe a custom Stainless-Steel Adjustable Air Amplifier with a class 150 raised face flanges.
• Applications that are in a hot environment may require a special high temperature version which has be developed to operate in areas up to 700°F. The High Temperature Air Amplifier was so widely sought after that we turned it into a stock item. It is commonly used in large roto-molds and ovens to circulate air in order to maintain consistent temperatures.

Adjustable Air Amplifier with PTFE Plug Installed

No matter what your application needs are EXAIR will to work with you to create any custom Air Amplifier that fits your specific application needs.

If you have any questions about compressed air systems or want more information on any of EXAIR’s products, give us a call, we have a team of Application Engineers ready to answer your questions and recommend a solution for your applications.

Cody Biehle
Application Engineer
EXAIR Corporation
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Sanitary Flange Air Operated Conveyors – The EXAIR Line Vac

Published on by codybiehleLeave a comment

The ability to control the flow of materials has been a staple in human civilization since 4000 BCE. This includes the creation of pipes which have appeared as early as 2400 BCE from the Egyptians. These piping systems have since then been improved on to be made stronger, lighter, cheaper,  of various styles, and in a variety of materials. One of these styles is the sanitary flange pipe.

Sanitary flange pipe and fittings is one of the larger milestones in piping innovation. Sanitary flange pipes came about due the stringent cleanliness controls in certain industries such as food and pharmaceutical. Both of these use a highly corrosive and caustic soap to sanitize surfaces and, in most cases, entire rooms. Sanitary flange pipes allow for pipe systems to be taken apart easily so that components can be easily cleaned out on a regular sterilization process, and are generally made of 316 Stainless Steel to withstand the corrosive nature of the cleaning compound.

Type 316 Stainless Steel Line Vac

EXAIR Line Vac Air Operated Conveyors have always been well suited for these applications since the internal components are smooth and can be cleaned out easily and sanitized. They have also been made out of 316 Stainless Steel for years which provides superior corrosion resistance and can withstand most caustic cleaners and oxidants. Type-316 Stainless Steel is the preferred material for many food and pharmaceutical applications. Before EXAIR’s Sanitary Flange Line Vac, we noticed our customers would use the standard smooth Line Vac and weld a sanitary flange onto the ends, or installing adaptors on our Threaded Line Vac.

With that thought we decided to make things easier and developed the Sanitary Line Vac which follows the basic design of the Standard Line Vac and operates with the same performance characteristics. Sanitary Flange Line Vacs come in four sizes: 1-1/2”, 2”, 2-1/2”, and 3”. These sizes are the most common sizes for Line Vacs and covers the majority of application needs.

Sanitary Flange Line Vacs in increasing sizes: 1-1/2”, 2”, 2-1/2”, and 3”

If you have any questions about compressed air systems or want more information on any of EXAIR’s products, give us a call, we have a team of Application Engineers ready to answer your questions and recommend a solution for your applications.

Cody Biehle
Application Engineer
EXAIR Corporation
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