2airishuman
Contributor
whats an average fill time for a 80 cubic feet tank?
How to fill an AL80.
- Don appropriate protective gear per your safety protocol. Eye protection at a minimum. Nothing will protect you from a cylinder rupture but you can at least protect your eyes from airborne dust, a burst hose, or a blown burst disc.
- Confirm valid hydro
- Confirm valid VIP
- Confirm diver's certification
- Confirm that the cylinder fill pressure is in fact 3000 PSI, because cylinders with other pressures do exist
- Visually inspect exterior of tank and valve for obvious, serious problems
- Remove dustcap if present
- Briefly crack tank valve to blow out any water or dust that may be present in the valve
- Connect fill hose and confirm that bleed valve is shut
- Open tank valve slowly and completely
- Fill cylinder at approximately 500 PSI per minute or less until 3000 PSI is reached. This is around 8 cubic feet per minute
- Optionally, allow cylinder to cool
- Determine cylinder temperature and use this to find a final fill pressure so that cylinder will reach 3000 PSI at 72 degrees F. Ballpark adjustment is 2% per 10 degrees F
- Fill cylinder to final pressure
- Close fill valve and and cylinder valve
- Open bleed valve
- Remove fill hose
- Replace dust cap if appropriate
Using a cascade has two benefits over a bank. A cascade can deliver more usable air before it has to be refilled, and it allows the compressor to be run at lower pressures more of the time. Banks are simpler to use and are usually used on larger compressors where a large number of cylinders get filled at once.
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