Filling tanks with Cheap-O Air Compressors on eBay?

[txaggie08]

Wish these had existed in 2002 when we where trying to fill tanks at the paintball field..... n9nway in hell I'd breathe off its but for that, hell yeah

 

[yle]

There's a reason that compressor is $200 and a small scuba compressor is $2000 (or more?) That compressor is for filling tanks for paintball, not for air that will go into your lungs.

 

[dlofting]

My son has a couple of industrial strength compressors that he uses for his work. No chance at all that I'd use them for scuba tanks.....EVER

 

[mathematics]

A lot of replies in this thread are obnoxious hand-wringing. OP asked about these compressors, he didn't promote them as the next big thing in DIY fill stations. I also want to know. Instead of hearing about the cleanliness of the compressor, or seeing an analysis of said compressed gas, we get replies like "Don't". Nobody was going to actually use these for diving, we just wanted to know more about them. It may be that they cannot be used, or it may be that they are suitable for breathing air with some modifications and suitable filtering.

It's okay to think about it.

 

[Marie13]

A lot of replies in this thread are obnoxious hand-wringing. OP asked about these compressors, he didn't promote them as the next big thing in DIY fill stations. I also want to know. Instead of hearing about the cleanliness of the compressor, or seeing an analysis of said compressed gas, we get replies like "Don't". Nobody was going to actually use these for diving, we just wanted to know more about them. It may be that they cannot be used, or it may be that they are suitable for breathing air with some modifications and suitable filtering.

It's okay to think about it.

The problem is that there are just too many Darwin Award candidates waiting for someone to tell them it’s just a-OK to fill a scuba tank with one of these. Common sense is lacking in a lot of people these days.

Cheap and safe usually don’t go together.

 

[M-Cameron]

This is one of the things that kinda confuses me about some people who dive.....wanting to do it as cheaply and haphazardly as possible....

At the base of it.... scuba equipment is life support...if you have an issue at 100feet.... there is every possibility that you’re not gonna make it.

Buying inexpensive equipment from a brand name company is one thing...but buying no name equipment from Ali-express or eBay is another.


Sure stuff like back plates, lights, and he’ll even Wings are probably not going to give you too many issues.

But regulators and breathing gas.. that’s idiotic.


That would be like a sky diver opting to find a parachute on Ali-express because it’s a little cheaper.........frankly the thing keeping me alive is not the thing I wanna cheap out on

I can only assume the people who do this are also the same people who buy discount gas station sushi

 

[mathematics]

Let's assume good faith on the part of others and suppose they do possess enough sense not to do this, so we can discuss the topic at hand. We can include our much-beloved safety lecturing as a preface if we're so inclined. A detailed

The problem is that there are just too many Darwin Award candidates waiting for someone to tell them it’s just a-OK to fill a scuba tank with one of these. Common sense is lacking in a lot of people these days.

Cheap and safe usually don’t go together.

Let's assume good faith on the part of others and suppose they do possess enough sense not to do this, so we can discuss the topic at hand. We can include our much-beloved safety lecturing as a preface if we're so inclined. A detailed explanation as to why they cannot be used - or, better yet, analysis of the gas from one of these compressors and/or a teardown thereof would go a long way to educate people as to why they're unsuitable as sold.

That would be like a sky diver opting to find a parachute on Ali-express because it’s a little cheaper.........frankly the thing keeping me alive is not the thing going I wanna cheap out on

No, this is like a skydiver wondering what aliexpress parachutes are made of and being told not to bother thinking about it. Nobody is seriously considering filling their cylinders with these things, but many of us would like to know a) whether or not they could be made suitable for breathing air, and b) if not, why not, and c) precisely how they work.

With respect to the others in this thread: We've accomplished nothing in this thread, and we have learned nothing, but nearly every one of us gave his or her favorite safety lecture. Which is fine, but it doesn't actually get us anywhere. If the answer is (as most of us suspect) no, they cannot be used, let's discuss why.

I'd like to see one of these things torn down, and especially how the cylinder is lubricated. I strongly suspect that the lubricant aerosolizes at higher temperatures and winds up in the gas stream, but without knowing exactly what they're made of, I can't say for sure.

 

[txaggie08]

Let's assume good faith on the part of others and suppose they do possess enough sense not to do this, so we can discuss the topic at hand. We can include our much-beloved safety lecturing as a preface if we're so inclined. A detailed


Let's assume good faith on the part of others and suppose they do possess enough sense not to do this, so we can discuss the topic at hand. We can include our much-beloved safety lecturing as a preface if we're so inclined. A detailed explanation as to why they cannot be used - or, better yet, analysis of the gas from one of these compressors and/or a teardown thereof would go a long way to educate people as to why they're unsuitable as sold.



No, this is like a skydiver wondering what aliexpress parachutes are made of and being told not to bother thinking about it. Nobody is seriously considering filling their cylinders with these things, but many of us would like to know a) whether or not they could be made suitable for breathing air, and b) if not, why not, and c) precisely how they work.

With respect to the others in this thread: We've accomplished nothing in this thread, and we have learned nothing, but nearly every one of us gave his or her favorite safety lecture. Which is fine, but it doesn't actually get us anywhere. If the answer is (as most of us suspect) no, they cannot be used, let's discuss why.

I'd like to see one of these things torn down, and especially how the cylinder is lubricated. I strongly suspect that the lubricant aerosolizes at higher temperatures and winds up in the gas stream, but without knowing exactly what they're made of, I can't say for sure.

The questions of why they're a bad idea where answered 4 posts in.... oil contamination, especially on high duty cycle, combined with dodgy materials quality. The long lecture was as unnecessary as the other parts of the discussion

 

[M-Cameron]

Let's assume good faith on the part of others and suppose they do possess enough sense not to do this, so we can discuss the topic at hand. We can include our much-beloved safety lecturing as a preface if we're so inclined. A detailed


Let's assume good faith on the part of others and suppose they do possess enough sense not to do this, so we can discuss the topic at hand. We can include our much-beloved safety lecturing as a preface if we're so inclined. A detailed explanation as to why they cannot be used - or, better yet, analysis of the gas from one of these compressors and/or a teardown thereof would go a long way to educate people as to why they're unsuitable as sold.



No, this is like a skydiver wondering what aliexpress parachutes are made of and being told not to bother thinking about it. Nobody is seriously considering filling their cylinders with these things, but many of us would like to know a) whether or not they could be made suitable for breathing air, and b) if not, why not, and c) precisely how they work.

With respect to the others in this thread: We've accomplished nothing in this thread, and we have learned nothing, but nearly every one of us gave his or her favorite safety lecture. Which is fine, but it doesn't actually get us anywhere. If the answer is (as most of us suspect) no, they cannot be used, let's discuss why.

I'd like to see one of these things torn down, and especially how the cylinder is lubricated. I strongly suspect that the lubricant aerosolizes at higher temperatures and winds up in the gas stream, but without knowing exactly what they're made of, I can't say for sure.

found a thread where someone tore one down....shocker to absolutely no one here...you dont want to breath the air coming out of this....that is assuming they run long enough to actually fill a tank.

An Error Has Occurred! - Airguns & Guns Forum

 

[Neilwood]

Let's assume good faith on the part of others and suppose they do possess enough sense not to do this, so we can discuss the topic at hand. We can include our much-beloved safety lecturing as a preface if we're so inclined. A detailed explanation as to why they cannot be used - or, better yet, analysis of the gas from one of these compressors and/or a teardown thereof would go a long way to educate people as to why they're unsuitable as sold.

No, this is like a skydiver wondering what aliexpress parachutes are made of and being told not to bother thinking about it. Nobody is seriously considering filling their cylinders with these things, but many of us would like to know a) whether or not they could be made suitable for breathing air, and b) if not, why not, and c) precisely how they work.

With respect to the others in this thread: We've accomplished nothing in this thread, and we have learned nothing, but nearly every one of us gave his or her favorite safety lecture. Which is fine, but it doesn't actually get us anywhere. If the answer is (as most of us suspect) no, they cannot be used, let's discuss why.

I'd like to see one of these things torn down, and especially how the cylinder is lubricated. I strongly suspect that the lubricant aerosolizes at higher temperatures and winds up in the gas stream, but without knowing exactly what they're made of, I can't say for sure.

I would draw the analogy more that the skydiver looks to buy a parachute that costs a tenth of industry norm, isn't really interested in the details of how it was assembled or materials used or quality control involved. Yep they can save money but it is highly likely to kill them on the first use.

It seems in this day and age that a lot of people have forgotten common sense - if the price looks too good to be true, it probably is.

I would guess that any compressor could be made suitable for breathing air. The issue is the costs and risks involved. There is a good reason why the vast majority of compressors are designed along the same lines and work in very similar ways - it works and has a proven safety record.