Financial planning, compressor

[grf88]

I don't use a bank but it seems to me that a one tank bank would be more trouble than it is worth unless it has a really high capacity.

 

[Lorenzoid]

I'm going to repeat this.

MORE TANKS WILL NOT HELP, I CANNOT FIT MORE TANKS ON MY CAR AND HAVE NO PLACE TO STORE THEM AT MY HOUSE.

I'm well aware of the maintenance of compressors and swore I would never get one. Things have changed.

Don't get too frustrated with the replies, man. Remember, there are others here who have entertained the same idea and are watching the thread to gather information, not all of which may apply to your specific situation.

 

[2airishuman]

Right, so, I played the game, had the cheap compressor, expensive lesson, now I pay for fills. Learn from my mistakes.

It gives great satisfaction to be self-sufficient on fills. It's convenient. It's going to cost you somewhere in the $3500-$7,000 range to set it up with known good equipment from a reputable dealer. Or you can do what I did and try to do it on the cheap. I lost at least $1000 on a system that I could never get to work reliably and had to part out because no one could fix the pump. Years ago, there used to be surplus portable compressors available from various inexpensive sources -- military, USFS, fire departments. These sources have dried up and unless you want to get a 15 HP behemoth from a fire department that is upgrading (and have the electrical service that can run it) there's nothing out there but junk.

If you want a cascade you need a bigger and more expensive compressor because the smallest ones will overheat trying to fill a cascade. The cascade doesn't help much at home. I had a four bottle 4000 PSI cascade and could get maybe two fills of HP120s out of it then maybe two or three LP72s. Dive shops that have a dozen cascade bottles can maybe get through a typical weekday without having to start the compressor more than once which helps them because the compressor often needs watching and they only have one person minding the store at times. If you shop really carefully and wait and watch you can probably pick up old cascade bottles for $100 each, and then you'll have another $150 in hydro, new valves, fittings, and lines. So $1000 for 4 bottles plus the upcharge for a heavier duty compressor.

If you have room for a compressor and a cascade you have room for dive cylinders. I have a Chevy Bolt, it's tiny, I can carry all the cylinders I want in it. What do you drive, a motorcycle?

 

[Tracy]

If you are willing to buy used, $10k will get you in a nice used machine with a couple of bank bottles, filtration, and plumbing. I have sold a few such systems in the last few years.
If you drop the bank idea and don't mind waiting between fills, you can drop that to $5 or $6k with filtration.
You can also buy a Junior or an MCH6 and just replace it every few years.

 

[grf88]

If these are as good as they look the price would be OK if it included the filter that is talked about. Certainly not a raging deal but they appear to have had little use and are later models from appearance.
Rix Sweet 6 - Oil Free Air Compressor

 

[formernuke]

Ok, I'll plan 7k for compressor plumbing and one bottle, maybe 2 going above that is more than I need.

 

[TTPaws]

Ok, I'll plan 7k for compressor plumbing and one bottle, maybe 2 going above that is more than I need.

I'm keeping an eye on this, but I was looking at the Nuvair MCH-6, they had on sale fro $2500. I have a friend that has one and really likes it. But since I will be mostly filling my 2 liter rebreather bottles I plan using my steel 100s as my 'bank'

 

[Akimbo]

I'm not pumping O2, just filtering the air to maintain the tanks clean

If these are as good as they look the price would be OK if it included the filter that is talked about. Certainly not a raging deal but they appear to have had little use and are later models from appearance.
Rix Sweet 6 - Oil Free Air Compressor

A non-lubricated Rix compressor would eliminate the risk of contaminating your cylinders with hydrocarbons, and the risk of producing CO internally.

The compressor will go in the basement also closer to the electric wires that I will tie into. Tanks are kept on my first floor in the dive gear/ workout room. I know running the lines adds cost. I want to do the tiny bank as it makes filling nice and slow easier.

Just brainstorming here: The cost of running HP stainless tubing, extra gauges, and valves will probably be higher than running the power the extra distance. Of course noise control will be better leaving the compressor in your basement. I can also understand that you don't want to schlep tanks up and down stairs.

This may be a really "out there" idea but here goes: What if you build/install a lift from your exercise room/dive locker to the basement? A friend installed a one-person residential elevator for a disabled family member that made me think of it. You don't need anything as nice, or expensive, as these but you could cut a hatch between floor joist, mount a tank rack to it, and use a small electric hoist to raise and lower it.

 

[formernuke]

A non-lubricated Rix compressor would eliminate the risk of contaminating your cylinders with hydrocarbons, and the risk of producing CO internally.



Just brainstorming here: The cost of running HP stainless tubing, extra gauges, and valves will probably be higher than running the power the extra distance. Of course noise control will be better leaving the compressor in your basement. I can also understand that you don't want to schlep tanks up and down stairs.

This may be a really "out there" idea but here goes: What if you build/install a lift from your exercise room/dive locker to the basement? A friend installed a one-person residential elevator for a disabled family member that made me think of it. You don't need anything as nice, or expensive, as these but you cut a hatch between floor joist, mount a tank rack to it, and use a small electric hoist to raise and lower it.

I might look into wether a lift is plausible or not, might not be plausible as the workout room was an addition to the house so the walls are what used to be the exterior of the house.

 

[Akimbo]

I might look into wether a lift is plausible or not, might not be plausible as the workout room was an addition to the house so the walls are what used to be the exterior of the house.

That's a complication for sure. Is there any chance of building a storage closet that encroaches into an adjacent room that is above the basement? Another possibility might be to build a small shed outside your dive locker just for the compressor. It is very common for workshops and garages to house their LP compressors that way.

This brings up another thought. I suggest installing an air-intake for your compressor unless the air quality in your basement is free of mold or other possible contaminants.