How do we get cooler fill air on HOT days?

[lloyd_borrett]

Are they in the same room as the compressors or outside ?

In the same room. Air conditioning that room isn't an option.

 

[GrumpyOldGuy]

In the same room. Air conditioning that room isn't an option.

Do you at least have a big ass fan on the compressor? We have a hot climate (100F is common), local shop used A/C, fans and water cooling. Maybe overkill, but the fills are good and the setup as been working for years (20+) with no issues.

 

[AZ-DivePro]

OK, just to think out of the box. Invest in more rental tanks and start an exchange program for tank owners. They bring in their tanks and get a rental set for the cost of the fill and upon return they get their slow filled max pressure set back which sets them up for the next day's diving. It would definitely fulfill the customer service experience.

 

[supergaijin]

G'day,

When the temperature is in the 35 to 45 deg C (95 to 115 deg F) range here on busy summer days the dive shop compressors work very hard. The result is very hot air through the whole system.

What do people here suggest be done to mitigate the situation?

I guess having the cylinders in a cool water tub while being filled might help.

Here in the Maldives I double-dip the tanks. I have a small compressor with 2 whips. I fill to approx 3000psi which takes on average 15mins (7.5 mins per tank), then cool them in water outside the compressor room (in one of the rinsing tanks that was used for rinsing equipment). If I fill at least 8 tanks, the 2 first tanks are now cold and can be topped up and I get consistant fills. The last tanks to fill may still be a little warm and I either reserve them for me (I don't mind if I'm under) or leave them as 'hot tanks' to top-up the next day.

Double dipping is a PITA, it takes more time, effort and you have to be careful not to get water in to the valves. However even 20mins in water (approx half depth of the tank) does a surprising amount of cooling- I see about 100-150psi pressure loss when I reattach them to top them up.

I would like to attach more whips to the compressor so that the average fill time increases. 6 whips sould triple the time to fill the tanks resulting in slower, cooler fills. I think there would still be a lot of heat generated, meaning some kind of after cooling will still be required... or you over-fill the tank and let the pressure reduce naturally overnight. This does mean working the compressor longer at higher pressures- something I try to avoid.

Cooling the air before the final filter will extend your filters, but compressing air will always result in hot air.