What's better than canned air?

From: J.C.Wren <jcwren_at_jcwren.com>
Date: Tue Jan 21 08:38:01 2003

        There are oil extractors that remove oil, water, and down to .5 micron
particles. You'll pay for such filters. SCUBA tanks are actually a decent
way to go, with a $100 or so initial expense. You can buy used 80CF tanks
for $25 or so. These can be refilled for about $8 at any SCUBA shop.
You'll have to get periodic visual inspection, and a hydro test every 5
years or so. Buy a used regulator through your local newspaper or sellers
magazine (we have one that comes out every Tuesday that's several hundred
pages).

        80CF will go a long way, assuming you don't just get down on the nozzle and
let it run. And it will be very clean and pure. Our dive shop has a
massive filtration system. The other reason, by the way, that divers don't
fill at the local gas station is you can't get 3000PSI, and the risk of
carbon monoxide and such getting into the tank. At depth, that stuff will
kill you faster than licking 220VAC mains. Most dive shops use electric
compressors, and they have extractors for CO on them. There are some that
use gas for portable fills, but they have carefully managed exhaust and
intake systems.

        You can also buy bottled Nitrogen at your local welding shop. This isn't
very cost effective, however. They charge about $20 to refill my 40CF Argon
bottle for my solder paste dispenser. Nitrogen is cheaper, but they still
have a minimum fill fee. I think it's around $10. And because the bottles
have to be trackable, you'll either have to buy or lease from them, or keep
up with your paper work. Purchase for my 40CF Argon bottle was about $70,
filled, IIRC.

        The SCUBA tank is actually the most viable if you need portable air, too.
You can buy a backpack harness for next to nothing, which makes a convienent
carrying handle. SCUBA is accepted for transport everywhere, including
through tunnels (unless it's changed, welding gasses are not. Or maybe it's
just the flammable or oxidizers, dunno). And in most towns, it's easier to
find a dive shop than it is a welding supply store. And the dive shop
people are often friendlier.

        --John


> -----Original Message-----
> From: cctalk-admin_at_classiccmp.org
> [mailto:cctalk-admin_at_classiccmp.org]On
> Behalf Of Ron Hudson
> Sent: Tuesday, January 21, 2003 09:02
> To: cctalk_at_classiccmp.org
> Subject: Re: What's better than canned air?
>
>
>
> On Tuesday, January 21, 2003, at 03:27 AM, Jeffrey Sharp wrote:
>
> > The goal: extremely localized, high-velocity stream of air.
> I want to
> > remove
> > dust and crud from those impossible nooks and crannies of
> classiccmps.
> >
> > Current solution: canned air - expensive, doesn't work well
> after one
> > or two
> > minutes of spraying, not really high enough velocity. Bad.
> >
> > Other options:
> > - Shop-Vac in reverse operation, fitted with custom cable?
>
> Beware static!!!
>
> > - Compressor? (I don't know much about these).
>
> Compressors can add very small ammounts of oil to the air, thus SCUBA
> divers fill don't
> fill their tanks at the local gas station but instead us special
> compressors.
>
> > - Better, cheaper canned air (does it exist)?
> > - Dust-removing nano-bots? (jk)
> >
> > Discuss, please. What do *you* use instead of consumer canned air?
> >
> > --
> > Jeffrey Sharp
> >
> >
>
Received on Tue Jan 21 2003 - 08:38:01 GMT