Compressed Air Line Question

[Dougryan]

Hi,
I'm moving soon and will want to run some air lines in my garage and basement. Thinking of putting the compressor in the garage and would like a couple of ports and a hose reel. Then run a line to the basement for some light duty work... airbrush, blowing saw dust etc.

I've been reading up on the topic and have some questions about what material to use...

PVC - Cheap, easy to work with. Not recommended for air, but people use it anyway.
Copper - More expensive. Not as easy to work with, but I am comfortable with cutting and soldering. Don't think it's rated for air, but at least it won't shatter like PVC if it fails.
Iron pipe - More expensive and hard to work with (assuming I need to cut and thread odd lengths).
Air hose - Cheap, easy to work with. May need to use something rigid near the ports to stabilize the connectors.

I'm tempted to run 1/2" air hose for the long runs from the compressor across the garage and into the basement, then end the runs with short copper "L" sections to the quick connector. What do you think?
Would I need to purge the pressure in the air hose when not in use?
Would copper be better in the long term?

What have you done in your shops and garages?
Thanks,
Doug

 

[prichard]

Is the basement at lower elevation than garage? You could use hose or flexible tubing or even PEX but you need to avoid low spots that could allow water to accumulate. Then put a drop leg at outlet.

 

[George2615]

My compressor is along a wall in the middle of the garage. I ran a 25' hose line along the wall to the front of the garage where it connects to a 50' hose reel for any outside of garage air. In the back is just a 50' hose plugged directly in the compressor. Its been working fine for the past 15 years. My compressor has 2 full pressure outlets plus has a separate regulator with 2 more outlets to plug hoses in for reduced pressure jobs like painting. Hose is easy to replace if needed.

 

[Egon]

There are plastic lines designated for air usage.
Lots of Google I formation on how to layout air piping distribution systems.
Copper would be nice. Air hoses may tend to Deteriorate or may not allow enough flow.

 

[horses2]

easiest would be 3/4 air hose. plenty of flow and rated for just about any air pressure you want to run. the other benefit is 3/4 shop air hose is designed for tough shop use., so any run you would use would be easy for the hose. i would advise putting some sort of protector on the hose where it would run thru walls, floors, etc, to prvent a chaf thru failure.

another real good choice would be the Rapidair system from northen tool. 3/4 flex line, a variety of fitting and outlets, looks like a pretty good system.

 

[Midniteoyl]

Rapidair 9 Master Kit, 1/2-Inch x 1-Feet - Air Compressor Accessories - Amazon.com

 

[newbury]

The place I bought has airlines running along the walls of 3 of the 4 shops put in by a prior owner.

It's all black iron pipe about 3/4". Must be almost 200 linear feet of pipe, joints, etc. It's hooked to a 120 or 200 gallon tank with a 5HP compressor. Unfortunately the pump sounds like it blew a valve or something so it needs replacing and is moderately low on my to do list.

 

[KennyG]

Best would be threaded pipe. If you want to avoid the cutting/threading just make up air hose sections to go between sections and to avoid transmitting vibration. I think copper would be OK but I think the cost would not be favorable. The specialized air distribution line systems look great but they cost is pretty high.

Whatever you do, don't use PVC. I know people have used it for years, but if something falls on a line, someone can be killed.

 

[bigtiller]

When going through the wall into the basement, I would use 3/4 black iron pipe. Making sure that it is sealed to the wall well and secured hard enough that the seal won't break when making a connection. Before and after the wall, I'd probably just use a rubber air hose. But it sure would be nice to have 3/4 black iron all the way.

 

[Birdhunter1]

Copper refrigeration tubing would work, refrigeration pressures and temperatures are higher than what you will see on a compressed air system. It comes in roll form and with the proper bender you would have less joints, compression fitting and/or soldered/brazed joints can be utilized.