If you are looking for more details, kindly visit NAILI.
Your compressed air filters need replacement… what do you choose? Those expensive OEM filters or a cheaper copy of them? Nowadays, for almost any brand and model of compressed air filter, there is a cheaper brand or no-name brand available. Those cheaper filter will fit perfectly in the original filter housing. So, is it a good idea to go cheap? Or is buying an original filter money well spend? OEM Filters With OEM filters, I mean filters made by the original manufacturer. So if your compressed air installation was once installed by Ingersoll Rand for example, you most probably have matching Ingersoll Rand compressed air filters for your Ingersoll Rand air compressor. Cheaper Alternatives With cheaper copies I mean all non-OEM filters that have the same size and are designed to fit in the same filter enclosures and are marketed as alternatives to the orriginal. Which one is best for you? So, which one is best for you? Of course it’s not right to just generalize all ‘cheaper alternatives’. There are differences. There are alternative filters that perform equal, or better, than the original filter. The problem is, how do you know? I’ve done a quick search online and found more than a dozen of companies offering their own brands of replacement filters. For some, you can download the datasheet and check the specs. For many, you can’t. I would steer clear of any filter without any datasheet, quality class and/or pressure drop information. If you do want to compare an alternative filter (with datasheet!) to an original filter, keep the following in mind. Air Quality Compare air quality ratings and make sure these are both using same standard. If the quality of the compressed air is important for you, make 100% sure that the replacement filter performs on the same level Running Costs By far the highest cost in a compressed air system is the running cost. Electricity! Did you know that your compressor costs (purchase price) about the same as 1 year of electricity? Over the lifetime of a compressor, electricity amounts for more than 75% of total cost. One of the ways to lower the running costs is to reduce pressure drop. In fact, reducing pressure drop should be your top priority! Looking for a cheaper filter is most of the times the opposite to this! Pressure drop increases your running costs There are some really good high quality replacement filter manufacturers out there. They make great filters with the same or even lower pressure drop then the original filter. But most filters fail miserably in this category. If your new replacement filter has a pressure drop of 0.4 bar instead of 0.2 bar … it could cost you thousands of dollars per year! Other things to consider There are some other things to consider when choosing between OEM filter or replacement filters. Firstly, look at the rate of saturation, or how fast the filter fills up with dirt and start under-performing. This will both affect the pressure drop and the air quality. Simply said, a datasheet might show an initial pressure drop of 0.1 bar. But the filter might clog up much quicker compared to another filter and reach an higher pressure drop very fast. Also, check the warranty conditions of your equipment. In this article I focused on compressed air filters, so it probably wont impact your air compressors’ warranty. But it might affect the warranty of an air dryer if it is installed downstream of the compressed air filter. Note the cost savings in this article are only true for bigger systems and systems that are used continuously. If your compressor runs just a few hours per week, this is less true. Is it worth it? The way I see it is this: if you’re serious about your compressed air and you use lots of it, your running costs (electricity) will be so high that: 1) you probably wouldn’t mind paying a few hundred dollars for a new filter 2) Any reduction in pressure loss will quickly pay back for the filter. If you’re paying 10.000 dollars a month in electricity, are you going to spend your time worrying about a cheaper compressed air filter, and save maybe $100 a year? Or, are you going to spend your time reducing pressure drops, fixing leaks and making your compressed air system more efficient? And it also means you could spend your time looking for a better performing non-OEM filter! That could save you thousands or tens of thousands a year!
In the world of compressed air systems, the air compressor filter is an unsung hero. It plays a crucial role in ensuring the efficiency, longevity, and safety of your equipment.
Whether you're a seasoned professional or a newcomer to the field, understanding the importance of air compressor filters and how to maintain them can save you time, money, and headaches. This comprehensive guide will delve into the various aspects of air compressor filters, from their types and functions to the benefits of regular maintenance.
Imagine if you wake up one day, looking forward to drinking your amazing coffee, and you run out of filters. This means your morning coffee is full of grounds and clumps of thick, muddy gunk. That’s a bad new, especially when you remember how wonderful coffee is when it’s properly filtered.
As for the coffee, also your compressed air risks to be contaminated. An air compressor filter is essential for any compressor installation as it protects the system from harmful particles like dirt, dust, and oil. A high-quality air compressor filter not only prevents damage to equipment and downstream machinery but also safeguards the manufactured product, avoiding loss of production and minimizing the risk of heavy costs.
When you install an air compressor filter, you:
Particulate air filters are designed to remove dust, pollen, dirt and other impurities. The better the quality of the filter, the smaller the particulates it blocks. And the quality of the air you need will define the quality of filter you need. All the nasties are trapped on the outer side of the filter, with only air of an acceptable quality passing through into your compressed-air network.
Particulate air filters are most frequently used after an adsorption dryer. If you find there’s still too much moisture in your air after it’s passed through the particulate filter, you may want to look at a coalescing filter. And if you want a finer filter to remove fumes and vapours, an activated carbon filter should do the trick.
Also known as vapour removal filters, activated carbon filters remove vapours. In fact, the activated carbon in the filter attracts and draws vapours to the filter. This means any kind of gaseous contaminants like chemical fumes and chemical vapours—even odours and smells—are filtered out.
Want more information on inline compressed air filter? Feel free to contact us.
The filter has a large surface area, giving the activated carbon a much larger opportunity to work its magic. Of course, as the filter becomes more saturated or clogged with the vapours it has filtered out of the air, it will need to be replaced. Otherwise, the pressure will drop. And, of course, you don’t want that.
Activated carbon filters are mostly used in the food-processing industry and other places that require the production of pure, clean, breathable air.
The filters are very easy to maintain. For this reason, they’re often combined with one of the particulate filters you’ve just read about. This offers extra protection in case any of the carbon particles break off the filter and escape into the air.
Of course, there are times when there are better options than activated carbon filters. If you need to remove moisture from your air, you’re best using a coalescing air filter.
Coalescing air filters are designed to remove liquids and moisture. This makes them sound like air dryers. They’re different, and, they work best when operating in conjunction with an air dryer. Install your coalescing air filter a little further down the line from your air dryer so that the majority of the moisture has been removed. Otherwise, your coalescing air filter will become saturated very quickly.
A coalescing filter is best dealing with water, lubricants and other oils when they’re travelling as tiny little particles in an aerosol form. The coalescing air filter basically opens up pathways that force the tiny particles to collide with each other and form larger particles that are more easily caught and filtered out.
It's worth noting that coalescing air filters will catch other particulates, like dust, pollen and dirt, that a particulate filter would also catch. This means that coalescing air filters score big points for versatility. However, this compressed air filter types are not as efficient as the particulate or the activated carbon ones. They need to be replaced fairly regularly to avoid pressure drop.
The first step to identifying what compressed air filter type you need is to find out the quality of compressed air you need. If you’re inflating the tyres of trucks in a quarry, you won’t need the same air quality as a dentist or a company manufacturing medicines. The quality of air you need will define the type of compressed air filters you need in your compressed air network. Of course, it is possible to filter the air to an incredibly fine degree in any situation. However this is a very costly solution.
You’ll also want to factor in the long-term costs. There are compressed air systems with a relatively small price tag when they’re sitting on the shelf. However, the cost of operations, repairs and new materials will add up over time. If you’re just looking at an air compressor for occasional use, this won’t be a problem. If you’re going to be using it continuously, you’ll want to do a bit of extra homework.
Are you interested in learning more about hydraulic driven air compressors? Contact us today to secure an expert consultation!