[SRT Mike]

With things heating up in the north east, I'm getting lots of water in the air - I need an air dryer.

All I have hooked up is a sandblast cabinet I use very rarely, a VMC I run all the time, an electonics placement machine that uses very little air (I can find the specs) and I am hoping to get a CNC lathe soon.

The manual from my mill says it uses "500-6000N L/min @ 6kgf/cm2". I understand the 6kg/cm2 is the pressure, and its around 85 or something. But what in the heck is 500-6000N L/min? 500 to 6,000 L/min is HUGE CFM. This is a very small Leadwell MCV-0P so its a real small machine, I cant imagine the air req is huge.

I am trying to figure out the CFM I want for an air dryer. Should I just get one that flows more CFM than my compressor puts out and go from there? If I added another compressor later or upgraded I wouldn't mind upgradnig the compressor. Or should I size the dryer CFM based on what the machines consume?

Thanks!

[Geof]

1.7 to 20 cfm at 85psi is not that unbelievable; well okay the 20 is a bit high but the 1.7 sounds right.

I suggest checking prices. You will probably find that getting a drier that is twice as big as you need doesn't cost twice as much. But if you something just big enough now and then have to upgrade later you will end up paying twice as much.

[2muchstuff]

I would get a dryer that exceeds the capacity of your compressor so as not to "work it to death". When the time comes to replace/ upgrade your compressor you won't have to get a bigger dryer, money well spent. As for the type of dryer I would get one or two air filters with drains to help get some of the water/ oil out followed by a refrigerated dryer. I'm in the mid-west and know what you mean about the humidity.

500- 6000 litres/ min seems to be rather large. It may be nano-litres, which is a small amount.

[SRT Mike]

Thanks for the info - on the dryer is there any preferred brands or things to look for? They seem pretty simple and low-power (meaning not 3-phase). My compressor has a 40-gal tank and does 8cfm, so its pretty small. I planned to put a coalescing filter before it (or get one of the ones with a built in C-filter) then into the dryer. I think I will just get one off eBay unless anyone has a reason not to?

On the flow rating - it says 500-6000N L/min. Whats the "N"? In equations/ratings I normally figure that as Newtons, but it can't be for air, I dont think.

[Geof]

....On the flow rating - it says 500-6000N L/min. Whats the "N"? In equations/ratings I normally figure that as Newtons, but it can't be for air, I dont think.

Yes N is Newton; approximately equal to 1/4lb. It is possible that in the 500-6000N L/min the N means normal atmospheric pressure. Compressor volum rating is always the free air volume; i.e your unit takes in 8 cf every minute and compresses it to whatever pressure.

The specifications you quoted are not really using proper units for pressure either. The correct unit is Pascals (I think); Newtons per square meter. One atmosphere is about 100 kilopascals (I think).

It is wonderful how different measuring systems get mixed these days; like the 4 by 8 sheet of 15 mm plywood.

[JPMach]

Mine is a ACE Purifacation air dryer that will more than handle my 16 cfm compressor and it runs on 115VAC. Cost wasn't bad, I want to say around $300-$500.
I would agree though to at least get one big enough for the compressor you have if not a little bit more. I think though that there is a limit to this thinking with dryers as if you get way to big of one that the little bit of air that actually gets use doesn't permit it to work effectively.
I have had mine for almost two years now and haven't had a problem with it yet (fingers crossed now that I said that).

JP

[ViperTX]

JPMach....thank you for chiming in and providing an excellent answer......geesch where is the 'common sense'?