As the title says, I am setting up shop in the basement. I have a compressor 60 Gal single stage that works well with my Hypertherm 1000.
Now that I am in the basement, I am taking advantage of the cooler air to do a condenser dryer out of 1 in copper.
The question really is around the way I am running the PTFE for a run of about 80-85 ft to get to the condenser from the tank, then to regulator to step down to motor guard then to plasma cutter. All said I am thinking about 90 feet max.
I thought about putting the condenser in the garage and running more or less the dry air down to basement, but temps and draining’s required would definitely not be efficient for me.
Just checking on your thoughts if any downsides from your experiences.
Basement plasma is a bit concerning, but with good fresh air circulation & safety I’m sure you’ll be fine.
I’ve got a 40 foot run of 1/2 copper from compressor to table. I did an HPC dryer & moto guard right at the table. I consider the 40’ of copper as my radiant cooler, easier to get water out of cool air.
I bought a 2-20 cfm airflow meter from mcmaster ( 8051K46 ) that I used to test that I’d have enough CFM. It pegged at 20cfm at the plasma cutter.
A bit concerning is a understatement… even if its a totally empty basement with bare concrete walls and floor its the smoke and plasma dust inside your house lol. I have a huge shop with 20’ ceilings and 4 ventilation fans and it still gets outta hand at times. Its not my house so not really my concern but when you mention leaving the compressor in the garage you obviously have one so why put the plasma table in the basement. Just a bit of a mindfuck to me.
Ummm…maybe his garage is unconditioned (heat or a/c) but his basement is. So he can just route an airline to the basement and work in relative comfort vs. freezing or broiling his butt off in the garage.
I could be off a little bit, but I’d think to properly mitigate all the potential health and safety hazards of running a plasma table in the basement would cost as much as insulating and heating all or part of a garage to run it in.
His life to live, and everyone has to make their own choices, but I’d be shocked if his insurance covered his house burning down from a fire caused by running the machine in the basement. I’d go so far as to say if they can find any documentation that comes with the table or his plasma cutter that advises against indoor use, he’d be lucky to get a dime if sparks caught his place on fire.
Is he going to burn his place down, not super likely as long as he’s careful. But I’m with @Fortifyfabworks, in my mind it’s kind of crazy to take the risk, especially when it’s going to involve capital investment either way if you seriously put time and effort into mitigating the fire and health risks of running in a basement.
Thanks for the responses. I do appreciate the feedback.
This is NOT my first rodeo into plasma, so I know exactly what I am getting into as far as dust, smoke, particulates and operation go.
It is a concrete basement, with fire retardant blankets with fire stop on all penetrations along with aluminum siding as extra shielding on the celling to help with the funneling of air around the room.
Just for FYI, it is simply build up one space or the other, and the way I have it situated I have a enclosed structure around the table, within a separate room within the basement, with differing levels of fresh air and exhaust air to the outside. I even have a little make up air to keep temp balanced in the winter.
I was only asking about the air line run, as I was wondering if anyone had long runs like that before the condenser before the plasma. I appologize if I was not clear on the specific question.
For helping newbies, your concern is appreciated and I know we are all looking out for one another. This forum does a great job of providing that very type of feedback.
My final comment - I get the sentiment, but it is my mindfuck and I will do what I please. I thank you for that type of comment helping me with my issue.
Strictly on the air line run, if you go with large enough ptfe tube, you shouldn’t have any issues with an 80’ run to get you to the basement (from a restriction standpoint). I would personally use 1" to get to the basement, and then build a finned 3/4" pipe condenser design that someone posted in another thread. That would save you some restriction and size for the condenser, and should be cheaper than building it from 1" copper.
I’d make sure the PTFE tube was all slanted towards the basement as much as possible so that there aren’t low spots that collect moisture, and it drains to your basement mounted condenser.
I’d make a little sign that says “Is compressor on?” Then I’d hang it on the cutter or control box so I’d remember to turn it on before starting and turn it off again when I shutdown. You don’t want the hose or pipe run spring a leak - if you’re not around, you might come back to find your compressor has burned itself out.
Oh so silly. Just add a mind reader module on/off switch to your compressor. Teach it “I’m gonna cut some metal” to turn on the compressor and then you’re done! Easy peasy.
TomWS, I have that same module. Works good for turning on but at times it malfunctions to turn off. I can’t see or hear the compressor running because its located in a small shed outside of my shop. I do have a red light bulb located next to my walk-thru door that sends a signal to my module which then turns it off.
Well that is a problem with mind readers. They don’t always work reliably. Seems like they act up whenever I’m confused about something. And that seems to be happening more and more often these days.
I have no idea what you are saying…my wife never malfunctions…she is right all the time…and now that she is not in the room I can say the truth…OUCH!!..she threw somethinbg from the other room…still works
