What Causes the Dewpoint to Spike on your Air Compressor?

The simple answer, dewpoint is the temperature at which condensation begins to form. The longer answer is dewpoint is the temperature at which water vapor in your compressed air is no longer vapor, and changes to a liquid form (condensation).

As your compressor is compressing air, the stored air can become very warm, meaning that it contains a lot of water vapor. As the air cools down, that vapor will turn to condensation. If enough condensation forms, you now have free-flowing water through your air lines.

Having water in your compressed air is never a good thing, and depending on the application, it can become catastrophic.


Causes Dewpoint to Spike?

Dewpoint readings can help diagnose several problems, so monitor the drying-air dewpoint throughout an entire dryer cycle.

Below are a few reasons to consider when your dryers' dewpoint spikes:

- Dirty Heat Exchanger

- Failed Cooling Fan

- Overloading the dryer either by high inlet temperature, high ambient temperature or low pressure

- Faulty drain valve

- Failed pre-filters

- Ambient air is leaking into the closed-loop circuit and causing premature loading of the desiccant.

- Totally inactive regeneration circuit or badly contaminated desiccant (or loss of refrigerant)

- Operate the dryer in a clean, temperature controlled, dry indoor area with minimum outlet piping to avoid back pressure on the purge line.

Dewpoint Demand Control (DPD)

The Dewpoint Demand control is an energy saver that can extend the drying cycle without purging, during periods of lower moisture loads. The Dewpoint Demand system offers, in one compact package, the utmost in flexibility and accuracy sensing the actual dewpoint of the outlet air. The hygrometer senses the dewpoint at the outlet of the dryer at the end of the drying cycle, and extends the drying cycle until the preset adjustable dewpoint setpoint is reached. During this extended drying cycle, the purge valves are closed and the opposite tower is pressurized and prepared for the drying cycle. The dewpoint demand option reduces purge loss and extends valve life. This option consists of the following:

β€’ Digital Dewpoint Display β€’ Adjustable Setpoints β€’ High Humidity Alarm Light with Dry Contact

Calibration:To maintain accuracy, the probe should be recalibrated annually. Recalibrated probes are available through your local distributor.

Probe Replacement: Isolate and depressurize the probe chamber. Disconnect the sensor cable from the sensor. Remove, and replace the probe. Pressurize the probe chamber and connect the sensor cable. A small amount of sample air (approximately 2-10 SCFH) should expel out the chamber needle valve.

Thank you to CP Compressors for video and technical article.

Do you have an idea for our #expertcorner?Β Let us know!

Useful links:

Book Your Compressor Service



Who we are and how Ash Air can help your business!

Ash Air has been around in New Zealand since 1979, and we’ve grown into a nationwide company with international support and a reputation for quality and reliability.We look after all things compressed air for your business!

  • Reciprocating, Screw, air compressors
  • Vacuum pumps
  • Nitrogen
  • An extensive line of air treatment components

Ash Air's range of Chicago Pneumatic, Alup, Pneumatech, and Quincy compressors are used extensively around the world in industries ranging from oil and gas to food, automotive and farming, and we bring you these world class compressors here in the land of the long white cloud.Our technicians are compressed air equipment experts and are dedicated to addressing customer needs. Supported by a 13 locations nationwide, Ash Air offers one of the widest selections of compressed air equipment and parts available today in New Zealand.

Reliability and Efficiency

With Ash Air compressors, you can count on reliability and high performance for even the most demanding applications. We focus our efforts on the following:

  • Increasing uptime
  • Reducing unexpected repairs
  • Reducing energy consumption
  • Improving the cleanliness of compressed air


Talk to the team today:  CONTACT US CONTACT US

Read more from our #expertcorner


Just like any other equipment, a compressed air installation also requires the necessary maintenance work during its entire lifespan. Even though maintenance costs are only about 5 to 10% of a machine's annual operating costs, failure to budget for maintenance can have potentially disastrous consequences. …


The air dyer is one of the most ignored cooler in the system. A dirty condenser will cause water in the lines, or worse it will cause complete dryer failure. …


Using nitrogen is not about fully replacing CO2, but it can reduce their consumption of CO2 by close to 70%. Using nitrogen is about sustainability. Creating your own nitrogen is easy and will reduce the use of a greenhouse gas, which is better for the environment. It will also save you money as early as month one adding that savings to your bottom line. …


A question that is occasionally asked by our customers to Ash Air is 'what is the cost of compressed air?'Β  This article looks at the product costs involved with compressed air, as well as minimising the energy cost of compressors and cost allocation. When looking at these factors, we need to realise what causes dropped efficiency of your compressor, leading to increased costs of compressed air. …


You may have great fall protection measures in place to keep employees safe when working at height, but what about their co-workers below? Dropped tools and other falling objects are a major hazard – and one that isn’t always fully addressed.Β  …


Providing a safe working environment for operators is essential, especially when using pneumatic tools and compressed air. If there is a failure in the air network and the hose is not adequately clamped, the resulting whiplash could be devastating. Failure to follow best practice can result in injuries, associated production downtime and decreased productivity. …


A common questions asked is why do I need an air dryer for my compressor? Typically, air compressors produce water, and although the water can be drained, there can still be aerosol and vapour droplets that are present. This is because water cannoet be compressed. Water can damage your compressor by corroding the valves, pipes and machinery controls, which will cost you time and money to resolve. In the long run, the cost of a new compressor is a small price to pay compared to the loss of production that could potentially arise due to water damage in your compressor.





…

Show More