Jump to content

Air compressors and fire codes


Recommended Posts

Anyone ran into any IFC requirements or issues as far as using a small air compressor in your space? We are looking at using one with a small sparser to clear our bottles before filling and wanted to know if there was any issues before our fire marshal raised them?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

There are generally some requirements for inspection of compressed air tanks above a certain volume (5 gallons?), but they are straightforward, proper pressure relief valve... This is usually inspected by the state boiler inspector, in NC that is in the department of labor.

Only thing I can think the fire marshall would be concerned about would be having an electric motor in a classified area. We have our air compressor in a separate room and pipe the air in to the classified areas.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I have a large air compressor and it had to be inspected by state Labor and Industry; same guy that inspected my steam boiler. They required me to bolt it to the floor and add vibration pads. They also required specific clearances for front/back/sides, etc. I did not have enough space where it was located to meet the minimum clearances but was able to apply for a variance. Inspector said mine was only subject to inspection as it was not small/portable but he did not elaborate on what the size limit is...

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The one we are looking at is really small. only 6.3 gallons. Do you think this would be big enough? We'd only ever be bottling around 100 cases in a day at our full production.

http://www.amazon.com/California-Air-Tools-CAT-6310-6-3-Gallon/dp/B00889ZYPQ/ref=sr_1_5?s=power-hand-tools&ie=UTF8&qid=1396178327&sr=1-5&keywords=oil+free+air+compressor

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Not sure what you are using it for, just the bottler? You should be able to look up air consumption rates for the equipment, and compare that to what the air compressor can provide. A small portable compressor would not be sufficient for most air pumps, it'll run constantly and you'll wear out the motor.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Sorghumrunner,

We would be using the air compressor to power our bottle sparger in order to clean our bottles out before bottling. We'd only really need a second our two per bottle and wouldn't be doing more than 100 cases over the course of a day so I figured I wouldn't need a much bigger one. Do you think we will need a bigger one? I'm just concerned about triggering a mountain slide of regulations by getting a bigger one.

Bottle Sparger

http://morewinemaking.com/products/clampon-double-bottle-sparger.html

Air Compressor

http://www.amazon.com/California-Air-Tools-CAT-6310-6-3-Gallon/dp/B00889ZYPQ/ref=sr_1_5?s=power-hand-tools&ie=UTF8&qid=1396178327&sr=1-5&keywords=oil+free+air+compressor
Link to comment
Share on other sites

oh yeah, you should be fine with a small compressor on that sparger. it's air pumps and agitators that can use up a lot of cfm, requiring a bigger tank and pump that can handle longer duty cycles.

you will want to put a good filter and regulator before the sparger, you don't want to blow water or odor into your bottles. you can find a selection of filters and air equipment on mcmaster-carr.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Sam, why don't you use compressed CO2, instead? It's cleaner, quieter...might even be cheaper. I used to sparge bottles with a 20 lb tank, and one tank lasted about 12 bottling runs, with 2088 bottles on each run. I'll also point out that I had better luck with this running the CO2 under 10 psi, instead of 30-45 as is recommended by the equipment manufacturers (I had an Enolta Mapan sparger)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...