Bought an air compressor...21% fills for now...concerns?

[Wookie]

All scuba compressor filters turn CO to CO2.

No. Only if they contain Hopcalite.

 

[Wookie]

Anybody that is running a compressor without a filter that converts CO to CO2 is not running a scuba compressor. Paintball, PCP air rifle yes, but not scuba. Some may say the exception would be an oilless compressor but even then if you get CO from another source you want to remove it.

Again, not true. A Mako 1801 contains just carbon. The 1803 contains carbon, hopcalite, and other goodies. Same filter, different function. Both are breathing air filters, but one is significantly less expensive. They fit in each other’s filter housings also, so it’s easy to get the wrong filter.

 

[rjack321]

Even "professional dive shops" sometimes get it wrong. I recently heard a rumour about bad tank fills that were blamed on an idling diesel delivery truck in the alley behind the shop.

Which would be a rumor.
Diesel engine dont produce CO, and any particulates are going to get removed by any competent condensers and filter.

 

[Superlyte27]

Which would be a rumor.
Diesel engine dont produce CO, and any particulates are going to get removed by any competent condensers and filter.

Are you sure about that? Pretty sure any internal combustion engine can produce CO if not functioning properly.

Diesel fumes do kill: a case of fatal carbon monoxide poisoning directly attributed to diesel fuel exhaust with a 10-year retrospective case and lite... - PubMed - NCBI

 

[BRT]

Yes. They should have their last analysis report available for customers. Ask for it if it isn't posted. Do they use inline CO detectors? Do you test your tanks for CO and oxygen content?

The other way is lawyers. I know someone who get poisoned on a dive. The tank analysis showed all sorts of nasty volatile organics and it turned out to be because the dive shop was repainting their tanks near the air intake, and apparently those kind of volatile organics passed through whatever filters they were using. "They aren't in business anymore" was said with evident satisfaction.

DAN will send you a free sampling kit if you think you got a bad fill. In most cases of scuba accidents it's on the list of things they check.

Their last analysis says nothing about the CO in their intake today.

 

[BRT]

No. Only if they contain Hopcalite.

If they do not contain hopcalite they should not be called scuba compressors.

 

[SentinelAce]

Looks like I opened a can of worms

 

[TrimixToo]

Looks like I opened a can of worms

Not really. A lot of people are, blissfully or otherwise, uneducated about how breathing air compressors work and how to make sure the compressor *system*, including its filtration, will produce breathable air. Some of us who own and operate our own for ourselves (like me) or commercially (like Frank, aka Wookie) and have troubled ourselves to become reasonably educated about them often advise people to do the same. Some of us speak up when an assumption or misunderstanding is one we think might be hazardous.

One of the best things you can do is call someone like Filter Techs or Lawrence Factor, tell them what you have, what you plan to do with the air (go diving), ask them what filters to use, and then *take their advice.* While you're at it, research the oils you can use in the compressor, use a high-quality synthetic oil designed for use in breathing air compressors that has a high flashpoint, and make sure you know how to operate the thing. Read Ted's article, let it sink in, monitor head temps, and operate the compressor when it's cool, if you can. Above all, have the air tested. You don't know what you're breathing unless you test it, and guessing is, well, guessing.

 

[Wookie]

If they do not contain hopcalite they should not be called scuba compressors.

We’re arguing the same point. Except you’re saying that it isn’t a scuba compressor (or a grade E compressor) if the correct filter isn’t installed. I think you can make grade E air in most situations with the wrong filter installed, but in some situations, (runs too hot, truck idling nearby) the hopcalite can save your bacon. But I know a lot of folks who run with the wrong filter and never fail an air test. They never perform one either.

 

[rjack321]

Are you sure about that? Pretty sure any internal combustion engine can produce CO if not functioning properly.

Diesel fumes do kill: a case of fatal carbon monoxide poisoning directly attributed to diesel fuel exhaust with a 10-year retrospective case and lite... - PubMed - NCBI

Ummm? from your own abstract....
"Lastly, an extensive literature review produced no scientifically reported cases of fatal CO poisoning attributed to diesel fuel exhaust.

Compression ignition of diesel fuel basically doesnt produce CO. Which is somewhat ironic because partial ignition of compressor oils, through heat and compression CAN produce CO.