Signs your air compressor may need emergency service

Your air compressor needs to be working properly for efficient, productive operations. However, routine, professional maintenance is essential to keeping your compressor in excellent condition. 

Of course, there are signs your compressor needs preventive maintenance. The following air compressor signs are dire and may indicate you need more extensive service or even emergency service.

Declining or abnormal air pressure

If you notice that your compressor is frequently providing inconsistent air pressure, or if the air pressure has sharply declined, you need to call a technician. Inconsistent air pressure indicates that your compressor’s parts may be succumbing to wear and tear.

Decreasing air pressure, on the other hand, is a sign that you may have an air leak. An air leak will force your machine to use more energy to run, leading to higher energy bills. A skilled technician can locate and fix the leak to restore your machine’s energy efficiency. 

Noisier

Although air compressors tend to be loud while running, if your compressor is making more noise than usual, it probably needs to be serviced. A loud air compressor may have loose parts, be poorly mounted, or have crankcase issues.   

Moving more

Air compressors vibrate. But some compressors can vibrate so much that they’re nosier and shake. A vibration analysis can help determine what’s going on and why. If your compressor is moving more than usual, it’s a good time to call for service.

Overheating

The average air compressor’s optimal operating temperature range is 50℉ to 85℉. If your air compressor becomes very hot while operating or even shuts down from overheating, you should schedule a maintenance visit ASAP. Overheating can significantly damage your air compressor. 

Hard to start

A brand-new air compressor should power up immediately or almost immediately. If your compressor now takes a long time to power up, you should have it looked at by a professional. Taking a long time to turn on can indicate that the air compressor is starting to break down. 

Elevated can service your compressor

Don’t panic. Our trained expert team can help with any compressed air issue you have. For those emergencies, we’re available 24 X 7 in Ohio, South Carolina, and Michigan.

Signs your air compressor needs service

There are lots of signs your air compressor needs service — it’s dripping oil, it’s smoking, it’s noisier than usual, etc. Those are obvious. But there are times when your compressor needs service and it’s not as obvious. Here are a few:

Run-time or calendar

signs your air compressor needs service infographic

Consider run-time as part of your preventive maintenance. We recommend annually or every 2,000 hours, whichever comes first.

Weather

Extreme weather can cause big problems to your air compressor, either when it’s too hot or too cold. One tip for hot weather: try power washing your air compressor.

Plant conditions

Dirty, dusty, and other poor environmental conditions can cause issues with your air compressor. For these environments, we recommend more frequent service.

Higher costs and energy

Another good time to get service or an audit is when you notice higher-than-expected energy bills. You may even think you need a new compressor when you need to determine what’s wrong with your current setup. Easy ways to determine include an air demand analysis, leak audit, or other analysis to investigate the culprit.

Contact us for service

At Elevated Industrial Solutions, we provide maintenance and audits before your air compressor becomes an emergency. Our technicians have experience taking care of every major brand of compressor. And we service locations across the tri-state area – Ohio, Kentucky, and Indiana – as well as South Carolina.

We even have 24/7 service for emergencies. (We just hope it doesn’t come to that!)

This is why you don’t use PVC

PVC is lightweight, inexpensive, and easy to purchase at any local building supply store, making it all the more attractive when it comes to selecting piping materials for a compressed air system.

Using PVC, however, has its risks and in certain areas, it may not be code compliant. It also carries a static charge which can lead to spontaneous combustion in certain dust-filled environments, it’s subject to bursting (yes bursting), and the adhesives used in installation are not compatible with all types of compressor oils. Despite the safety issues, many small shops and even some larger plants continue to use it.

A couple of years back we were installing a compressor at a medical device manufacturer in Colorado, and we noted the plant’s wide use of PVC piping. I asked the shop manager (who was three weeks from retiring) whether they’d had any issues with PVC cracking or bursting under pressure. He said yes, many times. “Pieces fly across the room.” He would just replace them. “No one’s been hurt so far…”

In a room with 4 huge, expensive injection molding machines and many employees, he saw no need to change. Different strokes, I guess.

Here are two more examples:

1. The remains from a 2” PVC pipe burst at a manufacturing plant in Texas. Thankfully no injuries, but some unscheduled changing of underwear.

2. In a small customer paint shop in Texas, a large section of PVC pipe burst during normal operation. Again, there were no injuries.

If you have PVC pipe in your shop or factory, make sure it’s pressure rated and regularly check it for signs of cracking.

For those of you considering using PVC pipe, I urge you not to—it’s really not worth the risk.

Why frequent air compressor maintenance and audits

Air compressors are the lifeblood of many facilities – keeping your business going. They help you deliver your company’s products on time and on budget. Compressor Station Audits can assist too, in ensuring you’re using your equipment to the best of its ability.

Together, preventive maintenance and audits (air compressor service), keep a facility running.

Preventive maintenance

Did you know that you should be having your air compressors serviced at least once a year or for every 2,000 – 3, 000 hours of service? In addition, extreme weather conditions – caused during winter and summer – are great times to get your air compressor serviced.

air compressors preventive maintenance

At a minimum, compressors need a variety of routine maintenance:

  • Fittings and belts tightened and inspected
  • Oil changed
  • Filters changed
  • General inspections
  • Cleaning of all coolers and drains
  • Collection of oil samples for testing
  • Recording amp draw
  • Recording voltage
  • Checking for abnormal vibrations and noise
  • Injection and discharge oil temp
  • Lubricating drive motor bearings

If you’re behind on your maintenance or considering an audit, here are a few good reasons to invest in maintenance … before it’s too late.

Save money on replacing a compressor as well as get more efficiency

It probably goes without explaining that preventive maintenance can save money in the long term. A new air compressor, being replaced after not maintaining your old one, is costly.

What often happens, though, are air compressors being used inefficiently due to lack of maintenance. One auto shop couldn’t keep up with customer demand due to delayed maintenance.

Prevent shutting down your plant or handling costly repairs

When air compressors aren’t serviced regularly, they become more apt to break down or quit completely. Of course, when an air compressor breaks down, the facility could come to a halt. Shutting down operations costs your company time and money, even potentially impacting your customers.

But it goes beyond stopping or slowing operations. The labor costs for emergency repairs can be expensive, too. Although Compressed Air Technologies handles emergencies, including middle-of-the-night repairs, we don’t recommend customers wait for that scenario.

Prevent injured workers and fines

You also probably know that if compressors are mishandled or misused, they can be dangerous, causing serious issues. Those issues can vary wildly from hearing damage to killing a worker.

If a worker does become injured on the job, including his hearing damaged, they can file a worker’s compensation claim and potentially even sue your company. One law firm indicates their median settlement for hearing loss is around $55,000.

OSHA has standards for how air compressors are used in facilities, even where they’re used. Violations of those OSHA standards can be expensive; OSHA fines are up to $70,000 per violation.

Audits

Audits are an important part of the equation for keeping your facility running. Typically, managers ask for an audit before adding compressors. Audits provide a snapshot of overall controls, get an idea of peak usage and capacity, and more.

Audits are used for the following:

  • Weaknesses in your existing system, including leakage
  • Inefficiency in the compressors you’re using, including too much horsepower
  • Providing guidance on reconfiguring your current system for better airflow

Save money from buying another compressor

By receiving an audit, you can identify whether you really need an additional compressor. Compressed Air Technologies technicians often see managers ready to buy a new compressor when one isn’t necessary. Many times, air compressors aren’t being fully utilized. Technicians and engineers can help you reconfigure your setup to ensure maximum efficiency.

Not purchasing an additional – and unnecessary – air compressor could save thousands of dollars. For example, Kaeser has a case study on one audit, where they identified a furniture company that was wasting $600,000.

Save money on energy and energy consumption

Audits can point out leaks to reduce them as well as ensure energy is being used efficiently. Even if energy consumption isn’t an overall goal of your company (such as those seeking ISO certifications or meeting tight environmental standards), it can save money. After all, the more compressors you’re using, the more energy you’re consuming.

One Kaeser case study indicates one company saved (with a utility rebate) $78,031 in the first year alone. Audits are a fraction of that cost.

Audits + maintenance together

Audits + Maintenance – it’s the formula for running an efficient facility. Together they can save you money. They keep workers safe, prevent unnecessary fines and lawsuits, and keep your plant moving.

At Elevated Industrial Solutions, we enable you to meet customer demands on time and on budget. Our technicians have a combined 60+ years of experience. And although we handle late-night emergencies, we provide – and can help you schedule – regular maintenance to prevent catastrophes at your facilities.

Custom-engineered air compressor solutions

Custom-engineered solutions are designed for the most demanding installations and harshest of environments. These complete systems are exceptionally reliable, simple to maintain, and have superior energy efficiency, no matter what the installation limitations may be. Space, weather, and accessibility constraints are eliminated with reduced construction, installation, and operating costs.

These custom-engineered solutions are completely turnkey, reducing onsite planning and installation costs, which save you time since there is no need to build a new compressor room or add onto an existing building. They can even be built to be moved from one site to another. Every component is selected with your installation and location in mind.

Plan and design

Whether you call it planning, designing, or even engineering, we start by partnering with you to determine what you need. We’ll ask a series of questions based on your environment to start spec-ing out the best solutions, including your enclosure or skid configuration. We’ll use that information to begin designing the necessary wiring, and power distribution to a single service connection.

Then, we add thermostatically controlled inlet louvers and exhaust ducting as well as supplemental heating as needed for reliable operation nearly anywhere on the planet. Based on your system requirement, we select the right compressors to meet your pressure and flow needs and mount them to the floor with vibration isolators. Air treatment comes next and includes dryers, filters, receiver tanks, and condensate management. We have options for every grade of compressed air quality from the shop to the instrument to oil-free and even breathing air.

Prepare and deliver

After that, we run piping throughout the package to a single connection that ties the entire system directly to your plant. To efficiently control air output and remotely monitor the system for preventative maintenance, planning, and troubleshooting we install Kaeser’s Sigma Air Manager 4.0. (SAM 4.0) also constantly measures and reports energy consumption. Your system will give you complete access for maintenance and repair.

Finally, we deliver your customized air system to you.

Don’t worry about site preparation, just provide a level surface capable of holding the weight of the system. Whether you need compressed air, blower, or vacuum systems give us your spec and we’ll deliver a complete system faster than you can budget, plan, permit, and build a new building or expand an existing facility.

Elevate works to design these custom-engineered solutions

We have experts who help design these custom-engineered solutions, working with Kaeser to get them to your location whether you’re in South Carolina, Ohio, or Michigan. We also provide services (such as preventive maintenance and emergency repairs) as well as traditional compressed air systems. When it comes to compressed air systems, we do it all.

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