Air lines for Shop

You're right, the main runs are always iron pipe, but in industrial use the main runs are much longer and are exposed to more hazards. Plowjockey is only using this for a 3 car garage and probably won't be at risk of damage from fork lifts, etc. Since he stated that iron wasn't an option, I think poly is the next best thing in this application.

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I did a build-out of a pole barn a few years ago. Diesel mechanic wanted to make it into a shop. I ran 3/4" PEX in the walls. Each of the dozen outlets were tee'ed into the line, and connected to drop-ear elbows. The 1/2" elbows where screwed into the posts with brass pipe nipples coming out of the wall. A 90deg elbow down, and then the quick couplers. The stub-outs were very solid. No problems with UV, since all of the PEX was in the walls.


3/4" pex at 100psi and 20cfm will have a pressure drop of 1-1/2 psi/100 foot of run. When you run an air impact wrench at 5cfm, the drop is negligible.


When I was doing research on the best cost/ease of installation for the system, most of the people I had read about had positive results from using PEX.

Michael

Looking at the PEX spec sheet, the allowable pressure varies with temperature.

http://www.everhotinc.com/barrier-pex-tech-specs.pdf

That's true for pretty much any material, including steel. Naturally, plastics are going to run a little closer than metals, so it's probably a good idea to take temp into consideration.

__________________
Only the paranoid survive.

I carry a gun because a cop is too heavy.

Dispatches From The Conservative Underground

Most air tools I've seen are rated max 90 psi. PEX is rated for 100psi at 180degF. If you're hand tools get hot when using them, this is the pressure you should probably use.

In the build-out I did, the compressed air goes through a refrigerated air dryer, so the system can be rated for 145psi at 73degF.

Michael