Compressed Air Leak Detection: A Complete Solutions Guide
Industrial compressed air is invaluable in manufacturing, supplying power for tools, factory machines, and even heating and cooling. Compressed air is safer than electricity because it doesn’t generate sparks, and there is a lower risk of electrical shock. However, compressed air systems are prone to leaks. According to the U.S. Department of Energy, leaks waste as much as 20%-30% of an air compressor’s energy.
These leaks end up costing your company in terms of maintenance and lost productivity. A small leak also wastes energy and can cost you as much as $2,000 a year in excess expenses. Thankfully, detecting leaks sooner lets you fix them and save your money. Here, we cover compressed air leak detection, including what to look for and how to fix it.
Spotting the Culprits: What Causes Compressed Air Leaks?
Multiple factors contribute to leaks from regular wear and tear to poor installation. Compressed air leaks often happen around joints, couplings, hoses, and seals. These connections weaken under pressure.
Leaks are also caused by damaged or worn components and poor maintenance. When you’re not maintaining your air compressors regularly, the oil lubricating system and other critical components can break down. Your machines become more vulnerable to damage and spring leaks.
These leaks don’t just impact your budget. They also make your machines consume more energy and they release more CO2 into the environment. If your compressor system uses oil to lubricate its parts, leaks can release this oil into your water supply. Smart water management can help you detect these leaks.
Prevent leaks by inspecting your compressors for loose connections and listen for hissing sounds. Or use a compressor leak detection system.
Compressed Air Leak Detection Methods That Actually Work: From Manual to Smart
If you hear a hissing sound, your leak may be worse than it seems. For this reason, manual inspections aren’t the most effective way to detect leaks. Traditional compressed air leak detection methods include:
Compressor Monitoring: Check and record the pressure gauge measurements and compare the compressor’s performance to regular levels and manufacturing specifications. If you notice large anomalies, your compressor could be leaking.
Soapy Water: If you’re not into spreadsheets, try the soapy water test. Apply soapy water to hoses in areas where you suspect leaks. If it bubbles, you have a leak.
Ultrasonic Leak Detection: Save yourself the time of soaping up your machine with an ultrasonic leak detector. This tool uses microphones, amplifiers, audio filters, and a sensor to listen for leaks.
Thermal Imaging: These systems use cameras to monitor temperature changes, which can signal leaks.
Energy Monitoring: If you have a system in place to monitor your energy consumption, sudden spikes can signal a compressor leak.
How to Choose the Right Compressed Air Leak Detection Equipment
Since you probably don’t have time to walk through your factory soaping up all your machines, consider investing in compressed air leak detection equipment. Understanding how to choose indoor air quality monitors will also help you pick leak detection systems. Consider these factors as you’re shopping for a system:
Sensitivity: A complex or large air compressor system requires sensitive equipment to detect multiple leaks.
Range: Look for a system that measures a wider range of sounds.
Ease of use: Find compressed air leak detection equipment that is easy to learn and use. You’ll have to train your maintenance team so find equipment that cuts back on training time.
Integrations: If you’re getting an automated leak detection system, make sure it integrates with your building management system and other IoT for smart buildings software so you can monitor all your data in one location.
From Insight to Action: How to Quantify and Prioritize Leaks
When you’re using large air compressors throughout your plant, leaks are common. So how do you decide which leaks to fix first? First, do an energy audit of your compressed air system and start measuring output.
Collecting and analyzing your site-wide data will show where you’re using the most energy and where humidity is building up in your building. Prioritize leaks in high-volume areas, because they will likely impact operations the most. Then go through and fix leaks in lower-output areas of your facility. Use these tips for humidity reduction to improve your indoor air quality after you’ve fixed compressor leaks.
Once you’ve fixed your air compressor leaks, develop standards for routine maintenance and inspection. You’ll see a cost savings over time, and you won’t risk losing productivity when one of your machines breaks.
Implementing a Leak Detection and Monitoring Program
Routinely assessing your facility using compressed air leak detection services will help you identify and fix leaks before they become a problem. With regular leak detection, you will likely see reduced operating costs, faster repair time, and lower maintenance costs.
First, choose your compressor leak detector method. Then set standard times to take measurements. You might choose to perform checks every 4-6 weeks or schedule routine checks with maintenance tasks.
If you’re already using sensors to monitor energy usage, look for increases or sudden spikes. When you notice your energy usage going up, start testing your compressors for leaks.
How Attune Simplifies Compressed Air Leak Detection at Scale
Attune’s real-time energy management system continuously monitors your energy consumption and reports the findings to a user-friendly platform. Sensewear sensors powered by IoT collect data and transmit it through a cloud-based application. You get real-time data that can signal air compressor leaks. Our solution is easy to install, and it’s scalable so you can adjust it to meet your needs over time. Along with leaks, our system will show signs of poor indoor air quality, such as increased CO2.
Stop losing time and money to air compressor leaks. Schedule a demo and learn how Attune can improve your compressor leak detection system.
Compressed Air Leak Detection: FAQs
Find answers to some of the most common questions about compressed air leak detection equipment and services:
How to detect compressed air leaks?
Inspect your hoses, joints, and other components for loose connections. Listen for hisses. Or apply soapy water to your hoses and look for bubbles. For smaller leaks, use an ultrasonic acoustic detector, thermal imaging, or another digital tool.
How do you test for a leak in an air compressor?
Set a specific pressure for your compressor and let it build. Once you’ve hit your desired pressure level, watch the gauge. If the compressor holds pressure, you probably don’t have a leak.
How to calculate compressed air leakage?
Measure the onload time (T1) and the offload time (T2) and use the following formula: (T1 x 100) / (T1 + T2).
What is the modern way of detecting air compressor leaks?
An ultrasonic acoustic detector uses microphones to detect high-frequency hisses associated with compressor leaks. Its directional microphones show you where the leak is coming from.
