Compressed Air Outlets For Your Shop
By Benjamen Johnson
You wire your shop for electricity and run ducting for your dust collection system, so why not outfit your shop with compressed air outlets where you’ll need them rather than dragging the air hose around?
RapidAir makes running air lines throughout the shop as easy as running PEX water line. You don’t have to cut and thread pipe or mess with pipe dope at the fittings. The system can handle pressures up to 150 PSI using just flexible 1/2″ nylon tubing and simple push-on fittings.
Pricing for the master kit starts at $140; it includes one compressor manifold, two outlets, and 100′ of 1/2″ blue nylon tubing. Outlets, tubing, and fittings are also available separately.
Master Kit [RapidAir]
Street Pricing [Google Products]
Via Amazon [What’s This?]
October 27th, 2009 at 11:20 am
I have this system in my shop in the basement. It makes for simple setup of air distribution.
October 27th, 2009 at 11:20 am
wouldn’t you need air dryers, that has been my main hold up from a setup like that.
October 27th, 2009 at 11:40 am
Anyone else think that $140 for $40 of tubing, and a couple of quick disconnects is a huge rip-off?
October 27th, 2009 at 11:42 am
You can get this master kit at Harbor Freight for $90. this same kit by Rapidair
October 27th, 2009 at 11:44 am
actually the kit is sold thru central pneumatic on harbor freight’s website but it’s the same kit. take a look
October 27th, 2009 at 12:21 pm
The tubing is pretty cheap. The manifold blocks are machined out of alluminum, and the fittings are not particularly cheap.
I have a manifold I built up on the supply side. I have a hydraulic line feeding a regulator, and a moisture trap. The rapidair manifold connects to this. My manifold has provision for multiple taps if I wanted to have an oiler etc. feeding a separate system.
October 27th, 2009 at 1:27 pm
Blake liked to the Harbor Freight item as his website so it turned his name into the link. I searched the Harbor Freight website for the kit for five minutes without luck until I noticed that.
the link is:
http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=66747
Yeah looks like the same kit.
October 27th, 2009 at 5:41 pm
I highly recommend 1/2″ Thick-wall copper pipe! After installing both black-pipe and flexible solutions I’ll never go back. Terminate your drops with soldered brass fittings and your done.
October 27th, 2009 at 5:54 pm
perfect timing. I’ve been debating (procrastinating) for the past year on how to plumb my shop. The plastic looks so easy. I was thinking traditional black pipe. I’d heard it does a better job of condensing water out of the air. Copper, hmmm….
October 27th, 2009 at 6:16 pm
I used 1/2″ copper - the cheap stuff - at 120 PSI all over the house. I had it around the shop, around the garage, near the driveway, on the back deck, and was even thinking of putting it in the bathroom closet to help with the shower cleaning.
I had a filter near the compressor, and never had a problem with water in the lines. The copper elbows with the mounting flanges on them (holes for 2 screws - I think for shower head connections) made it easy to mount a quick-connect that was solid. In many cases I joined long sections of pipe with Tees instead of couplers, and plugged the tee with a crimped & soldered length of pipe. That made it easy to add to add quick connect taps later if I found I needed air at that location.
October 27th, 2009 at 11:10 pm
@MeasureOnceCutTwice: Air plumbed into the house? It’s something I thought of doing but never did. I bow before your superior handiness! I like the tee idea for joining copper; black pipe is so easy to weld, you just drill a hole, cope a branch, and weld ‘er on.
Confession time: I run hose wherever I need air. I’m a welder and happen to have a pile of black pipe at the shop. The cobblers kids have no shoes…
I am going to make a cyclonic air/water separator to get the moisture under control. Do any of you guys run one?
October 28th, 2009 at 7:04 pm
I use 3/4″ copper everywhere in mine. I also ran a line in to the basement in to the mechanical room. figured it would be handy for when I want to finish the basement.
Brew