If you want your lawn irrigation system to last as long as possible, winterizing it is a must. For that every year before the coldest months of the year, you should drain the water from your sprinkler lines to prepare them for the season.
But confused about the size of your air compressor to use for sprinkling? I understand it’s not limited to beginners; professionals also get into trouble deciding what size air compressor to get for blowing out sprinkles.
Concerning the number of questions, I often get asked by customers as a worker. I decided to put all the important instructions I know about on the internet. So, today in this blog, we will be discussing our title topic by distributing it in different parts for a piece of thorough knowledge. With that help, you will be able to understand your needs and wants on your own without requiring any support.
Contents
What size air compressor to blow out sprinklers? – Two liners
For a direct approach, the 20-gallon air compressor is the best for winterizing a sprinkler system. The 20-gallon is a transportable air compressor that is also adaptable, powerful and has a large capacity.
It supplies more than sufficient air pressure to accomplish the task of winterizing a lawn irrigation system using the zone approach. To know a detailed explanation covering each perspective of air compressor separately, keep on reading then:
How to know the size of an Air Compressor to Blow Out Sprinklers
If you are still at a point trying to buy a new or your very first air compressor, this is going to be a meaningful guide for you. A good volume air compressor is what you need to look at as your priority. With that, now we are moving on to the main components and readings of the air compressor to decide better.
Air Volume of Compressor
First and foremost, the air volume matters the most because that’s the main component after blowing out the water.
So, a minimum of 20 cubic feet per minute of airflow from the compressor is required for blowing out a sprinkler system. The standard recommendation from experts in the field of irrigation is 50 cfm.
Generally speaking, more air volume is needed for larger lines, like those with a diameter of 4/5 to 2 inches. Airflow requirements could be slightly reduced for smaller line sizes, such as 1/2-inch lines. In order to get the most water out, you should give at least 20 cfm of airflow.
Tank of Compressor
Starting with our second component, the king of all is the tank of an air compressor and its capability of storing air. Moreover, the capacity of the air compressor to blow out a sprinkling line is directly proportional to the size of the tank.
Also, it can take quite some time for tanks between 1 and 4 gallons in size to be refilled from almost empty, as this requires the use of a compressor.
A compressor with a 20-gallon tank is the average size recommended by experts. This will prevent the compressor’s motor from having to run continuously at full capacity.
CFM Value of Compressor
Each sprinkler zone needs to be blown out for at least a minute when winterizing a sprinkler line. That requires a constant output of 10 cubic feet of air per minute from your compressor for a whole two minutes.
For the duration of minutes, use your compressor at maximum capacity. If the pressure gauge noticeably declines at that period, it will likely be unable to complete the task.
Motor of Compressor
Compressors’ motors can be either electric or gas-powered. When a sprinkler line is blown, there is often a great deal of water in the area for an electric compressor. As a result, the risk of the electric shock increases when using an electric compressor.
However, gas-powered compressors eliminate the need for an extension cord to power the motor, which makes them an appealing option for wet sprinkler systems.
Choosing the Right Air Compressor
- To blow out your sprinkler system, you may require an air compressor that can sustain volume for two minutes or longer.
- Many area experts prefer winterizing large systems with a 10-cubic-foot-per-minute air compressor. In addition to volume, capacity ensures that your air compressor can sustain CFM for minutes at a time. Dual-tank variants are best for bigger sprinkler lines.
- Using an air compressor to clear out a part of your sprinkler system can be time-consuming, as the machine needs to fill its tanks before it can begin working. It is recommended by specialists in the area care industry to have a tank size of 20 gallons. This ensures that the air compressor motor has a sufficient amount of additional capacity to maintain the air tension in the tank.
- Whether you have an air compressor, try it to see if it has the tank size to winterize your sprinkler system. To find out, run your air compressor at 10 CFM or greater for 4 minutes, the time it takes to blow out a piece of an area sprinkler system.
- Make sure the pressure is stable at that period. If the pressure meter lowers, you may need to buy a new air compressor.
- Since there will be a lot of water involved, it’s important to take precautions to avoid getting soaked while blowing out sprinklers. You can use an electrical air compressor, but your extension cable may become wet, so that’s also one thing to note.
- On the other hand, gas-powered air compressors do not require the use of power cables in order to operate, and as a result, they will not put you in danger of receiving an electric shock. You can run gas motors just about everywhere in your area, making them ideal for winterizing sprinkler systems in larger areas without a plug socket.
Final words:
Blowing out sprinklers is quite easy as it is to choose the right air compressor to do the task. But that’s the topic for another day. Talking about this article, I sectioned it into three parts to help you have different perspectives to choose from.
I hope you had a good read, and with that, good luck with your purchase if you haven’t bought any air compressors.
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