Air end Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

How many hours of service can I expect to get from a rotary screw air end?
A rotary screw airend is a precision piece of equipment that has running tolerances in the thousandths, most units will provide an average of 25,000 to 50,000 hours, some of the older units will run into the 100,000 hour range.
What kind of maintenance schedule should I follow with my air end?
Find a good service company and have them setup your unit on a regular maintenance schedule. Change oil, oil filter, and air filter on a regular basis. Once a year is not enough. The compressor is constantly taking in contaminates with the air. The only way to get rid of harmful contaminates is to change the oil.
What temperature should my compressor be running at?
Most compressors are designed to run 100° degrees above ambient. That makes the average temperature between 175° to 200° maximum. Anything above 200° and you'll be shortening the life of the unit. If you find that your unit is running hot and you can't bring the temperature down, you'll need to add a cooler.
What could cause my air end to fail?
There are numerous causes, contaminated oil, high running temperatures, and one over looked area – motor bearings. A percentage of airends we receive for remanufacturing fail because the motor bearings lost their trueness, placing stress on the front airend bearings. These bearings are not made to handle this kind of movement. We recommend that the motor bearings be done every 2 to 3 years on 24hrs operating units and every 5 years for the standards. Again a little preventive maintenance can save you thousands in the long run.
What kind of oil should I use?
Use a good quality synthetic oil, today’s rotary screws run between 175 to 200 degrees, synthetic oil is the only one that will take the heat and not varnish. Mineral base and turbine oils will varnish, which will lead to overheating problems.
Maintenance
We can’t stress filter and oil changes enough. A well-maintained unit will provide reliability, energy savings and peace of mind.