Air Compressor Blew-up...Need Help

[Dudelive]

Where I work the air compressor blew. It is this compressor:
http://www.napaonline.com/Search/Detail.aspx?R=NAC82378VAT_0006400704#

Looking at it in the center at the top where both cylinders are connected to what is called the aftercooler. It simply exploded (the aftercooler). It is located outside but under a shelter attached to the shop that has one side open for cooling.

Actually it has been working for 2+ years with no problems maybe more and has been serviced regularly. Yesterday morning the boss got there early and opened up which included turning on the compressor. You can't mess this up at this point. Shortly after turning it on ( I wasn't there, so don't know exactly how long) There was an explosion that he said sounded like a shotgun had gone off. Pieces of cast iron were all over the place , I'm just glad it ws outside. The owner has no problem fixing it but he and I talked and I suggested we find out what caused it to explode before fixing it again.
That is why I am posting this here, has anyone ever heard of this.

 

[dlrion]

My dad had big air compressor he used to sand blast, it had a big three phase motor that ran it at 480 volts. One of the piston bleed valve lines got crud in it one time, and it didn't bleed, when he went to turn it back on it blew a valve up on the piston with a big bang. It was fairly easy to repair though, as I recall.... once we got parts.

Moral of the story - if it's blowed up you're screwed

 

[Charles Lent]

At the end of the after cooler as the line enters the tank there is a check valve. It is quite likely that this check valve got blocked with ice in our present weather conditions. When the compressor started, it couldn't put the air into the tank so it just built up pressure in the after cooler until it blew apart. A shop that I worked at in NY many years ago had this happen one cold icy morning when they started the compressor. It sounded like a grenade (15 HP compressor) and it blew the after cooler completely off the compressor. A compressor tech from a compressor service company performed a thorough inspection on this compressor after it happened and determined that this was the cause. Fortunately no one was injured because the power switch was inside the building and not right next to the compressor. It is rare, but it does happen with outside compressors. A safety relief valve might prevent it, but it's possible that the safety valve could also get blocked by ice.

Charley

 

[Dudelive]

At the end of the after cooler as the line enters the tank there is a check valve. It is quite likely that this check valve got blocked with ice in our present weather conditions. When the compressor started, it couldn't put the air into the tank so it just built up pressure in the after cooler until it blew apart. A shop that I worked at in NY many years ago had this happen one cold icy morning when they started the compressor. It sounded like a grenade (15 HP compressor) and it blew the after cooler completely off the compressor. A compressor tech from a compressor service company performed a thorough inspection on this compressor after it happened and determined that this was the cause. Fortunately no one was injured because the power switch was inside the building and not right next to the compressor. It is rare, but it does happen with outside compressors. A safety relief valve might prevent it, but it's possible that the safety valve could also get blocked by ice.

Charley

That sounds like the situation here, it blew the after cooler apart and off the compressor as you described. the top haf of the aftercooler was blown into 2 separate pieces while there is nothing but 1 - 1.5 inch parts left and the valve you referred to where it connects to the line that goes to the tank has not been seen yet, which leaves us as well as you to think that pressure built up and could not turn off the compressor because the cut off switch is on the tank and pressure will eventually go somewhere.

Just wondering if this is something that may happen again and a way to prevent it. There are lots of people that have compressors out in the cold.

Thanks