Pond Boss Forums AERATION Systems questions deep freeze

I am having problems with my air line freezing solid on the aeration. My compressor is in my barn and it is above freezing inside not heated but still holding temp from the ground I think. I have 500feet of 3/4 in poly pipe to get to the pond burried 6inches deep and the ground is frozen about 18inche now. Today I put a line above ground to bypass the frozen sections and restarted the aeration hopefully it works.

Is it the temp difference from the barn to outside causing moisture or is it just the act of compressing air or is it humidity in the air?

Has anyone put a tank inline with alcohol in it and the inlet in the bottom so your compressed air would bubble through alcohol then air would exit though the outlet in the top dry?

I ran the system last winter starting in february when I bought it and it ran good till last week the outer housing on my compressor pump cracked so I fired up the new one I had on the shelf.

Sorry that I can't help much. I know that warmer air has the potential to carry more water vapor, and when the air cools down the water vapor condenses. That's why some industrial systems use a chiller in-line as a "water" extractor. I know it's too late now, but the line must have a few low spots where any moisture is collecting and then freezing. The air lines at work are a very long loop, and they need to be blown out every month because they act as a condenser, cooling the air after it leaves the compressor. The lines didn't have a drain on them, and I installed one. The first time I blew out the lines it was like I was holding onto a fire hose. I blew water and rust particles a good 50' away.

blair,esshup is right on with his comments. You have 195F to 205F compressed air on the exhaust side of the compressor and it condenses fast no matter the ambient air temp. In your case its probably finding a low spot in the line and building up and freezing . We have built a few systems for the Dakotas that run their systems with up to 3000 ft of 1 inch line on top of the ground in temps down to 30 below,. We have used the Koender freeze control tank that automaticaly introduices alcohol, RV antifreeze works too,into the line to knock out the ice.They seem to work well. They have a dump valve that opens at a preset pressure such as 15 psi and then close when pressure drops at removal of restriction.Bill Cody may still have some tanks available or any of the PB resource folk that handle windmills may have them or a better method.

Ted:

Do you know how much RV antifreeze they used? I used to dump a gallon in my above ground/under ground water line that ran to the orchard. I would kill any grass/weeds in the area with what was in the line when I would blow it out in the Spring before I started irrigation.

Thanks for the info I had no idea the exhaust temp was that high. There is 2 low spots in the line and it was frozen solid at one of them today. I put in the new line on top of the ground and the aeration made a hole in 6" of ice in 5 hours. I hope it keeps going.

One thing that works well on a frozen lines is an oz or two of airbrake line anti freeze. But a CAUTION with any type of alcohol and open winding compressors is a fire. If you put a flamable liquid in the line even downline from the compressor and you have a pressure relief valve on or near the compressor vapors or the actual liquid may get exhausted out the pressure relief prior to the blockage getting melted away. If putting alcohol in a line I suggest not running the pump for 5-10 minutes so the ice can start to melt first.I also suggest moving the pressure relief away from the compressor. Most vane and piston pumps used for aeration have open motor windings.RV antifreeze is much safer but works much slower. I dont know how much RV antifreeze is being used on the systems we have set up with freeze control tanks.On the Koender that I have that I use for winter aeration in our small pond I would say a pint per winter is all the antifreeze it has ever used. On the 3 electric systems we have for display I have never used any type of antifreeze and have bumped them on in subzero temps with no problem and all of the lines exposed (but are short lines with no dips)

You may want to rethink your line depth as well. I know you don't want to here that, but I grew up in upper Northern Wisconsin and we had all our pipes and things like that 2 feet deep in the groud minumum to keep from freezing.

You know what's odd? I've has up to 18 inches of ice on my ponds and never had a problem with an airline freezing. Nothing special to protect the airline where it goes into the pond either. I do have one that isn't working, but I believe the problem is a the diffuser end as the airline is not backing up at the compressor.

Cecil,

That does seem odd? I would not of guessed it. Maybe you just been lucky! LOL.

I think fortunately air lines are easier to deal with than water lines in cold weather! And since the compressors are outdoors the air is usually actually colder than the water -- so no condensation.

BTW I apologize. I started a new thread on this subject because I thought my above post didn't take. Now I see it's here.

You guys in the sout are lucky we install water lines 8 feet deep and 11 or 12 under roads so they don't freeze. It has been running good for the last 2 weeks with the line above ground. I own a horizontal directional drill and I am thinking of putting the line on grade and deep but this should not be necessary. I watch my air gauge eevery now and then and it is allways at 13-15 psi. If it climbs i will dump some alc. down the valve.