whats needed to keep moisture out of my pcp gun?

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makaveli

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Sep 9, 2020
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bought a compressor pump, comes with a tiny filter on the hose. then i read up a bit more and water in the air is a huge issue apparently for airguns and tanks ect. SO what do i need to prevent this issue. is a tuxing filter good enough? do i need to modify one and put sieve in it? why is this issue seemingly hidden from the pcp buyers? all the reviews and research, why was there never a big red flag warning people that pcp guns are going to blow up unless you become a master diver skilled in finding dry air? why do i feel like there isn't actually a real answer for this issue at the hobby/consumer level. products being sold to combat the problem but do they actually work? why the molecular sieve mods then? do those mods actually work any before and after pictures anywhere showing them working?

i thought i needed a a compressor, now i see the water issue and i just don't know what i actually need, how big this issue actually is, and how many thousands i need to spend on yet another thing i need
 
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why is this issue seemingly hidden from the pcp buyers?
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You know it's an odd thing and it really depends who you choose to listen to on the subject. We're buying for a business account, so we're really looking at what do we need to protect the investment. When we purchased our Daystate from AoA I specifically asked Darren about an inline device for moisture. I mean the sale is right there on the table, all he has to do is say, "Absolutely," and add it to the ticket, but he said, "You're in Texas, you don't need it. If you lived on the coast we would talk about it." That is one thing I respect about him. He has opted to not let me spend money he felt I didn't need to more than once.

I do run mine in an air conditioned office, so the air is dried out from the HVAC system, so that helps. Especially since my secretary says I keep the thermostat set on, "Hang meat." 

I'll be interested to see what others have to say on the subject. Thanks for posting it.
 
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You can spend almost as much or little as you want to at least make a sizeable difference. Some will use a small filter like the ones that cost about 17 bucks, some will use two, and are still out only 34 bucks. Of course, what they contain is extra. They come with a few handfuls of tiny foam filters, but you can also put dessicant crystals into them, or charcoal, or cotton wool.

Then there are ones that go for something like 80 bucks and more, longer cylinders that typically have an inner tube -frequently an extra, filled tube -- with three different water zappers: cotton or foam, charcoal, and molecular sieve. Then there are the ones with two such long cylinders linked together, which can get into the hundreds. Now nobody says you can't mix and match any of those. Just keep in mind that everything you add means more failure points and more pressure needed before your rifle or tank actually gets any air. No big deal with a compressor, but a pretty big deal with a hand pump.

You're right, this hobby is WAY more expensive than it appears on the surface. And that IS misleading, in a way, when it comes to the way the hobby is presented. You could easily spend many times the cost of your guns just on the accessories needed to keep it functional and fun to use.

Then again, many people are happy with springers. PCPs can do more, but are more finicky and potentially much more costly both to maintain and enjoy.

People want to sell you stuff. That's the way it is. This hobby is nowhere near as inexpensive as it seems at first glance. But you can keep it cheap, with a handpump going for 40 to 80 bucks and a filter or two for 17 to 34 bucks with occasional, often washable, refills. You just have to love pumping more than most people do ... and all the time it takes. If not, you will probably feel compelled to spend MUCH more to shoot pleasurably than you thought it was going to take going in.
 
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If you are talking about a YH compressor, all you need is the long gold Tuxing filter, { E-bay or Ali Express } The one with a combination of desiccant, sieve material and charcoal works better than the cotton tampons. Been using this combination for over a year with no moisture issues whatsoever. Need to change out the small cotton tampon in the little black filter after each use. E-bay or Ali Express. has them. Make sure to bleed the moisture separator several times while filling your tank. Total expenditure for everything mentioned less than $100.00. Hope this helps


 
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41Y7NIC63lL._AC_SR160,160_.jpg
one of these on amazon https://www.amazon.com/TUXING-Compressor-Water-Separator-L350mmOD49mmID36mm/dp/B07KP2WVTR
 
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It's always a good idea to check how deep the water is before diving in. Type and size of the filter depend on a number of personal requirements and type of compressor-pump concerned. The large Tuxing gold filters now come with a refillable cartridge and are fine for large bottles but not really suitable for just topping of guns because pre-filling the filter will consume more air than actually filling the gun. Only you will know what is best for your situation. If you want to get a smaller unit and pack it yourself with desiccant, it will work just fine. You don't need to worry about using a sleeve, that was disinformation started by one of the industries self-professed experts to frighten novices into buying his product. 
 
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Big subject. I'm a diver and we go to great lengths to get dry air. When using steel tanks there is a potential of corrosion. 20% humidity at atmospheric pressure feels really dry as the water is easily held by the air as vapor. Now if you pressurize the 20% air to 3,000 psi then the moisture will leave the air and precipitate out as liquid pooling in the bottom of the tank. Even a very small amount of humidity will form liquid under pressure. If you want to trap water from pressurized air then the filter needs to be inline with the high pressure output of the compressor NOT on the intake (atmospheric) side. The pressurized side precipitates water making it more available to be absorbed by desiccant. 

All that said, how much of a problem is moisture? If using aluminum tanks (carbon fiber tanks are Aluminum) then how much damage will the water do? I've inspected many aluminum tanks and found white residue in the bottom that seems almost like aluminum corrosion. However, if you google your brains out I don't think you will find an account of an aluminum dive tank failing due to effects of moisture. In your gun, the persistent high pressure areas are air cylinder/tube and plenum. In some guns all of that is aluminum. Valve parts are mostly brass and/or stainless steel. This is where airgun smiths and rebuilders should speak up about what they find when they rebuild airguns--are they corroded? I like dry air but with a knife to my throat I'd probably admit it is a near non issue.
 
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If you have a small compressor with a small filter and you purge it every five minutes and change out the filter every 20 minutes you may get by if the humidity is low where you are. You can set the filters out to dry and reuse them several times.

But if you are at 50-60% or higher then you probly need what Sonny is recommending added to the other things mentioned here.

I run a Yong Heng @ 50-60% humidity and purge as I have stated and change the filter out also. My Tuxing filter is still going after a year although I can see the moisture starting to build up in it.

If you are hand pumping you don't want the big filter but you still need to purge every few minutes and use a small filter anyway. You could get a smaller one similar to the Tuxing if you live in a humid climate and it would help.

Keep your filter upright and higher than your compressor or pump to keep the moisture down and help the filter do it's job. Keep your gun or tank higher than your filter to keep moisture out of your gun and tanks.


 
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https://www.amazon.com/GX-Portable-Compressor-Oil-Free-Paintball/dp/B07XYRS15R/ref=sr_1_3?dchild=1&keywords=4500+psi&qid=1599968888&sr=8-3

someone said it depends on my compressor, thats what i have. sounds like i need a tuxing gold filter, however there are lots of different models, someone mentioned they come with refillable cartridge, which model is best? the 'guts' appear to have many different designs.



also of note, which one 'won't' explode on me? since apparently thats a thing based on amazon review pictures.....
 
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Many if not most of us use the Tuxing filter and have had no problems. I really don't know what to say about the pic other than it just doesn't sit well with me the way it is explained. 

The compressor you bought is not made for longevity. Oil free and water free in the same sentence when talking about a compressor is not a good thing. If I had one I would probly get a smaller filter, to be used in conjunction with the one supplied, so it would not have to run as long to fill it. I would only use it to fill my guns not top off any tanks. If you are careful and it is well taken care of you may get a few more hours out of it.
 
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https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07KQVC5SZ/ref=sspa_dk_detail_4?psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUExVUpJNkExSzZYQzlOJmVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUExMDM3MjMwMkZPQ1cwVVhLMTBVRyZlbmNyeXB0ZWRBZElkPUEwNTMzOTQwMlIxMEwxUUhEM1pEUyZ3aWRnZXROYW1lPXNwX2RldGFpbDImYWN0aW9uPWNsaWNrUmVkaXJlY3QmZG9Ob3RMb2dDbGljaz10cnVl#customerReviews

see reviews? i assume these gold filters are all made by same company, however even if not, they don't appear to be branded so there's no way to tell who made them anyway
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Don't take any notice of so-called reviews like that. Nothing is going to explode if it is used for the intended purpose. That review is clearly a malicious fabrication probably posted by somebody the has ulterior motives. There is definitely no seem in the construction of this type of filter. If it had exploded like is claimed, it wouldn't have separated in two halves like that. It would be warped and splintered. You are doing the right thing by searching for information to get a better idea of what is going on. Just remember that there is just as much false information out there as there is fact. 


 
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I use this in line with my Daystate LC-110 compressor. That gives me 2 air/water separators. I also have a home made desiccate intake filter on the compressor.


https://www.aliexpress.com/item/32826130243.html?spm=a2g0o.detail.1000014.21.70a664f3FRdw6K&gps-id=pcDetailBottomMoreOtherSeller&scm=1007.14976.188500.0&scm_id=1007.14976.188500.0&scm-url=1007.14976.188500.0&pvid=39fe18e1-822f-4baf-a28e-3a3bed0cccee&_t=gps-id:pcDetailBottomMoreOtherSeller,scm-url:1007.14976.188500.0,pvid:39fe18e1-822f-4baf-a28e-3a3bed0cccee,tpp_buckets:668%230%23131923%2390_668%23808%233772%23981_668%23888%233325%237_4976%230%23188500%230_4976%232711%237538%23221_4976%233104%239653%236_4976%233141%239887%238_668%232846%238114%23719_668%232717%237559%2370_668%231000022185%231000066059%230_668%233422%2315392%23742_4452%230%23184418%230_4452%233474%2315675%23328_4452%233098%239599%23150_4452%233564%2316062%23524
 
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The problem with a small Chinese compressor is that it has a minuscule water separator tower. A properly designed high pressure compressor removes 99% of moisture in a water separator tower. A filter housing and cartridge only is required to remove about 1% of the residual moisture.

Buy a gold filter with a repackable cartridge shown in the posts above. You should also get 13X zeolite dessicant for repacking the cartridge. When it's time to repack the cartridge, also buy activated charcoal from any pet department selling aquarium supplies. The clear beads that will come as part of the 3 section filter cartridge are a waste of space. You only need 2 sections. Repack the filter input side with the tan desiccant 13X zeolite for 2/3 of the cartridge, add a divider, and pack the output side with charcoal beads. Zeolite dries the air, charcoal removes oil smell and odors.

Keep the existing small tampon filter cartridge inline before the gold filter. Change the cotton batting filters as frequently as they get moist. The cotton batting can be dried and reused a time or two.
 
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Big subject. I'm a diver and we go to great lengths to get dry air. When using steel tanks there is a potential of corrosion. 20% humidity at atmospheric pressure feels really dry as the water is easily held by the air as vapor. Now if you pressurize the 20% air to 3,000 psi then the moisture will leave the air and precipitate out as liquid pooling in the bottom of the tank. Even a very small amount of humidity will form liquid under pressure. If you want to trap water from pressurized air then the filter needs to be inline with the high pressure output of the compressor NOT on the intake (atmospheric) side. The pressurized side precipitates water making it more available to be absorbed by desiccant. 

All that said, how much of a problem is moisture? If using aluminum tanks (carbon fiber tanks are Aluminum) then how much damage will the water do? I've inspected many aluminum tanks and found white residue in the bottom that seems almost like aluminum corrosion. However, if you google your brains out I don't think you will find an account of an aluminum dive tank failing due to effects of moisture. In your gun, the persistent high pressure areas are air cylinder/tube and plenum. In some guns all of that is aluminum. Valve parts are mostly brass and/or stainless steel. This is where airgun smiths and rebuilders should speak up about what they find when they rebuild airguns--are they corroded? I like dry air but with a knife to my throat I'd probably admit it is a near non issue.
Click to expand...

Well stated +1



I shoot Dry Nitrogen and skip that mess altogether with a tank at my gas shop. I sometimes use a handpump, but pretty rarely. I try to just go by common sense and do the best I can with an inline filter when using a handpump.
 
Upvote 0
The problem with a small Chinese compressor is that it has a minuscule water separator tower. A properly designed high pressure compressor removes 99% of moisture in a water separator tower. A filter housing and cartridge only is required to remove about 1% of the residual moisture.

Buy a gold filter with a repackable cartridge shown in the posts above. You should also get 13X zeolite dessicant for repacking the cartridge. When it's time to repack the cartridge, also buy activated charcoal from any pet department selling aquarium supplies. The clear beads that will come as part of the 3 section filter cartridge are a waste of space. You only need 2 sections. Repack the filter input side with the tan desiccant 13X zeolite for 2/3 of the cartridge, add a divider, and pack the output side with charcoal beads. Zeolite dries the air, charcoal removes oil smell and odors.

Keep the existing small tampon filter cartridge inline before the gold filter. Change the cotton batting filters as frequently as they get moist. The cotton batting can be dried and reused a time or two.
Click to expand...

good instructions
 
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