When warm air from a compressor enters a chilled environment, water vapour condenses and accumulates within the pipes; in a very low temperature environment this eventually ices the entire cross-section of the pipe. These ice plugs will prevent a sprinkler system from operating by impeding or completely blocking the flow of water to the sprinkler heads. Drying the compressed air prior to entry strongly mitigates or eliminates this risk, enabling the sprinkler system to function as designed when required.
Sale Engineering has for many years manufactured combined ‘air compressor with dryer’ assemblies for applications where there is a significant risk of condensate forming and freezing within sprinkler pipework. Prior to 2018, these assemblies used a quite clever auto-regenerating ‘twin tower’ system…however, this was an expensive and complex solution for which the term ‘sledgehammer to crack a walnut’ may have been appropriate.
Following our consideration of the operating environment relevant to fire sprinkler compressors, research and testing, we now recommend a much simpler ‘point-of-use’ system. Our new system, compatible with any of our receiver-model compressors, uses a simple desiccant canister with easily changeable cartridge. Installation is simpler and cheaper, requiring less space and no separate power supply. Running costs are lower since the canister requires no power. Maintenance is both quicker and cheaper, with a simple and inexpensive cartridge swap. What’s not to like?
Have a look at our Compressed Air Dryers