Compressed air leaks are like tiny holes in your wallet, slowly draining your hard-earned money. Although they are common in compressed air systems, these leaks often go unnoticed in factory environments. This results in significant financial losses, ranging from thousands to tens of thousands of euros per year! The good news is that detecting and remedying these leaks can be easy, straightforward, and cost-effective.

By following a systematic step-by-step plan, you can easily identify, and repair compressed air leaks, leading to savings of up to 30% on the total energy consumption of the compressed air installation.

The cost of repairing air leaks can even be fully recouped within a few days to a few months, after which the financial savings can be enjoyed for a long time to come. Imagine what you could do with the extra money in your budget!

Don’t let compressed air leaks drain your wallet any longer. Stay vigilant, address any compressed air leaks as soon as possible, and avoid unnecessary financial losses. With proper monitoring and maintenance, you can keep your compressed air installation running smoothly and efficiently, while saving money and resources for your business.

1. Look at the downtime consumption

If a factory is not in operation 24/7 and, for example, shuts-down over the weekend, in theory no compressed air is used during that time. This is a good moment to take a look at the compressor room. If the compressors still kick on frequently over the weekend, one can assume that there are serious leaks in the factory that cost the company a lot of money!

2. Quantify compressed air leakage with a bleed test

To quickly get a first impression of the degree of leakage, a so-called bleed test can be carried out. For this purpose, the factory must be shut down and the compressed air system must be pressurized. After switching off the compressor, the time it takes for the compressed air system to drop by, for example, 29 PSI, is then measured. The faster the pressure drop, the larger and/or more numerous the leaks.

It is hard to imagine a better starting signal for tackling leaks.

3. Identify individual leaks

Compressed air leaks can occur anywhere in the factory. They are caused by broken couplings and seals, damaged threads of pipe connections, cracked or broken hoses, incorrectly selected and/or installed parts or rusted pipes. But leaks also occur due to normal wear and tear. In the shaft and piston seals of pneumatic cylinders for example and in commonly used couplings. Always have one thing in common: they make noise. Sometimes a clear hissing sound is audible, but the sound can also be beyond the human hearing range. In that case, the use of ultrasonic leak detectors and directional microphones is the solution. This allows immediate detection of both the size and exact location of compressed air leaks. By identifying and categorizing leaks based on their nature and size, it is possible to prioritize the most costly and easiest to repair leaks.