I'm fairly new to PCP air rifles and trying to learn more about the sport, especially care and maintenance of air rifles. There seems to be some debate about whether N is a better gas to use in air rifles than compressed air. Less chance of moisture getting into the rifle's parts and portable air tanks by using N, which isn't easy to acquire where I live. Still, if it's better for my air rifles in the long run, I'm willing to give it a try. Is N better to use than compressed air?
Compressed Air vs Nitrogen
- Thread starter Med8
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ive filled my own tanks at home for well over a year now and have been all the way into most of my guns and so far have never even seen a trace of moisture in them ... as long as your conscientious about your methods and hardware i conclude air isnt a problem ... at least not if using a tank ... direct filling guns Im sure requires even more attention and strategy ..
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One is really not better than the other. They both werq the same. Although Nitrogen can boast it is not explosive if you get oil mixed in your tank or gun with it somehow. If you have a decent filter system air can be dry just like nitrogen. I used N2 it until I started adding up the cost and I could have bought a Yong Heng compressor for what I paid in N2 fills for a year. So I went out and bought a Yong Heng and it saved me the expense of Nitrogen fills at the paintball shop. It paid for itself in a year and it still runs.
Depends on where you live how reasonable N2 fills or rental tanks can be.
Depends on where you live how reasonable N2 fills or rental tanks can be.
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Compressed air is about 78% Nitrogen... if it is difficult to acquire, store, transport or put in your gun, then there is no reason to worry about Nitrogen over atmosphere air.
Pay attention to moisture removal and you wont have any problems.
Pay attention to moisture removal and you wont have any problems.
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Nitrogen gas is considerably drier than typical air, so on paper it sounds like a better choice. The reality is, though, as stated above, if you properly treat any air you compress, it's not a concern. If you have tanks filled by a shop, then it's a non-issue entirely. The real benefit to some shooters, however, is convenience and potentially cost savings.
Nitrogen is typically supplied in large, heavy cylinders, at 6000psi, so you can get a huge number of 3000-4500 psi gun or tank fills off one. Rental prices can vary considerably, so while some can rent a cylinder for less than $100 per year, others are quoted several times that. There's also the issue of getting it refilled (or actually swapped out for a full cylinder) - can you safely transport a cylinder back to the gas company, or will you have to pay for them to come to your house? Some companies won't deal with private individuals, or at least not make deliveries.
Nitrogen is typically supplied in large, heavy cylinders, at 6000psi, so you can get a huge number of 3000-4500 psi gun or tank fills off one. Rental prices can vary considerably, so while some can rent a cylinder for less than $100 per year, others are quoted several times that. There's also the issue of getting it refilled (or actually swapped out for a full cylinder) - can you safely transport a cylinder back to the gas company, or will you have to pay for them to come to your house? Some companies won't deal with private individuals, or at least not make deliveries.
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Thank y'all for your helpful replies to my question. The local fire dept has given me permission to fill my air tank at their station. So, based on the comments above, it seems practical to use their compressor and not have to be concerned about unwanted moisture. I'll drop $5 into their coffee fund every now and then to show my appreciation.
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Fire stations use compressors that have proper filtration. You are getting dry air and have no worries about moisture damage.
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My neighbor is in heating and AC and can get me free nitrogen. Can I safely use it in my new Marauder? Where would I get the fittings to do this? If you can't tell I'm new to PCP rifles.
Thanks for the help.
Kenny
Thanks for the help.
Kenny
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One value of Nitrogen over compressed air not mentioned is that it is less prone to pressure variations due to changes in temperature.
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There are a few very good reasons to use Nitrogen, NO water NO co2 NO Oxygen that means NO oxidizers are getting onto your pump or gun which will extend the life of all your fittings and orings PLUS your airgun will shoot faster as N2 is a smaller and lighter molecule than plain old air with all its contaminents. it is totally inert.
I see people say that fire station air is dry That is not true. At one time in the compressed gas biz we used to make reconstituted air 79%N2 21%O2 perfectly dry air very pure. the problems that arose were that it was too dry it dried out your sinuses and your whole respritory system so they went back to compressors and filters but the filters do not remove all the water in air just some of the contaminents. to give them grade 'D' breathing air.
I see people say that fire station air is dry That is not true. At one time in the compressed gas biz we used to make reconstituted air 79%N2 21%O2 perfectly dry air very pure. the problems that arose were that it was too dry it dried out your sinuses and your whole respritory system so they went back to compressors and filters but the filters do not remove all the water in air just some of the contaminents. to give them grade 'D' breathing air.
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Just google nitrogen in car tires and then go to the Continental tire site and they give a good explanation with pictures.
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Compressed air is not a pure gas and nitrogen is and there in lies the difference as to why nitrogen is more stable.
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If you read the article I referred you to you will understand better why nitrogen maintains a more consistent pressure than compressed air when subject to temperature changes.
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If you don’t want to read the article let me give you the very basics from it. Compressed air is made up of multiple gasses. They all react differently when subject to heat and cold which means compressed air shows greater variations in pressure than nitrogen when exposed to heat and cold which is a single gas. Fill one of your guns with nitrogen and one with compressed air. Ten put them out in the cold.Come back a couple of hours later and see which one had the greater pressure change.
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Continental tire put out an article explaining the pros and cons on the advantages and disadvantages of using nitrogen compared to compressed air in tires. It applies the same to our sport. Just google the article and you will understand. Just to save you a little time, the disadvantages of nitrogen were price and availability.
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People in your field wrote the article. If you want to disagree with your contemporaries be my guest. I choose to agree with them based on my own experiences.
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Please do read: https://scubaengineer.com/high_pressure_compressor_filtrat.htm
EN standard 12021: https://www.breathesafety.com/technical-blog/what-is-en12021-and-why-do-we-air-quality-test.html
So for a 4500psi diving compressor to adhere to EN 12021 it has to put out less than 25mg/m3 or 0.386grains of water in 35.2 cubic feet of air
Oh yeah under 3000psi the water content is allowed to be double that, ie. 0.772grains of water in 35.2 cubic feet of air.
Do you lot really think that that is going to cause any problems in airguns???
If so, they'd rust on the outside between your hands day in and day out. Did anyone say 30-80% humidity without issues ?
The interweb is such fantastic place and most of what has happened is there.
So please in ten=10 days, find ten=10 cases of PCP airguns that has failed due to internal corrosion? Please? Pretty please?
EN standard 12021: https://www.breathesafety.com/technical-blog/what-is-en12021-and-why-do-we-air-quality-test.html
So for a 4500psi diving compressor to adhere to EN 12021 it has to put out less than 25mg/m3 or 0.386grains of water in 35.2 cubic feet of air
Oh yeah under 3000psi the water content is allowed to be double that, ie. 0.772grains of water in 35.2 cubic feet of air.
Do you lot really think that that is going to cause any problems in airguns???
If so, they'd rust on the outside between your hands day in and day out. Did anyone say 30-80% humidity without issues ?
The interweb is such fantastic place and most of what has happened is there.
So please in ten=10 days, find ten=10 cases of PCP airguns that has failed due to internal corrosion? Please? Pretty please?
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