Leaky air fittings

[sofadoc]

I have about 10 different pneumatic tools that I may, or may not use on any given day.
And only one air hose to plug them into.
Air fittings used to last me a year or 2 before developing leaks. Now, the cheap crap from Lowes, or Home Depot has to be replaced at least once a month.

Some of you guys actually want accurate tape measures. Others have the audacity to think that straight edges should really be straight.
My pet peeve is a hissing air fitting.

I'm thinking about installing a "Tee" on my air line, and dedicating one line to my main stapler (with NO disconnect). And the other line for tools that I use less frequently (WITH a disconnect).

Do you guys have a lot of trouble with leaks? Or do you buy higher quality air fittings?

[Mike]

My current hose has a leaky fitting if the run is removed it leaks install a gun no leak  a tee is a hood idead there are time id like to have 2 guns going.

[MinUph]

Through the years I have seen many air setups and I can't remember one that didn't leak at some point. It drives me nuts also and I try to stay on top of it. I have found the fittings at places like NAPA are a little better. There are two styles I am aware of and the ones I have now are the gold colored ones that you have to pull back the release to install the tool or male end. I don't like these. The other style allows the tool to just be pushed into the coupler. These are generally silver in color.
A solid screw in connection will surely stop the hiss. Also add a 6" to 8" straight hose between the tool and the coiled hose makes it much more useable with less kinking and the coil doesn't get in your way.

[JDUpholstery]

I have found if I wrap my tools connector with teflon tape it tightens a loose coupling up...of course this is just a band-aid and nothing changes the fact that stuff is cheaply made these days...I also use a short hose with a swivel connector at the tool. I have several lines running from one compressor to different pints through my shop so that I dont have to deal with loose hoses on the ground also....much easier to run PVC along the wall and have a connector close so I can use a short hose

[Mike]

My guns as probly all the hose come off the tool
Paralell withthe handle somif pointing the stapler down at the table the hadle is horizonta and the hose comes off the bottom of the handle paralell with th table also. There are time if im stapling near the. Ottom that the hose can get in the way and i have ti turn the gun over now eith the hose aiming up and ive often withed the hose. Sme off 90 degreed id you mentioned a swivle at the gun this sounds like it would solve this problem. But could be another point to leak.  Ive never seen a swivle.

[ajlelectronics]

I thought that ALL the fittings were designed to be sealed with PTFE tape? I have certainly never seen one that will seal without. A few wraps of tape and they are perfect.

[gene]

Well. It seems that someone is having a hissy fit.  :o

My cheap connector at the end of my hose that I bought from Home Depot started leaking a few weeks ago. It will continue to get worse until I replace it. Right now it leaks only if the tool is laid at a certain angle.

It lasts about a year max.

It has always been the silver colored female adapter that needs replaced - not the male adapter.

gene

[sofadoc]

I thought that ALL the fittings were designed to be sealed with PTFE tape? I have certainly never seen one that will seal without. A few wraps of tape and they are perfect.

I wrap the threads with the white pipe thread tape. It isn't the threads that are leaking.

The hissing comes from the quick coupler connection. I have to replace both the quick coupler on the end of the hose, and the plug-in fitting on the end of the tool at least once a month.

Local mom&pop hardware stores used to carry better quality fittings. Now they all carry the same crap as Home Depot/Lowes. The NAPA dealer in my town went belly-up.

I used to work at an aerospace plant where we plugged and unplugged pneumatic  tools from the same coupler hundreds of times a day with no leaks.

A quick disconnect set from Lowes is around 5 bucks. I would gladly pay 10 times that much for a set that lasted a few years.

I've been in another shop where a loud hissing is the first thing that you hear when you walk in.
I'm there less than 5 minutes, when the air compressor comes on even though no one is using any tools.

I would think that air-tight fittings would be imperative for any shop with a small capacity (25-30 gal.) tank. A compressor running needlessly several times a day would easily increase your electric bill more than the cost of new fittings.

[JDUpholstery]

I was talking about the quick conntect coupler when I said I wrap them with teflon tape....where the connectors meet you wrap it and it tightens it up...works for me...i figured wrapping threads was a given!

[ajlelectronics]

I wrap the threads with the white pipe thread tape. It isn't the threads that are leaking.

The hissing comes from the quick coupler connection. I have to replace both the quick coupler on the end of the hose, and the plug-in fitting on the end of the tool at least once a month.

With you now! Sorry I misunderstood, probably due to never having experienced that problem. I have bought my fittings from a variety of sources and they all seem to mate happily with each other. I'm not sure how they seal internally, whether it is a rubber or metal surface it seals against. If rubber, could it be the type of lubricant used in the airline? If metal, maybe a little corrosion?

[JuneC]

Have you tried just changing the o-ring?  Maybe a better quality o-ring would stop the leak.  I haven't had this problem.  I'm using the same quick disconnects and hose I've had for 7 years and they still don't leak.

Here's another suggestion.  Google quick disconnect for scuba tank hoses.  Those have to be good quality and reliable since a person's life depends on it not leaking.  They'll be LOTS more $$ I'm sure.  A full scuba tank has pressure of over 3000 PSI, though the hoses don't carry that pressure.  I'm a certified diver and the bomb strapped on my back scares me more than sharks.  I don't do it very often anymore.  

June

[west coast]

I finally had my fill of hissing and the compressor going off way more than it needed to so I replaced all my quick release fittings male and female with new ones. It was less than a hundred bucks and now all I hear is the constant ringing in my ears and no more hissing which is alot better.

[Darren Henry]

I'm a certified diver and the bomb strapped on my back scares me more than sharks.

don't think of it as a bomb. I look at it as one helluva rocket assist 8).

A full scuba tank has pressure of over 3000 PSI, though the hoses don't carry that pressure

Your first stage will regulate that down to around 95 PSI. The only thing I worry about is knocking a valve off in transit.Alot of the really good dive sites around here are 4X4 accessable only.

[raindodger]

much easier to run PVC along the wall and have a connector close so I can use a short hose

PVC when under pressure can shatter if it gets hit or bumped into hard enough (happened in my father's garage).  ABS would be better for an application like this.  Be careful around that pvc air supply line

[gene]

I'm left handed. I wonder if left handed folks get leaks in their air lines more than right handed folks.

Scuba divers cannot fart below a depth of 33 feet. So, if you are below 33 feet and see bubbles, it's not from the enchilada you had for lunch.

gene