Dryer maintenance
Keep the dew point where you specified it, not where it has drifted to.
Dryers fail quietly
Dryers fail quietly. A refrigerant dryer with a blocked condenser or a failed drain does not stop. It simply stops drying, and the first sign is usually water in a machine or a rejected batch, weeks later.
Our dryer service measures the actual pressure dew point being achieved rather than assuming the dryer is doing its job because the light is on.
What you get
Dew point measured
Actual achieved dew point recorded at every visit, not just a visual inspection.
Drains checked and cleared
A blocked drain is the single most common cause of water downstream.
Desiccant assessed
Bed condition checked and change scheduled before performance falls off.
Condenser cleaning
In dusty climates this is what keeps a refrigerant dryer working through summer.
What is included
Condenser cleaning, drain service and a refrigerant check on a refrigerant dryer. Valve service, mufflers and a desiccant assessment on a desiccant dryer.
Every visit ends with a dew point measurement. A dryer that is running is not the same as a dryer that is drying, and only a measurement tells them apart.
It is done on the same visit as the compressor, which is the sensible arrangement and the reason most of our customers put both on one plan.
- Condenser cleaning on refrigerant dryers
- Valve and muffler service on desiccant dryers
- Drain service on both
- Dew point measured at every visit
- Refrigerant handled to current regulation
- Desiccant condition assessed
- Done with the compressor service
- Report issued the same day
The failure nobody sees
A blocked condenser raises the dew point quietly. The dryer keeps running, the air keeps flowing, and the water goes downstream to the point of use where somebody finds it in a product.
On a desiccant dryer the equivalent is a failed changeover valve. The unit sounds normal and one tower is doing all the work until the desiccant in it is exhausted.
Both are found by measuring rather than by looking, which is why the dew point reading is on every report we issue.
- Blocked condenser raises dew point silently
- Failed valve leaves one tower doing the work
- Neither shows on the machine itself
- Found by measurement, not inspection
- Dew point on every service report
- Alarm settings checked at each visit
- Prefilter condition checked
- Trend reviewed visit to visit
Parts and intervals
Interval follows the ambient and the load rather than a generic figure. A dryer in a hot plant room works far harder than the same unit in a cool one.
Desiccant lasts three to five years when the air reaching it is clean. Oil carryover kills a bed in months, which is why the prefilter is part of the service and not an extra.
Valve kits and mufflers are carried on the van, because a dryer passing air but not drying it is usually a valve and is usually fixed the same day.
- Interval set by ambient and load
- Desiccant every three to five years
- Prefilter changed to protect the bed
- Valve kits and mufflers carried on the van
- Refrigerant top up where permitted
- Parts held in local stock
- Fixed price under a service plan
- Elements for other makes supplied
Frequently asked questions
What does a refrigerant dryer need?
Condenser cleaning, drain testing and a dew point check. The condenser is the one that gets neglected, and in this climate it is the one that matters most.
How often?
Quarterly in dusty or hot locations, six-monthly in a clean plant room. Anything longer than a year is asking for a summer failure.
What does a desiccant dryer need?
Valve service, silencer replacement and a desiccant change every three to five years. Silencers block long before the desiccant is spent.
How do I know the desiccant is finished?
Dew point rises and stops recovering after a cycle. A dew point instrument tells you months before your product quality does.
Why does my dryer freeze up?
Usually a hot gas bypass valve out of adjustment, or a fan control fault. It is a control problem far more often than a refrigerant problem.
Is a dew point sensor worth fitting?
Yes, it is the only way to know the dryer is actually working, and on a desiccant machine it also allows dew point controlled purging, which saves air.
What happens if the drain fails?
Water goes downstream into your pipework, filters and tools. A failed drain undoes everything the dryer was installed to achieve.
Can we service it without stopping production?
Refrigerant dryers usually need a short shutdown. Twin-tower desiccant dryers can often be worked on one tower at a time.
How much does neglect cost?
A blocked condenser adds compressor load, raises dew point and eventually fails the refrigeration circuit. A large bill that starts as a cleaning job.
Do you keep a record?
Yes. Dew point, ambient temperature and pressure drop are logged at every visit, so you have a trend rather than a single reading.
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Learn moreNot sure which model you need?
Send us your air demand, working pressure and running hours. Our engineers will size the machine and send a written recommendation, no cost, no obligation.