Safety Lesson: How being lazy nearly cost me my life! Extractor Accident

[cyclopath]

@Killa12345

I think im taking @TheGratefulPhil and hydrostatic testing going forward.

Solid decision

@SidViscous

We test pressure vessels with water because it’s incompressible and doesn’t store energy. So when the vessel fails, it just squirts a little and you don’t die. 150 psi in a 6" column could very easily kill you. Don’t pressure test with gas unless you have to

@downtheterphole

it is very obvious and gentle even past 500psi.

I fill vessel with water to as close to 100% as I can manage, then pressurize with air (or N2).

Generally using a recovery pump to compress remaining headspace

Eg: RTFM: CM-EP. hydrostatic testing with a refrigerant recovery pump

This was the last device I pressure tested above 100psi using gas…the amount of energy stored was mind boggling

@cyclopath

I once put 200PSI N2 into one of these (350L)

Letting it out through a KF-25 bellows was so awe inspiring the machine was dubbed “little boy”.