SpudFiles

After watching some diagrams about regulators I decided to make my own.

The following device is based upon this little diagram:


My regulator operates the same like in the diagram but instead of a diaphragm I used a little squeeze piston (two gaskets on a screw squeezed to fit) and a presta valve at the gas inlet.




The spring rests on a little 12mm ball bearing, this way the plug turns very easy to set the force.


I was able to regulate my shop compressor between 8 and 0.5 bar.

Very nice, I like it when people try new things, it also will save you a few bucks I am also thinking of making something like that, but not a regulator, but a safety valve for my fridgecompressor, so it won't go over 40 bars and destroy my pressure gauge. Anyway... I like it alot!

cool I've been looking for something like this... moar details please


@jack_H
that's actually quite simple... all you need is a piston with a strong spring behind it... or a shrader valve with a much stronger spring
it's better than a pop-off valve as it won't vent the whole system

good job
try it on high pressures

Yes please more details!!

Excellent job I would love to see if this would work around 800 psi or so

Good job good way to save some money for other stuff... do you happen to know how much pressure that 1/2" Tee can take?

800 psi wouldn't be out of the question for a 1/2" brass tee, so it could regulate CO2 if made well.

inonickname wrote:800 psi wouldn't be out of the question for a 1/2" brass tee, so it could regulate CO2 if made well.

Depends on the brass.

What a beauty!
I might build one too in the next few months. However, I'd equip it with a (homemade or not) safety popoff, so if the regulator would fail to seal, it won't fill the devices behind it with unregulated pressure.

Seeing this design ( I am very tired right now, so I might be wrong) I think it does not have a pressure independant piston.

Meaning..it will regulate up to a certain maximum point. Once the input pressure is raised above this critical point the valve won't be able to re-open the inlet channel.
This is because it works by sliding off the shrader.Imagine the input pressure raising beyond the maximum the spring can open.
It will stay shut.

BUT:

If you combine this idea with the pushbutton valve, you will have a true regulator.It will pull the valve shut when the low pressure side has reached it's max.Not matter what the input pressure will be, it will re-open once the low pressure side drops...
Only important thing is to make the low side piston larger than it's counter piston.

Put the spring behind the counter piston ( formerly the pushbutton)

Good to finally see someone take the effort of building a homemade reg, but as I have said before, the pushbutton principle is much better suited for it.

It's true that the design has no pressure independent piston, that's why I took a presta valve with a very small opening surface. The way it is, the construction isn't that strong anyways.
It's more like a prove of concept, something you can build up on.

I've thought about the dilemma of the maximum pressure input and have already ideas to solve that problem. It's just a matter on how to build it with my recourses and without making it to bulky.

inonickname wrote:800 psi wouldn't be out of the question for a 1/2" brass tee, so it could regulate CO2 if made well.

Considering the force exerted by high pressure on the surface area of the diaphragm, I don't think it can achieve high pressure output using anything less than a large, powerful die spring (or equivalent) on the low pressure side of the diaphragm.

velocity3x wrote:

inonickname wrote:800 psi wouldn't be out of the question for a 1/2" brass tee, so it could regulate CO2 if made well.

Considering the force exerted by high pressure on the surface area of the diaphragm, I don't think it can achieve high pressure output using anything less than a large, powerful die spring (or equivalent) on the low pressure side of the diaphragm.

An air spring is always an option.