Keep a clean gas line

It is extremely important to keep a clean, dry gas line to prevent oil, water, dirt, and other contaminants from causing damage to internal components. A clean gas line also helps you to get optimal cut quality and consumable life.

Dirty, oily air is the root cause of many common problems that occur in Powermax® plasma power supplies. In some conditions it can void the warranty on the plasma power supply and torch.

The plasma power supply’s built-in air filter can remove particulates as small as 5 microns. It can also remove some moisture from the gas supply.

  • Comply with the gas quality recommendations in Hypertherm plasma power supply ratings.
  • If you work in an environment that is extremely warm and humid, or if work site conditions let oil, vapor, or other contaminants into the gas line, install an external filtration system that cleans the gas supply before it gets into the plasma power supply.
  1. Examine the air filter element in the plasma power supply’s built-in air filter.
    The image shows a clean filter element.
  2. Replace the filter element if it is dirty.
  3. Clean the air filter bowl to remove oil, dirt, and other contaminants.

    A yellow residue on the filter bowl shows that oil is getting into the gas supply line.

  4. Replace the O-ring at the top of the air filter bowl if it has cracks or other damage.
  5. If you use an external air filtration system, clean or replace any parts in it that are possibly dirty.