Dryer likes and dislikes

[mk162]

you got 8'of heat?

I only have a 48" wide belt, so it's harder to put shirts side by side, that is why i would want the longer chamber.  the outside of the top on ours is fine, it's around 90-100 while dryer is one.  VERY well insulated.  they didn't insulate the bottom though, which i thought was kinda cheap.

chamber length is the only thing i would change if i did it again.  i think part of the problem here is shirts can have so much moisture in them they feel wet.  it's usually dang humid down here, and there is so much water to remove in the dryer it's harder for it to keep up.

The blower motor on ours went out shortly after it was installed.  They sent a new one in and had it replaced.  They didn't build the motor.

[blue moon]

you got 8'of heat?

I only have a 48" wide belt, so it's harder to put shirts side by side, that is why i would want the longer chamber.  the outside of the top on ours is fine, it's around 90-100 while dryer is one.  VERY well insulated.  they didn't insulate the bottom though, which i thought was kinda cheap.

chamber length is the only thing i would change if i did it again.  i think part of the problem here is shirts can have so much moisture in them they feel wet.  it's usually dang humid down here, and there is so much water to remove in the dryer it's harder for it to keep up.

The blower motor on ours went out shortly after it was installed.  They sent a new one in and had it replaced.  They didn't build the motor.

was hitting 140-160 on the top of the dryer towards the corners and similar or hotter at the joints. Now that the insulation is on it, it's probably around a 100 which I'll try to reduce some more.
Again, this is A PRETTY OLD DRYER! This is a 2004 and the new one I looked was running significantly cooler. I figured the $11-$12K savings was worth the money. We cleaned the inside with a vacuum (FREE), replaced two flame rods as a precaution even though they were fine ($170) and ordered a spare fan belt, again something not needed, but I wanted to have just in case. Add $100 worth of insulation and I have $300 or so in bringing it up to date.

Alan, just as an FYI, tracking system is optional and suggested for flatstock rather than garments. There is no pneumatic system on ours and it tracks perfect!

as far as the production, we have run 500/hour on one third of the belt, so 1500 is not a problem. We run discharge at 600-700/hour with very long dwell times.

pierre

pierre

[ScreenPrinter123]

Only thing that would cause me pause doing what you did Pierre (I spoke with interchange about doing this when we bought ours) is that by insulating the outside all of tht heat is retained on the outside paint job which will cause issues for it. But if you're simply not concerned about potential resale value, then go for it.  Oh, and I presume you didn't insulate over the thermal barriers to be able to take it apart for vaccumming et. al.

[TCT]

Only thing that would cause me pause doing what you did Pierre (I spoke with interchange about doing this when we bought ours) is that by insulating the outside all of tht heat is retained on the outside paint job which will cause issues for it. But if you're simply not concerned about potential resale value, then go for it.  Oh, and I presume you didn't insulate over the thermal barriers to be able to take it apart for vaccumming et. al.

I was going to say something about that just didn't get there yet! We covered our dryer the same way with the same stuff it looks like. It did cause anything plastic(knobs for adjusting openings) to become brittle and crack. The stickers bunched up and looked crappy, and there are some parts of the paint that are a bit darker, but really it is probably in better looking condition than a lot of the dryers out there that weren't covered.... Had ours covered for like 3 years until the fire inspector made us take it off.

[blue moon]

the paint was already bad in spots because it was running pretty hot. Stickers were melted already too. There are only metal parts under the insulation and everything lifts up to get access to the openings so we should be in good shape.

As far as resale, I figure I'll use it for a long time (hopefully) and even if we keep it only few years, we should be able to get most out of it. The insulation will just add to the value (at least that's what the little voices in my head tell me!). 

pierre

did I mention recently that our gas bill went down $100/month when we wrapped it up?

[Binkspot]

Just throwing this out there but if you are adding insulation to the dryer you might be better off using rigid insulation. Use the type with a foil backing facing the dryer to reflect heat. Mount it to the dryer using glue on stick pegs with spacers leaving at least a 1"air gap between the insulation and the dryer. This gap will make the insulation more efficient. Seal the joints with foil tape. It might cost a little bit more but in the long run you would be better off.

IMO either dryer will work nicely but after seeing a few new and old ones both brands I would pick Blue. The service is there, I think they run cooler and quieter.

[TCT]

Thanks all for the replies so far.
Has anyone ever had any experience or heard anything about the AWT dryers? I haven't, but those two techs I mentioned seemed to like them....

[GaryG]

Our 2011 MD-8 has been great, but a little loud since we had to go with
single phase. Top notch customer service.

[alan802]

We had an older AWT dryer.  It was radiant panel and gas combo and was incredibly innefficient yet cured a shirt as good as any dryer out there.  I think AWT makes a better than average dryer, I just hope they insulate them better than they did in the early 90's when our original dryer was built.  It was a Texair.  10' heat and 48" belt and the belt would run at 20'/minute easy and cure the thickest of ink deposits.  It had no issues keeping up with the RPM at full speed but the electricity and gas bill were high.  I'm positive they build them way more efficient now so I wouldn't be concerned with the issues I had with it.  I don't miss it being 118 degrees at 2pm though, with the new dryer it stays whatever temp it is outside.  The Sprint puts out very little heat, we can't even warm our inks up in the winter anymore with the dryer heat like we used to so I've had to build a heated ink storage for the colder nights...when it gets down to 40 , that's cold.

[ZooCity]

We need a gas dryer pretty bad just due to the util costs on our electric and I looked around a bit and yep, Sprint or Sprint HO is what I would want but you def get what you pay for from M&R and it ain't cheap when buying new! Absolutely worth it but there are other things we would purchase first at that cost.  Second choice would be a used interchange or sprint.  Seems like an easy decision with gas dryers- there are two solid, reputable companies making them, pick whichever works best for your situation.  I'll always defer to M&R b/c yes that service gives you a peace of mind that's hard to beat. 

In the end though, I would take whichever of the aforementioned makes of dryer I could find with the most airflow for the money. With the amount of wb/dc going on here, airflow is key.  You can't really get quiet and airflow in one dryer is my guess.  Our TexAir moves what feels like a ton of air, the push on the outflow is enough to drive the exhaust all the way up our stack to the roof without a helper and it takes a fairly large squirrel cage to do that.

For our space and setup I would prefer to have a 60-72" wide belt (split belt would be even better) and a 10-12' chamber- easier to throw from two presses with the wider belt and same effective throughput as the longer chamber.  I find the 48" belt cramped with both auto and manual running and cramped with just the auto with some of the faster printing jobs.

As far as insulation...didn't know you could safely wrap a dryer like that I would think that internal parts may be affected by the extra heat as well as the outer finish but maybe not.  Our TexAir is 140˚F one the top and sides when running. Would not mind insulating at least the top and the parts are simple enough that they might be fine.

AWT...they are kind of weird to work with on the older machines they inherited from American but maybe no problems on new stuff?

[screenprintguy]

That thang looks like a huge klondike bar

[beanie357]

We bought a used Mariah. Happy so far. Cool except where the lip vents on each end are. 2003 or so. Could use bigger vent motor, but adequate. Talk in regular voice next to it. No hot or cold spots with our probe tests. Looking at the new ones, they look a bit slicker, and seem to be a little more accessible, but how often do you replace a blower motor?

Lots of the innards are standard flame proofer stuff, so easily had on market. We bought ours used from cgs in Pennsauken, and he sees no issues with them. Traded a radicure in to get swithched over to gas. Radicure was great, but not gas.

[TCT]

how often do you replace a blower motor?

The actual motor you may be fine with, but EVERYTHING connected to the motor, not so much. You will need to replace the bearings on the blower motor set up one after another, and you will also probably come to appreciate the noise a freight train operator deals with daily.....
Seriously though, keep those grease nipples greased well!

[blue moon]

That thang looks like a huge klondike bar

funny, that's what we call it here!

pierre

[tonypep]

Cosmo has an Interchange on DS. Dual burner 72" belt 20' heat. It is 36' long. Overkill for most but that 20K will buy one monster dryer