I am starting to wonder because the CO2 delivery guys are finding it harder and harder to entrust me with the stuff, and are telling me that my application is unsafe....like I'm hooking it up to a mask and pulling a Dennis Hopper in "Blue Velvet"

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To John: My 7 plex was Kodak screen checked and they never had anything to say about the compressed air.

Sometimes a tube on the end of a can of dust off is the easiest way to dislodge a bit of crud, but CO2 is generally overkill. I've seen people use CO2 to try to clear backed-up toilets (NOT a pretty sight) and I have used it for cleaning the snot out of coke tray drain tubes... Boy, that came across more sinister than I meant. The plastic tubes under your coke heads... Crud. The flexible tubing under your Pepsi head drain trays. There!

I have occasionally used a small 20gal horiz. compressor on wheels to help with heavy-duty cleaning of projectors. I have found it especially useful for getting dirty grease/oil out of corners & crevices and out into the open where I can wipe them up easily.

But this is when I encounter a machine that is FILTHY...and by the time the compressor joins the party all of the gears and bearings are laid out on a table away from the casting.

Wow - I never knew about the death threat from air bubbles in the blood! I was already intimidated by how loud this thing is, now I have a reason to be afraid...very afraid.

So, how the heck do those bubbles get into the blood?

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And, hey! Let's be careful out there.

~Manny.

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I also use safety glasses that protect from the sides as well.

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And, hey! Let's be careful out there.

As for CO2, I don't think those are the cylinders which punch through walls if the valve gets knocked off. It's high pressure but because CO2 liquifies the pressure stays at about 800 psi. It's the gases that don't liquify at room temperature and stay gaseous whose cylinders are carrying pressures measured in the neighborhood of a couple thousand psi.

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As far as projectors are concerned, it is a definate overkill, and can be very dangerous. Some people don't have the slightest idea how much pressure is in those bottles, and how easy it is to get a gas embolism which can kill. Not to mention how dangerous the bottles are if they are dropped and the valve snaps off. The bottles will propel themselves through concrete walls and level everything in its path.

As far as cleaning other electrical/electronic devices, I actually observed one individual who was the head of a certain theater chain (since went bankrupt) who used a full pressure CO2 bottle with the valve almost wide open (to the point where he had to hold the bottle upright to keep it from blowing itself over) to blow out his copier that was in the office. Hunks of drum wiper blades, and other parts (including toner) went flying all over the room. When he was done, he was pissed at the machine because it no longer worked.

He was not the smartest person in the graduating class.

People who use compressed air are usually in a hurry. Now, I'm not knocking them, since they just want a clean projector and don't have much time. But, problems happen when someone takes shortcuts. I can only say I didn't use compressed air at most of the places I worked at, and I thought my projectors were pretty clean. And I didn't spend too much time cleaning them.

Like anything else, common sense has to prevail. Don't crank up the pressure, keep the tank secure, watch what you point it at. I found oil and dirt getting blown onto the lenses, so I made it a habit to cap them.