Inflatable screen blowers

[Doug Miles]

If you have looked into purchasing an inflatable screen, then you have probably also looked into purchasing a blower. Most blower manufacturers will provide the stats for each of their blowers. For instance, you will find stats for Voltage, Air Volume (usually in CFM, or Cubic Feet per Minute), Amps, Static Pressure (usually in inches), Weight, Dimensions, Wheel speed (usually in RPM, or Revolutions per Minute), and Motor Horse Power. So, what is most important? In my opinion, the Static Pressure is what you need to be concerned with the most. Note, I am going to puposely avoid getting into equations of amps vs. watts vs volts. You can google this if you are more interested. For the purposes here, I am merely going to go over what you need to look for as far as selecting a blower. I will quickly go over each of these:

Voltage: In the US, most household appliances plug into 120 Volt outlets. Larger appliances in the US require 240 Volt outlets (like Dryers). And some countries other than the US use 240 Volt outlets. The Voltage concern is more a matter of where you live, and what type of circuits you will be plugging into. For the most part, here in the US, you will want to look for 120 Volts. To confuse matters, you might also see 110 Volts, or 115 Volts. Basically 110, 115, and 120 Volts can be grouped in to one category. I believe the difference comes from who you ask. 110 is an older designation, but many people still refer to 110 Volts. Equipment is usually designed to operate at 115 Volts. However, Electric Utilites typically deliver 120 Volts. So, lets just say all three refer to the same thing.

Air Volume: Usually quoted in CFM, or Cubi Feet per Minute. This is a measure of how much air the blower will "move" in one minute. In general, more air volume translates to how quickly the screen will inflate.

Amps: This is a measure of how many Amps the blower draws. The number usually stated is the number of amps drawn once the screen is fully inflated. BLowers will typically draw more (sometimes quite a bit more) amps during the initial inflation stage. Here, the fewer amps the better. Most typical outlets will supply 15 or 20 amps. If you draw too many amps, you will "trip" the circuit breaker.

Static Pressure: Most often measured in inches (more specifically, inches of water), Static Pressure is a measure of the air pressure the blower can maintain inside an inflated screen. Static Pressure is a double edged sword. You need enough to keep your screen fully inflated (in particular the top cross piece) and with enough tension to pull you scren material flat enough to eliminate wrinkles. On the other hand, too much Static Pressure puts unwanted stress on your screen's seams. This can result (in the case of a lot of extra pressure) in seam failure, or in the very least, seam weakening. This will effectively reduce the life of your screen. Getting a blower with Static Pressure matched to your screen is pretty importance. The good news is that a simple $10 tool can be made to test Static Pressure. The bad news is that you need the screen and blower in hand, in order to determine if they are a good match. I will be posting more on this tool in the next day or two.

Weight/Size: Pretty self-explanatory

Wheel Speed: Measured in RPM (Revoltions pre Minute). This is the speed that the internal "fan" spins.

Motor: In horse power (HP). More horse power, usually a bigger motor. But also usually pulls more amps.

Hopefully this helps when determining which blower will best meet your needs. I personally find that horse power, wheel speed, and air volume are of little concern to me. Sure, they can help inflate the screen more quickly. But, I am most concerned with having a nice flate screen, with no sags in the frame. And for this, Static Pressure is the key.

Check back for my homemade Static Pressure test kit. I will edit this post with a link shortly.

[Doug Miles]

Here is the link I mentioned. How to make your own device for measuring static pressure in an inflatable screen.

http://msvnetwork.com/forums/showthread.php?t=102

[Mackinac Movies]

OK, my screens are on the way, so the next item up for purchase is a set of blowers.

From your test, it looks like you are producing 6" of pressure, but on which size screen.

I Have a 16x9 CB and also a 20x12 CB ordered and I am wondering if I should go with a pair of 1HP blowers, or a 1HP & a 1.5HP for the bigger screen.

Looking at the B-air, the Kodiak 1HP, has 1170 CFM and 8.8" of pressure, where the 1.5HP model only has 1290 CFM and 9.8" of pressure. I would have thought that the 1.5 would have had better numbers compared to the 1HP.

Also, it was recommended to me to check out the Tool King Air Hawk, as compared to the B-Air blowers. Both are about the same price, within $10-20 on the net. I guess reliability, and sound, or static noise would set one apart from the other, if the specs match. I was told that the Tool King had much more output as compared to the B-air, so winner must be the Tool King.

One last thing to check on though. Since I am so new to this, and jumping in with both feet, yes this is my first inflatable screen. OK, since I have confessed to not actually inflating a screen before, it would stand to reason that I have not deflated one either.

My question is this: How easily do the CB screens deflate for storage? Is collapsing them, and giving them a walk on enough to fold, or roll?

I as because of this newer attachment, the super deflater:
http://b-air.com/store/Super-Deflato...ak-models.html

Is something like this overpriced attachment needed to suck the air out of the screen for storage, or is walking good enough? This could effect the blower make decision, as it looks like this is unique to the b-air.

[Doug Miles]

I compared the Tool King 1hp to the B-Air 2hp, and my results showed the Tool King superior. Better max pressure, a little more quiet (really only a little) but drew fewer amps.

I took pictures, but I think I will re-do the test this weekend to confirm my results. Maybe I'll post a "shoot-out" thread.

If I were you, I wouldn't buy the deflator, yet. I too thought it looked like a great item. But, I've changed my mind. When a movie ends, you shut off the blower, and open the zippered air "vents". You then clean up all of your equipment, and, if you choose, remove the screen from the inflatable frame. This will take at a minimum of a half hour. By then, you should see that the screen has basically flattened itself. The tarpaulin material is fairly heavy, and the weight helps squeeze the air out. So, I would see if you can do without it at first. No use spending extra money if not necessary.

I'll have to post my method for rolling screens. Not that its the only way to do it, but it seems to work well. A word of caution. When the CB screens are delivered, don't judge them by their shipping size. I can't figure out how they are able to get the screens compacted as much as they do. I wouldn't even begin to try to get the screen back into its original shipping "bag".

[Mackinac Movies]

OK, what I think I will do then I probably buy the tool king sometime next week. If things work out good I will get another for a backup and for my second screen, just in case I ever have to setup both at the same time (I have a job lead like that). That will give me some time to check out the deflation process. If I do feel that the 'sucker' is needed, I can always go to the b-air for the second blower. I generally like to get the same brands of things so I know parts are compatible, but I think this process should work out well.

If you have some time to describe the deflation and storage that would be great. I hopefully will need that info soon! Also, I know you posted somewhere, but can you refresh my memory on the plastic wheeled cases that you use. I looked in home depot last weekend, but didn't see anything that looked like it would work. Maybe I am thinking that these screens are going to be bigger then they really are.

Oh ya, I have heard that the CB shipping (storage) bags are just a joke - nobody can ever get them back in there.

[Doug Miles]

They're calling for some rain here this weekend, but hopefully I can get out and run a few tests.

I looked back at the pictures I had posted in the thread you linked to. The picture showing the 6" of pressure is using the B-Air 2hp blower on the 16x9 CB screen (actually the 'viewable' area of my 16x9 screen is more like 15x7).

If I get enough outdoor time without rain, I'd like to retest each blower on each of my screens. The tests I ran showed the Tool King as the better blower. But, I have 2 B-Air 2 hp blowers, so I would like to test both of them against the Tool King to make sure it isn't a problem with one of the B-Air's.

I check several things when testing. First is the max pressure, with all vents closed, projection screen attached. Basically, just like it would be set up for a movie. For the second test, I open one of the relief vents on the screen (with the blower running) until the top horizontal cross piece just begins to sag. This is the first part of the screen to show signs of deflating when you don't have enough pressure. I take a pressure reading at this point, as this should be the minimum pressure required to inflate the screen. But, it's really the ABSOLUTE minimum. The third test is to attach a heavy duty garbage bag to the blower (no holes in the bag). And run the blower. With no escape vents, the pressure 'should' be the max pressure capable by the blower. I use this to compare to the specs for the blower (to see how accurate the manufacturer is). The last test is to measure the number of amps pulled during each test. The key readings are 1.) when the blower is first turned on, during inflation, and 2.) after the screen is fully inflated. The amps drop once the blower has back pressure from the fully inflated screen.

Wish me luck, and no rain!

[Doug Miles]

Originally Posted by Mackinac Movies

If you have some time to describe the deflation and storage that would be great. I hopefully will need that info soon! Also, I know you posted somewhere, but can you refresh my memory on the plastic wheeled cases that you use. I looked in home depot last weekend, but didn't see anything that looked like it would work. Maybe I am thinking that these screens are going to be bigger then they really are.

Oh ya, I have heard that the CB shipping (storage) bags are just a joke - nobody can ever get them back in there.

I forgot to post about this. I think I took some pictures of my folding process. Can you tell I like taking pictures? If I can find them I'll post how I fold the screens. If not, maybe I can take some pictures of it this weekend when testing the screens. Basically, I always have a huge tarp under the screen. It helps to protect the screen from the ground when inflated. After the screen is deflated I fold the screen lengthwise, then I fold the tarp over top of the screen, then roll them up together. The tarp becomes a protective cover, sort of. Hard to explain, pictures would be better.

The cases I got at Home Depot are these:

http://www.drillspot.com/products/43...tool_chest?s=1

I don't see them on the Home Depot website. But I have seen them recently in a local Home Depot. But, I haven't seen them in every Home Depot. I modified a few of mine (more pictures to post) and changed the wheels to air inflated ones.

No chance of getting either of your CB screens in this case. The only screen I was able to get in one of these cases was a Sima screen. The Sima material was thinner, and the frame was overall smaller. And it just fit. I use the cases now for speakers and other misc. stuff. It is really another whole thread to discuss moving screens around. I have found a hand-truck-like design to be the best overall solution. Even then, the screens are still HEAVY. I can pick up my 20' screen when rolled up. But just barely. No way could I carry it any distance.

[Doug Miles]

Ouch. Forecast for today says a high of 58 degrees, and winds up to 20 mph. It looks like it could rain any minute, but weather.com says only 10% chance all day. I trust weather.com, so I'm gonna try to do some testing. Probably won't get through it all today, but whatever I don't get done I will do tomorrow.

[Mackinac Movies]

Originally Posted by Doug Miles

Ouch. Forecast for today says a high of 58 degrees, and winds up to 20 mph. It looks like it could rain any minute, but weather.com says only 10% chance all day. I trust weather.com, so I'm gonna try to do some testing. Probably won't get through it all today, but whatever I don't get done I will do tomorrow.

Wimp. (just kidding) It was almost 80d here on thursday, and it snowed and sleeted on me friday. It is snowing again today here and there, which is fitting since I have my end of year snowmobile club party this evening.

Those are some pretty detailed tests you have planned. I am constintenly amazed at the amount of info and content that you have added to this website. Great job.

[Doug Miles]

Actually, I am a wimp. I can't even imagine the weather conditions you deal with.

So, I was kind of successful. No rain, but pretty windy. It was gusting up to 20-22 mph. I was testing the screens/blowers on my driveway, since my trailer is parked there, and its closer to the house for power. So, I really had no way to anchor down the screens. A couple times the screens almost went air born!

I tested the Tool King Air Hawk GT 1.0 hp and both B-Air Super Bear 2.0 hp blowers on a 10x6 and a 16x9 CB screen. Unfortunately I didn't have any heavy duty garbage bags to test blower's max pressure. I'll run to Home Depot tomorrow morning and test this tomorrow. Also, my amp meter is part of a Furman power conditioner, and I now remember why I had never tested the amp pull of blowers. The power conditioner has a built-in 15 amp breaker. Needless to say, both of these blowers pull over 15 amp when first powered on. Both kept tripping the breaker. So that is one test I don't have results for. It's a shame because I personally think that is the most important test. Power (or lack of) is often a problem at these events.

I'll continue the testing tomorrow (on a Vision Experience 20' screen) and then post the results. I also realized that the test to find the minimum pressure required to inflate each screen really has nothing to do with the blowers. It has more to do with the screen. So, I probably won't even post those results. However, I will use them in my reviews of each screen.