Rotary Screw vs Piston Compressor: What’s the best solution? (Part 2 of 2)

In the first part of our blog on Piston vs Screws, you read about how piston and rotary screw technologies work while in this part, you will know about the direct comparison between the two. How do you decide which air compressor is right for your given application?

Piston compressors have more moving parts as compare to screw compressors. Since there are more parts that are moving, there is more wear and tear on those parts which end up requiring more & frequent maintenance. But because the piston compressor is simple is design, one should find it easier to maintain than that of a rotary screw. The frequency of carrying-out the maintenance in case of a screw compressor is less than that of the piston compressor.

A piston compressor is running much hotter than that of a rotary screw compressor. The rotors used in the screw compressor are not touching each other directly. With the piston compressor, the piston rings are always in contact with the cylinder walls. Because of the contact, there is more friction and this ultimately results in higher temperatures from the machine.

For the same reason, the piston compressors have more vibrations and run with louder noise. One mostly needs to provide a foundation for the piston compressor in order to minimize the vibrations which also attracts the additional cost of construction. The rotary screw compressors are much quieter as they are provided with anti-vibration pads. Screw compressor doesn’t require the foundation & can be placed on the finished leveled floor. 

Another salient feature for the rotary screw compressor is the ability to run continuously & deliver constant flow without being having any pulsations at the discharge of the compressor. 

As there is minimal wear & tear happening in the compression process,  the deration of capacity is much less as compare to piston where it is quite high & needs to be taken into account while considering the air capacity calculations.

As you know, the piston compressors occupy lots of space in order to achieve the desired compressed air flow & the pressure. It is also very necessary to have a bigger & stronger foundation to take care of the bulkiness & size of the piston compressor

The screw compressors require much lesser space for a similar capacity machine than that of the piston. The design of the screw compressor is very compact & therefore requires less space. Moreover, no foundation is required for these compressors.

As already explained, the oil-injected piston compressor will have more oil carry-over in the compressed air than an oil-injected rotary screw compressor does. However, the piston compressor will release some oil in the compressed air, more than a rotary screw compressor does. 

Piston compressors will have more moving parts and more frictional losses as compared to screw. But if your application doesn’t need the clean (oil-free) air, then one can look for the option of piston compressor as they are more cost-effective & the initial cost of investment would be lesser. 

Before selecting either a piston compressor or a rotary screw compressor, you need to understand your specific needs for the compressor. How much space will you have for the unit? Will it be mounted or does it need to be portable? How much-compressed air do you need?

You also need to know if you need the compressed air more intermittently or a continuous stream of the air. 

We have both piston compressors and rotary screw compressors in a variety of sizes and applications to meet your compressing needs. 

You may read one of our blogs which will help you to decide what Compressor size do you need?

We can also help with parts, service inquiries, or more information about new air compressors.