SteddyAir planning tools
Use these seven quick estimates to put a number on leaks, compressor energy, moisture, pipe sizing, and improvement projects before you call in the experts.
01 / Estimate
Change any value and the estimate updates immediately in your browser. Nothing is submitted or stored.
Leak economics
See what wasted compressed air could be costing your operation over a year.
Estimated annual energy cost
$1,057
At these settings, the leaks represent about 2.1 kW of compressor input.
Formula: leak CFM × 0.18 kW/CFM × (pressure ÷ 100) ÷ efficiency × hours/week × 52 × electricity rate. The 0.18 kW/CFM factor is a planning benchmark at 100 psig. A leak count uses a rough 0.25 CFM per leak.
Operating cost
See what it costs to produce each thousand cubic feet of compressed air.
Cost per 1,000 cubic feet
$0.33 / MCF
Annual electricity cost
$41,381
Annual air produced
124,800,000 ft³
$/MCF is the cost of producing one thousand cubic feet of compressed air, useful for comparing systems and spotting the cost of leaks and inefficiencies.
Formula: kW input = hp × 0.746 ÷ (efficiency/100); annual kWh = kW input × hours per week × 52; annual air produced (ft³) = CFM × 60 × hours per week × 52; cost per MCF = (annual kWh × $/kWh) ÷ (annual air produced ÷ 1000). Assumes steady delivered output, operating schedule, and electricity rate; results are planning estimates.
Project planning
Estimate the utility incentive available before you commit capital or apply for a program.
Total estimated incentive
$10,000
Demand incentive (kW × $1,800)
$18,000
Energy incentive (kWh × $0.20)
$10,000
Applies: Demand incentive — the greater of the two. The 50% project-cost cap limits the estimate.
50% project-cost cap: $10,000
Net cost after incentive
$10,000
Covers 50% of project cost
Enter a project cost to apply the 50% cap.
Utilities pay for either the peak demand a project removes or the energy it saves, whichever pays more, and never more than half the project cost. A completed air audit is what pins down the real numbers.
Formula: the incentive is the greater of the demand incentive ($1,800 per kW saved) or the energy incentive ($0.20 per kWh saved) — the two do not combine — and the result is capped at 50% of project cost. Actual program rates, caps, and eligibility vary by utility and region.
05 / Recover the cost
Energy-efficiency work often pays for itself faster with a utility incentive — and SteddyAir handles the technical side of the application.
See all five areas we work on — energy savings, audits, leak detection, controls and incentivesFeatured case study
246,164
kWh saved
29.75
kW saved
$72,201
project cost
$36,101
incentive
Two 100 HP fixed-speed compressors were replaced with one 75 HP variable-speed compressor plus one 100 HP fixed-speed compressor. The $72,201 project received a $36,101 incentive — 50% of project cost.
Documents
Condensate management
See what timed condensate drains cost in compressed air and electricity over a year.
Estimated annual energy cost
$0
Total air lost
0 CFM
Annual energy
0 kWh
Per-drain loss
0 CFM
These drains are using compressed air on every cycle.
Formula: orifice flow is linearly interpolated and clamped from the workbook table — 0.5": 50/60/70/80/90/100/125/150/200 PSI = 198/230/262/294/326/358/438/518/677 CFM; 0.25": 50/60/70/80/90/100/125/150/200 PSI = 49.4/57.5/65.5/73.6/81.6/89.6/110/129/169 CFM. Per-drain loss CFM = orifice flow × (seconds open ÷ 60) × 0.85 ÷ (minutes closed + seconds open ÷ 60); total loss = per-drain loss × number of drains; annual kWh = total loss CFM × (system efficiency ÷ 100) × production hours; annual cost = annual kWh × $/kWh. The 0.85 loss coefficient is the workbook assumption. Planning estimate only.
System testing
Turn a load/unload test, storage volume and compressor rating into a leakage rate and annual cost.
Estimated annual energy cost of the leaks
$0
Leakage rate
0 CFM
Total storage
0 ft³
Leak power
0 kW
Annual energy
0 kWh
Run this test during non-production hours to estimate the system leakage rate.
Best practice: run the test during non-production hours and verify compressor ratings against CAGI data sheets.
Formula: pipe volume (gallons) = feet × gal/ft; total storage = wet + dry + auxiliary + pipe gallons; storage ft³ = total storage gallons ÷ 7.4805; capacitance (ft³) = storage ft³ × (unload PSI − load PSI) ÷ 14.5; leakage CFM = capacitance ÷ (average unload time in minutes); specific power = rated full-load kW ÷ rated flow CFM; leak kW = leakage CFM × specific power; annual kWh = leak kW × hours/week × 52; annual cost = annual kWh × $/kWh. Pipe factors retained in the workbook data: 1" 0.041, 1.25" 0.064, 1.5" 0.092, 2" 0.163, 2.5" 0.255, 3" 0.367, 4" 0.652, 6" 1.468, 8" 2.610 gal/ft. Planning estimate only.
Pipe sizing
Check air velocity in a line and find the smallest pipe size that stays within the recommended range. Velocity is the check shown here; pressure drop is not estimated.
Within recommended velocity
Recommended for a main header: 20–30 ft/s
Actual velocity
0 ft/s · 0 m/s
Actual flow
0 CFM
Smallest pipe within limit
6"
Velocity is within the selected recommended range. Larger pipe is safe; this check only identifies the smallest listed size that meets the maximum.
Formula: actual volumetric flow (ACFM) = SCFM × 14.7 ÷ (gauge pressure + 14.7 psia); inside area (ft²) = π ÷ 4 × (inside diameter in ft)²; velocity (ft/s) = actual CFM ÷ area ÷ 60. Standard schedule 40 inside diameters used: 1/2" 0.622", 3/4" 0.824", 1" 1.049", 1-1/4" 1.380", 1-1/2" 1.610", 2" 2.067", 2-1/2" 2.469", 3" 3.068", 4" 4.026", 6" 6.065". Recommended ranges: main header 20–30 ft/s; branch line 25–35 ft/s; service / drop line 30–50 ft/s; pneumatic tools 20–30 ft/s; instrumentation 15–25 ft/s. Pressure drop is not estimated here; velocity is the check shown. Planning estimate only.
Moisture control
Estimate how much water an aftercooler and dryer remove from compressed air.
Total water removed
0.0000 gal/hr
Water content at inlet
0.00 grains/lb
Actual air flow
0.00 ACFM
Dry-air mass flow
0.00 lb/hr
Water entering
0.0000 gal/hr
Aftercooler outlet temperature
0.00°F
Water content at outlet
0.00 grains/lb
Water remaining after aftercooler
0.0000 gal/hr
Water removed by aftercooler
0.0000 gal/hr
Water content at dewpoint
0.0000 grains/lb
Water remaining after dryer
0.0000 gal/hr
Water removed by dryer
0.0000 gal/hr
Total percent removed
0.00%
Total per day
0.00 gal/day
At these conditions, the dryer removes the remaining moisture after the aftercooler.
Typical dryer dewpoints
Corrected reference case: at 500 SCFM, 100 psig, 100°F inlet and 100% RH, the inlet water content is about 300 grains/lb, water entering is about 11.56 gal/hr, and total water removed is about 11.55 gal/hr. Results are planning estimates.
Standard psychrometric method: interpolate the paired °F/psia saturated water-vapour pressure Pws table from −40°F to 200°F and clamp outside the table. Use P_line = operating gauge pressure + 14.5 psia for line-pressure saturation calculations and P_atm,inlet = 14.7 psia for inlet air. RH is converted to a fraction once: p_v = RH/100 × Pws(T_in), then w_in = 0.622 × p_v ÷ (14.7 − p_v). Dry-air mass flow = SCFM × 60 × 0.075 lb/ft³; actual flow uses the 14.7 psia ambient reference: SCFM × 14.7 ÷ (operating gauge pressure + 14.7). T_out = T_in + approach; w_out = 0.622 × Pws(T_out) ÷ (P_line − Pws(T_out)); w_dew = 0.622 × Pws(T_dewpoint) ÷ (P_line − Pws(T_dewpoint)). Convert water pounds to gallons with 8.34 lb/gal. Water removal is clamped to non-negative values and total removal cannot exceed water entering. Results are planning estimates.
02 / Take it with you
Prefer to work offline? We’re building a small library of practical spreadsheet tools for plant and maintenance teams.
These are the same SteddyAir workbooks used in the field — free to download.
Excel spreadsheet (.xlsx) · XLSX
A multi-tab workbook with seven handy tools in one file: motor amp draw and in-rush current, SCFM ↔ ACFM conversion, diesel vs electric running cost, pump-up and reverse pump-up compressor capacity tests, refrigerated dryer sizing, and a compressor oil carryover estimator.
Available on request — and included whenever we run your air audit.
Excel spreadsheet (.xlsx) · XLSX
Work out the compressed air — and the money — lost through timed condensate drains. Enter drain size, pressure and open/close cycle for up to 20 drains and see the annual energy cost, plus typical system efficiency benchmarks.
Available on request — and included whenever we run your air audit.
Excel spreadsheet (.xlsx) · XLSX
Finds your system's leakage rate from a simple load/unload test and turns it into an annual energy cost, using your tank and piping volume, compressor ratings and hydro rate. Includes a second tab for a quick leak-plus-storage estimate.
Available on request — and included whenever we run your air audit.
Excel spreadsheet (.xlsx) · XLSX
Checks whether your air velocity and pressure drop are within recommended ranges for headers, branch lines, drops and tools, and recommends the minimum pipe size to fix it. Includes pipe sizing and fitting equivalent-length reference tabs.
Available on request — and included whenever we run your air audit.
Excel spreadsheet (.xlsx) · XLSX
Estimates how much water your aftercooler and dryer remove, based on flow, pressure, inlet temperature, humidity, approach temperature and target pressure dewpoint — with typical dryer dewpoint reference data.
Available on request — and included whenever we run your air audit.
Want a professionally measured result? Book an air audit and we’ll test the system in the field.
Move from estimate to certainty
Book an air audit to measure leaks, demand, pressure, and efficiency in the field.