Compressed air leak cost calculator

Count the leaks you found by hole size. See the air they waste and what it costs a year.

Leaks found

Hole size	Number of leaks	Air each

The example counts are a starting point. Change them to what you found.

Your system

Line pressure psig Leak edges Hours it holds pressure h/yr Leaks waste air whenever the system holds pressure, not only when production runs. Never shut down: 8,760. Electricity cost $/kWh Power to make the air kW per 100 scfm About 18–22 for most plants. A plant that runs part-loaded is higher.

How it is worked out

Air escapes through a leak about as it would through a hole of the same size: the bigger the hole and the higher the pressure, the more air. The air each hole wastes comes from the U.S. Department of Energy's leak table, adjusted to your pressure. A real leak is rarely a clean round hole, so a typical leak lets through about 61% of the table's figure; choose rounded edges for a clean, round opening.

The cost is that air times the power it takes to make it, the hours the system holds pressure and your electricity cost.

What it leaves out

Leaks you can't hear or haven't found. A leak survey usually finds most, not all.
Extra compressors, maintenance and capacity the leaks force you to buy.
Whether fixing leaks saves that much power. It depends on how your compressors cut back when demand falls: a unit running part-loaded saves far less than the air suggests.

Source: U.S. Department of Energy, Improving Compressed Air System Performance: A Sourcebook for Industry, leak rates by orifice size.

Want the real number?CAS ASSiST measures leaks from your logged data, then works out what fixing them saves with your compressors as they actually run.

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