Air compressors

[JoeKan]

Does Husky make a good air compressor? I'm looking at the 30 gallon they have at Home Depot. $300. I will mostly be using it for painting and DA sander. Thanks.

[JoeKan]

Found this one, what do you think?
80 gallon Campbell&Hausfeld electric air compressor $500

[nsb29]

A DA takes a lot of air painting not so much. Get one with pistons don’t get a diaphragm pump they will drive you crazy with the noise. look at Harbor freight and see what they have 5hp don’t worry to much about tank size that’s for storage, they put big tanks on small pumps a lot but then you have to stop and wait for it to catch up

[toolboxchev]

The most SCFM is what your looking for. Square Cubic Feet per Minute of air. You will need a lot for a DA. Match what the requirements are for the sander, or as close as you can get for your budget. Too little of air makes for waiting for the compressor to catch up all the time. Or it burns up from being overworked.

[tinydb84]

Buy bigger than you think you need. I have a 60 gallon 5hp single stage. It works great but I wish I would have went with a 80 gallon two stage. The scroll compressors are really nice and I might go that route if/when my compressor goes.

[nsb29]

I bought this compressor somebody made it from an old propane tank probably around 40 gallons almost 40 years ago, over the years I have replaced the motor and the pump several times. The pump that’s on there now is rated at five horse I bought it from Granger five or six years ago I believe it was around $600. the following year I replace the motor which is rated at six horse power it also was in the neighborhood of $500 or $600 100% duty cycle I can sandblast all day or run the DA with no problem, it does not shut off but has enough cubic feet to keep up I never have to stop and wait for it to build up. there’s a lot of difference in five horse Compressors, as stated above it’s all about cfm and I would never buy anything by Campbell House field but most 5hp compressors are adequate for Painting and small sandblasting or DA jobs [ATTACH]1930634[/ATTACH

[Dead Parrot]

Avoid the oil-less compressors. As noted already, they are really noisy.

One way to think about it: Tank size = battery. Tank pressure = voltage. Motor/pump = charger.

I have a 2HP twin cylinder single stage that I got from Northern Tool as a refurb unit for $300. Had one of their coupons that basically canceled out the tax. Looked identical to a $550 unit at Lowes except the NT tank is black instead of Lowes blue.

It won't keep up with a 1/4" angle grinder full time. But the 30 gallon tank will let me run it for a couple of minutes non-stop before the pressure drops off too much. Which is enough for most of things I do.

Budget about $100 for fittings, hose and plumbing to bring air out to a 1/2 pipe setup with a larger regulator. The regulator included on many compressors is often 1/4" and can restrict airflow. Mine had a plug on the side of the tank that allowed for a fitting and hose to connect to a 1/2 pipe network in my shop. If you are starting from scratch, look at the Rapid-air type systems. I already had several long pieces of 1/2 piping and fittings salvaged from another shop setup.

[72c20customcamper]

I bought a 60 gallon Dewalt . Really with the advent of new electric and cordless tools the only big thing I run on mine is a sandblaster and my HVLP spray gun. Sometimes my compressor doesn't run for days.

[72HuggerK20]

Originally Posted by toolboxchev

The most SCFM is what your looking for. Square Cubic Feet per Minute of air. You will need a lot for a DA. Match what the requirements are for the sander, or as close as you can get for your budget. Too little of air makes for waiting for the compressor to catch up all the time. Or it burns up from being overworked.

SCFM stands for Standard Cubic Feet per Minute in regards to fluid flow rates. In this case, it is describing an air compressor's capacity at a given pressure and temperature. The "Standard" part of that unit is the same as in STP or Standard Temperature and Pressure when talking about the ideal gas laws in chemistry and physics. Standard temperature and pressure is 0 psi (or 14.7 if not counting natural atmospheric pressure), at 68 degrees F and 36% humidity.

So what this means is that the SCFM rating is taking with an open outlet port on the pump with only atmospheric back pressure. On the contrary, a standard air compressor rating of XX.XX CFM @ 90psi is much more applicable because that means it was tested with 90psi back pressure on the pump outlet, which is a much more applicable test when it comes to air compressor capacity.

[Warrens69GMC]

Originally Posted by nsb29

..... and I would never buy anything by Campbell House field but most 5hp compressors are adequate for Painting and small sandblasting or DA jobs [ATTACH]1930634[/ATTACH

Almost all of the compressors less than $1000 are made by Campbell Hausfeld, This includes Porter Cable, Husky, Speedaire by Grainger

[mikelom]

Check out Tractor Supply. They have decent options also.

[nsb29]

Originally Posted by Warrens69GMC

Almost all of the compressors less than $1000 are made by Campbell Hausfeld, This includes Porter Cable, Husky, Speedaire by Grainger

That is interesting you never know who made what anymore the compressor pump I bought from Granger was made in USA but it’s been too long ago and don’t remember Who it was but the pump by it self cost more than most complete units Nothing Iever bought from Campbell housfeld was worth a s?$) so many companies now just put their name on Chinese junk A few years ago I bought a inexpensive belt sander from Home Depot it had black +decker’s name on it the other day I was in Lowe’s they sell the same sander with craftsman’s name on it I remember when craftsman was a good Reliable product but then I guess that tells you my age ha ha

[Warrens69GMC]

Bought this compressor after researching my options, made by Campbell Hausfeld

https://www.grainger.com/product/SPEEDAIRE-3-0-HP-1NNF7