Air Compressor questions (OT?)

[Islander]

OK, I'm about to purchase an air compressor and all I've read recently tells me that a Campbell-Hausfeld/Husky is plenty good. The specs are 220V, 60 Gal, single stage, oil-lubed, 10.2 SCFM @ 90 PSI with a maximum of 125 PSI and 7.0 peak HP, 100% duty cycle capable. The cost is about $350 with a nice Home Depot coupon.

I have a 66 vert shell that needs lots of TLC so this compressor will be used for all air tools including sanders, grinders and a paint gun. I searched through the archives to see what I could find in the way of info and pictures but most images were gone. What I need to see is layout and accessories required to use the compressor to work on the fiberglass body and shoot primer/paint the car. So here are the two areas I need help in:

1- Provided my choice of compressor is correct, I will need to add a 220V oultet to the garage or make a 25' long extension cord to plug it into my dryer outlet. Which is best? The house is 4 years old and already has 220v 10 amp breakers. Do I need to beef the dryer one up to 30A? Alternatively, I could position the unit closer to the dryer outlet (about 8 feet) and run copper lines to where the tools will be used. That's why I would like to see photos of layouts.

2- This compressor will deliver 10.2 SCFM at 90psi and 11.8 SCFM at 40psi. The HVLP gun I had in mind, the DeVilbiss Finishline (2 or 3), runs 11.4 cfm at 23 psi. Is that a good match? If not, any other suggestions on paintguns under $200?

What else do I need to take into consideration when running an air compressor in my 3-car garage? Pictures are worth a thousand words, BTW. Thanks in advance.

 

[Tom Bryant]

I'd run a dedicated service to the compressor. Run what your compressor installation instructions say and you'll be fine. A lot of the bigger compressors don't have an on/off switch and will need to be hard wired into a box with a lever switch. That's the way mine is but it's pretty big. 80 gal 17.9cfm@ 90 psi and cycles getween 175 and 145 psi. In my old house I had the 30 gallon in the basement with a stub pipe and quick coupler run out through the basement window frame. When I needed to use air I'd plug in the 1/2" hose and roll it out to the detached garage.

That 60 should handle anything you can throw at it, except maybe the HVLP. I don't have any experience with HVLP. Someone else will have to comment on that. My 30 gal has painted a lot of cars and run air tools for hours on end for 23 years without a failure. This big compressor is going to spoil me.

Tom

 

[berky2500]

I'll try and remember to take some pictures tonight of mine tonight and email them, post your address. If I don't get it tonight, I'll be out of town for a week and I'll have to do it next week.

I have my compressor in one corner of the garage and then hard piped with 3/4" black iron pipe 20 ft to the center of the garage where I have space for two hose reels.

One has an automatic oiler/moisture separator/regulator for running air tools.

The other has a paint filter air dryer/regulator that taps in before the oil gets added.

You shouldn't have any trouble with the HVLP gun, not with that compressor. Just practice with it to get the settings right before you shoot something you want to be perfect.

 

[Islander]

Berky,

If you click on my nick you should be able to e-mail and IM me. If not, then try islander_21@earthlink.net. Thanks.

 

[IH2LOSE]

Do I need to beef the dryer one up to 30A?

Be carefull doing this.
Wire size dictates breaker size,
Amp draw of product/load dictates wire size.
Too small of a wire with Too big of a breaker = A FIRE

All I have to say is purchase the biggest CFM,Quietest compressor you can get.I purchased one recently from lowes and could not be happer,Sound very simular to the one you getting.I ran a deticated line to it also with a switch to turn it on and off.

Mine is installed in a corner of my garage and I installed a ball valve on the tank and came out with a custom short leader hose I had built at a hydrylic hose builder,from there it comes into a manifold I made out of galvinized pipe,(the steel pipe will rust over time from the moist air it carries) From thereI have a desacant dryer then split into a 50' reel line with a regulator on it.It also feeds a regulated line into my sand blaster cabenet.with quick connects on it so I can use it for my siphon sand blaster if needed.

I can tel you invest in the HIGH QUAILITY auto style quick connects for the hose's.The ones from home depot and lowes always leak air. Get the ones that snap on tool guys sell.

Good luck I absolutely love having a quaility compressor set up.

 

[Islander]

Thanks for the feedback, IH2LOSE.

As it turns out, the 220V breaker is a 30 amp and the compressor draws only 15 so it should be OK. For safety's sake I'm leaning towards installing a dedicated line for it. An electrician is on his way today but I need to read more about the piping setup, I'm not comfortable with my knowledge level there.

 

[WayneC]

TIP tools has a catalog that shows diagrams of how air compressor piping should be configured, and they sell piping "kits".

Their website has some of that same info, but order a catalog for better illustrations; hope this link works:

http://www.tptools.com/prod_list_di...okup&mscssid=B83H00T63DDP8KNF92TLCE1MB0490B66

 

[Islander]

OK, the electrician came by and said the job will go for about $165 including the parts. He will add a 220V/20A breaker and set up a dedicated outlet for it inside the garage.

BTW, thanks for the link, WayneC, much appreciated.

 

[IH2LOSE]

OK, the electrician came by and said the job will go for about $165 including the parts. He will add a 220V/20A breaker and set up a dedicated outlet for it inside the garage.

Sounds real cheap.

Does the unit your purchasing have an internal shut off switch.Not a pressure switch but a switch that when your not at home using the compressor you would turn off? or are you just going to un plug it when not in use? If your un pluging it when not in use you would have to turn off the breaker to plug it back in other wise you can burn the end of the plug when restarting it under a loaded condtion (meaning the unit want's to run as soon as its pluged in) I would recomend a dedacated hard wired connection that is switched on or off not a plug in style.

 

[Islander]

This unit does have an on/off switch.