Air compressor. What should I look for?

howiee · howiee's Garage

My wife is buying me an air compressor for Fathers day and I would like to know what to look for. I'll be using it mostly for car stuff. I'll be installing hardwood flooring and basic house mods as well.

What size tank? Is 5 gallons good enough for the average joe?
I don't have a big garage so a 60 gallon is out of the question. would be nice to have it mobile.

SCFI ??? What the heck is that?

Any insight would be great..

RickM · RickM's Garage

To help us answer the question list the 5 most important pnuematic tools you'd like to use.

Quick brain dump...

By SCFI do you mean SCFM? That's Standard Cubic Feet Per Minute. That describes the volume of air that a compressor can generate. Important spec to consider when sizing a unit.

IMO, you should get as much compressor for the money as possible. That means the biggest tank and the highest SCFM@90lbs possible. I'd also stay away from "Oilless" compressors. They're noisy and are typically not repairable.

If you're looking to do any painting, use an impact or high air requirement pneumatic tool or sandblast you can forget about a 5 gallon tank (or even 10). You'll need larger even for burst or intermittent use. Five gallon is fine for nailers, air brushing but that's about it.

vash · vash's Garage

howiee. get ready for increased garage testosterone.

i asked all the same questions here.

very confused - tool shopping! help!

slater · 06-17-2005, 01:25 PM

I have an 11 gallon 3hp. It works fine for everything i use it for around the garage. Keeps up with all of my tools. I use it mostly with an impact wrench, die grinders, air ratchet, and all the small stuff like blowing and filling tires. I wouldn't mind a bigger tank though so that it wouldn't come on as often.

Hugh R · 06-17-2005, 01:38 PM

Get one that can be switched from 110 to 220 volts, it'll run cooler, if you can get 220 to your garage. Make sure that you drain the condensed water out of the tank once in a while.

masraum · 06-17-2005, 01:41 PM

Oiled compressors are quieter than oilless and last longer from what I understand, but I think an oilless is probably fine for the average joe that hardly uses it.

Home Depot has one that is about 20-25 Gal and will work standing up or laying down which may help with space.

Make sure you look at the tools that you want to use and make sure that the compressor that you get will provide enough air for them.