Air compressor upgrade

[hosedragger622]

I need to upgrade my air compressor, right now its a 60 gal 3 hp 10.3 cfm @ 90 psi, just curious what brand you guys are running and if your happy with them. I mainly run air tools, and sand blaster, the current compressor wont keep up with the blaster due to cfm output and requirments. Im sure this subject has already been discussed and if so just point me in the direction and i will go from there. Thank you.

 

[Citation]

Have you thought about estimating how much air your sand blaster uses? It's not hard to do. There are web calculators and formulas that calculate compressor cfm based on the time needed to fill from say 90 to 130 psi. You can do the same in reverse. Note the tank pressure, run the sand blaster for say 20 seconds and see the drop in pressure. Put those numbers into one of the calculators (you might have to reverse the pressures so the calculator sees the blaster "fill"your tank). That will tell you how much air you are currently using. That will help you decide if you need a 15cfm compressor or a 22cfm one.

 

[lbpd716]

my rule of thumb on compressors is determine your needs (find out how much all of your tools/uses to run efficiently - then double that number. Can't get too large as long as your shop can meet the power requirements.

And if you haven't seen it - this is a good watch (AvE)

 

[u2slow]

I need to upgrade my air compressor, right now its a 60 gal 3 hp 10.3 cfm @ 90 psi, just curious what brand you guys are running and if your happy with them. I mainly run air tools, and sand blaster, the current compressor wont keep up with the blaster due to cfm output and requirments. Im sure this subject has already been discussed and if so just point me in the direction and i will go from there. Thank you.

I have a smaller ~3HP/10cfm compressor. If/when I upgrade (i.e. start sand basting) I will be looking for a 2-stage unit in the 5-7.5HP range.

 

[matt_i]

Since I turned loose in the world as an adult I've been rolling with a 5hp x 60 gal upright Ingersoll Rand T-30.

Heaviest use has been sandblast (glass bead) cabinet which keeps it rolling almost 100% of the time.

Also hold the Quincy brand in high regard.

 

[Schurkey]

I need to upgrade my air compressor, right now its a 60 gal 3 hp 10.3 cfm @ 90 psi, just curious what brand you guys are running and if your happy with them. I mainly run air tools, and sand blaster, the current compressor wont keep up with the blaster due to cfm output and requirments. Im sure this subject has already been discussed and if so just point me in the direction and i will go from there. Thank you.

I have an enclosed blast cabinet. My 5-horse, two-stage, 80-gallon compressor JUST keeps up. My previous 5-horse, single-stage, 60 gallon couldn't, but was sufficient for small projects that didn't have the trigger on the blast nozzle pulled for long periods of time.

YOU NEED TWO-STAGE compressor power. 5-horsepower is a minimum. Better to buy a 5-horse, 1750-ish rpm motor attached to an 800-rpm pump than to buy a less-expensive, faster motor and pump unit.

 

[hosedragger622]

Just looking at my blaster the specs show it needs about 12-14 cfm, im good with going bigger. I hear negative stuff about every compressor out there and unsure what brand to go with, i know even the best can break.

 

[red94chev]

I have an enclosed blast cabinet. My 5-horse, two-stage, 80-gallon compressor JUST keeps up. My previous 5-horse, single-stage, 60 gallon couldn't, but was sufficient for small projects that didn't have the trigger on the blast nozzle pulled for long periods of time.

YOU NEED TWO-STAGE compressor power. 5-horsepower is a minimum. Better to buy a 5-horse, 1750-ish rpm motor attached to an 800-rpm pump than to buy a less-expensive, faster motor and pump unit.

Agreed with this. Just bite the bullet and make the purchase.

 

[larry_g]

I need to upgrade my air compressor, right now its a 60 gal 3 hp 10.3 cfm @ 90 psi, just curious what brand you guys are running and if your happy with them. I mainly run air tools, and sand blaster, the current compressor wont keep up with the blaster due to cfm output and requirments. Im sure this subject has already been discussed and if so just point me in the direction and i will go from there. Thank you.

My opinion is that you add a second compressor to the system. Have one as the main compressor and the second one plumed in and ready to put online in times of heavy use. This gives you the efficiency of a small compressor for most uses and the capacity to handle the large load when needed. Search out sberry here and his compressor setup. here is one thread that he talks about it, https://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=432600&highlight=compressors


lg
no neat sig line

 

[joe49]

Are you hosedragger from Chopper builders handbook?