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portable compressed air tank

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billconner

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I like to keep my Emglow compressor in my basement shop, at least in winter. It's heavy and I'm older and some disabilities. Will a portable compressed air tank be useful for topping off tires and maybe the occasional few finish nails? I'm assuming much lighter. Was looking at Harbor Freight 5 gallon tank. Thanks!


ps: I think this is compressor I have now - only from before DeWalt bought English.

weird but link does work
 
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PCustoms

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How far from the main compressor will you use this?

50-100' of good hose might be better.

That said, I'll sometimes charge up my pancake compressor and carry it to where I need it.
 
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mike93lx

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billconner said:
I like to keep my Emglow compressor in my basement shop, at least in winter. It's heavy and I'm older and some disabilities. Will a portable compressed air tank be useful for topping off tires and maybe the occasional few finish nails? I'm assuming much lighter. Was looking at Harbor Freight 5 gallon tank. Thanks!


ps: I think this is compressor I have now - only from before DeWalt bought English.
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For tires, it's hard to beat a cordless inflator.

Can you cover your needs for nailing with a longer hose? The 1/4" hybrids are super light and coil up quite small
 
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KnurledNut

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billconner said:
I like to keep my Emglow compressor in my basement shop, at least in winter. It's heavy and I'm older and some disabilities. Will a portable compressed air tank be useful for topping off tires and maybe the occasional few finish nails? I'm assuming much lighter. Was looking at Harbor Freight 5 gallon tank. Thanks!
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Absolutely. But 5 gallon won’t go far. Its not just volume, but maintaining a usable pressure. I would recommend an 11 gallon instead. They are still lightweight and manageable in size. For perspective, one will fill a completely flat average size automotive tire in one shot. Topping a set of tires a few PSI would be of no issue. Same for a few finish nails, but you’ll probably want to add an inline regulator. A tip: get or make a doubled ended male air hose to mate with your compressor for filling. Much faster and less hassle than trying to use the tire valve.
 
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johnre

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I think your least expensive and most effective option would be a 50’ hose, 3/8” diameter, made from Flexzilla or similar flexible material.

And if your basement shop faces the car parking area on an outside wall, you might consider adding a short permanent air line leg between the compressor and the outside wall, with male / female quickconnects, so all you have to do is turn on the compressor and plug in the hose on the outside - that way, you’re not snaking the hose through the house to reach the cars.
 
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billconner

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Had not considered portable tire inflator. Hadn't thought about this since I bought compressor in mid 1990s. That seems like better answer. It's mainly when temperature dips 50 degrees in a day and I get the dash board low tire pressure warning. Are the ~$30 ones on Amazon practical? Now, I may really have to figure out how to change my display from kPa to PSI.

Long hose not really convenient to detached garage. Too many doors and stairs. I did consider burying a pipe but (as John re just suggested). No really logical path for that with intervening finished slab on grade building, patio, and driveway between basement and detached garage. A hose would work for the occasional but rare nailing. I would switch to cordless nailers if I didn't have such a fleet of pneumatic nailers - framing, finish, drad, siding, roofing, flooring, palm, and probably a few more. Much cheaper to get a light weight compressor . :) And maybe that is the answer.
 
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mike93lx

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billconner said:
Had not considered portable tire inflator. Hadn't thought about this since I bought compressor in mid 1990s. That seems like better answer. It's mainly when temperature dips 50 degrees in a day and I get the dash board low tire pressure warning. Are the ~$30 ones on Amazon practical? Now, I may really have to figure out how to change my display from kPa to PSI.

Long hose not really convenient to detached garage. Too many doors and stairs. I did consider burying a pipe but (as John re just suggested). No really logical path for that with intervening finished slab on grade building, patio, and driveway between basement and detached garage. A hose would work for the occasional but rare nailing. I would switch to cordless nailers if I didn't have such a fleet of pneumatic nailers - framing, finish, drad, siding, roofing, flooring, palm, and probably a few more. Much cheaper to get a light weight compressor . :) And maybe that is the answer.
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What cordless tool platform do you have? I'd match that.

How many different nailers are you using remotely? No need to buy all if it's just something like an 18 gauge trim
 
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driftpin

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I have a Saylor-Beall 240C 1 ph vertical 80 gallon compressor in a 2 car attached garage. I have a 50 ft hose reel mounted on the edge of a mezzanine in the garage. I just stretch a hose to the driveway where the cars are, that's long enough to service any vehicle.

I have a Porter-Cable pancake 120V compressor, for servicing my trailer tires & bicycles, or anything else. I have a ~6 gal. air tank w/a handle, if I want to use it somewhere remote. It's been a handy tool.
 
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billconner

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Mike -

Thank you but Milwaukee cordless inflator $130-150 vs a stand alone for $30 that can live in and charge from car?

The remote bailing is not a priority. I probably buy a corded pancake compressor before cordless nailer.

Drifting -

Thank you. I don't think I want to leave compressor in garage when below zero, not something you face regularly in Florida. But a little pancake compressor is appealing.

I think another compressor of some sort makes more sense than the tank.
 
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mike93lx

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billconner said:
Mike -

Thank you but Milwaukee cordless inflator $130-150 vs a stand alone for $30 that can live in and charge from car?

The remote bailing is not a priority. I probably buy a corded pancake compressor before cordless nailer.

Drifting -

Thank you. I don't think I want to leave compressor in garage when below zero, not something you face regularly in Florida. But a little pancake compressor is appealing.

I think another compressor of some sort makes more sense than the tank.
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I hear you. I have an m12 and it gets a good amount of use between toys, bike tires and cars, so not being tethered to a car is nice. There are other cheap options from Harbor freight and ryobi that you can run off other 18v batteries using an adaptor.

With all that said, if you are looking for a portable compressor, I'd highly recommend an aluminum tank ultra quiet. I have a California air tools one that is great, especially when I bring it in the house for a project. It's quiet enough to not be a problem, but at 1hp and 4.6 gal, it's bid enough to keep up with a framing project
 
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alwaysFlOoReD

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Oilless compressors are fine in freezing weather. Oiled compressors I wrap a battery blanket around the head and plug it in 15 minutes before turning on the compressor. This is at -16C for work in Canada.
The blanket is tie wired on semi permanent.
 
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billconner

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Knurled - thanks for that link. Hadn't popped up for me in search.

The Car&Driver article convinced me to get the Teromas in car unit with 12 volt and 120 volt charging. $35 too easy. Probably will also look for a lighter weight pancake unit, probably corded, for carpentry. Just too old to lug the Emglow up and down stairs.
 
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billconner

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mike93lx said:
I have a California air tools one that is great, especially when I bring it in the house for a project. It's quiet enough to not be a problem, but at 1hp and 4.6 gal, it's bid enough to keep up with a framing project
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That's around $300 and weighs 60 pounds same as my Emglow! I was liking the HF at 15 pounds.....:)
 
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