Shop Air Setup Questions

[lowcountrygamecock]

And no this isn't a question about what material to use for the lines. I have read enough discussions to know not to go there. I have a rectangle shop and the air compressor is going in the middle of the back wall. I am planning on running 4 drops total, one on the front left corner, one in the middle of the front wall, one on the front right corner and one right beside the air compressor. I plan on running the air lines up the wall and through the attic and then just have the drops exposed. So should I run the lines in a T with the main line going down the center of the building and branching left and right or should i make a full square loop starting and ending at the compressor?
Also how much cfm do I need? I will be doing basic inflating, and small air tools. Not planning on sandblasting or anything like that and if I ever need to I can always do that at the shop at my office. I may be looking at HPLV sprayers at some point down the road so I want to account for that. I'm trying to decide between a cheaper compressor that's 11.5 CFM @ 90 psi and a more expensive one that's 14 CFM @ 90 psi. Any thoughts?

 

[Jeff Ivers]

There is no need to run a complete loop. Design your pipe run to minimize materials. With regards to compressor, the one truism in life is things change. Will you always work at the same job? Do you have kids? What might their interests be in the future? If you are looking at a few dollars difference to go to the larger compressor and you can afford it, go for the larger. I highly recommend a pressre regulator near your compressor before your pipe run. Keep that pressure at about 90 psi, depending upon tools you will be using.

 

[CNGsaves]

Other posts have examples where regulators and filters are placed at each drop . . . .extra money but allows flexibility for specific tools. I like the setup that GarageEnvy has with Norgren regulator/filter/gauge/drain.

What brands of regulators are common/good for whole line purposes? Are the inlet/outlet ports any bigger than 3/8" or 1/2" if I plan on using 3/4" as my main line black pipe run to attic?

Will those small cannister filters really handle water they will encounter? How often will they need changed out and cost per filter?

 

[metalmagpie]

Just happen to have a few links handy from the last dozen or so times this question has been asked:

http://www.tptools.com/StaticText/airline-piping-diagram.pdf
http://www.ecompressedair.com/library-pages/piping-systems.aspx
http://tinyurl.com/73mxb5a
http://tinyurl.com/7x4yk7j
http://tinyurl.com/78fdq2j

 

[Trey T]

If all you do is mechanic work, a 5CFM @ 90psi 30 gallon tank will be more than enough. mechanic tools doesn't resquired as much as body work such as sander and sandblasting.

11.5CFM @90psi 60gal will give you room to grow.

I currently have the kobalt 5 CFM @90psi 30 gal and I used HVLP to spray half a car w/o any problem. The painted car came out great. HVLP doesn't use a lot of air like sanders or grinders.

 

[GeorgiaHybrid]

If all you do is mechanic work, a 5CFM @ 90psi 30 gallon tank will be more than enough. mechanic tools doesn't resquired as much as body work such as sander and sandblasting.

11.5CFM @90psi 60gal will give you room to grow.

I currently have the kobalt 5 CFM @90psi 30 gal and I used HVLP to spray half a car w/o any problem. The painted car came out great. HVLP doesn't use a lot of air like sanders or grinders.

You must be using different air tools and spray guns than I do. Almost any die grinder, air drill, air ratchet or a bigger impact will outrun a 5 CFM pump. The HVLP guns I am familar with will use roughly 15 CFM at 30 psi and that will take a 12 CFM @ 90 psi compressor to keep up with it.

Personal opinion, go for the 14CFM compressor. How many times have you ever heard anyone complain about buying too big of a compressor? How many times have you read where someone wished they had bought a bigger compressor?

 

[sberry]

1/2 line is plenty in small shops but I agree wth a bigger comp if a guy can, those are so dinky, the 12-14 is suffecient in most cases, would allow a little sanding if a guy had to and believe it or not the cost has come down so cheap its worth the effort. back in the day you had only about 1 choice, it was slightly better unit but 1500$ 40 yrs ago was something, now got a bud in a small auto shop makes a living with a comp he paid 400$ for.