Leave air in air compressor?

[Sberry]

Before the net had a problem finding hose reel to fit in the box then,,, duh, cut the outside down a couple inched and great. Got 3/4 hyd hose coming from the comp series thru 2 23 gallon tanks then to this steel 1/2 to the hose reel with 1/2. I aint doiung a bunch of delicate mechanic work and use all the same connectors anyway.
I put the drops from one hose reel on those fingers on a 29$ HF reel came with 50 ft of hose and really made it in to a real tool.

[Sberry]

I have a "main" or tap on my receiver feeds 4 circuits in branch tree fashion so to speak and valve to 1 circuit independant, can shut the air off in the rest of the place cept for 1. There is a feed to a storage building. In the shop 4 regulators and one sub for paint. Service valve on 1st stage pipe ahead of any secondary equipment.
This is one of my faves due to sheer simplicity and only reason I didnt reduce 2 more fittings was convenience of parts I recycled when I did this. Doesnt even have traditional "drip leg, I figure it can "drip" to the filter but doesnt, dry as a cracker. But,,, simple can be good, this is worth 2 notes. No extra connector in hydrant fashion, only coupler is at the tool end of hose reel, the rest of it screwed. 2nd, the valve is on the hard pipe, any equipment downstream.
The fil reg I gotat HD, tossed it in the cart when I needed it and probably over paid by todays standard but under 40$ and 3/8 ports,, ideal size for this convenience circuit.

[Sberry]

Anyway, can remove the coffee cup in the port in the wall and stick air or pressure wash hose thru the wall.

[CAVEMANN]

I leave my compressor on all the time, I have an automatic drain valve so I don't have to worry about it. I have an air hose in our carport that's set up wit a solenoid valve at the compressor an a switch in the carport, that way I can have air in the carport without having to go into the garage to turn on air. The air in the garage is on a manual valve for when I'm working in the garage. An auto drain is the best option IMO. The auto drain was about $35.00 from Amazon.

[MikeinKCMO]

No need, just drain the water every day or two, and be sure to change the compressor oil once a year. My compressor is 30+ years old and has been at full pressure all that time.

[JD1]

Caveman, is that one of those electric powered ones? I thought about one but gave up because all the ones I found cycled every hour and you couldn't make that any longer. I'm considering the mechanical one, can't remember the name, but it's $80.

[SweetMK]

No need, just drain the water every day or two, and be sure to change the compressor oil once a year. My compressor is 30+ years old and has been at full pressure all that time.

I agree with "Change The Oil!!" every so often,, for me, it is probably every two years or so,,.

On the EXACT opposite end of the air compressor,, no one has mentioned the air inlet filtering??
On most air compressors, there is a mini screw in cartridge that filters the inlet air,, probably the only thing it stops is an occasional fly that wanders too close.
Surely it does not stop the welding/plasma cutting/grinding dust in the air in a typical shop,,??

I have three compressors, only one is "mainly" used, #2 is left from when I used a plasma torch for production purposes.
#3 is a little belt driven one, only used to pump up tires in a remote garage.

Well when #2 was used on the plasma torch,, and ran A LOT!,, I was concerned about the poor filter on the intake of the compressor.

Someone had given me several new hydraulic filter assemblies that had 1.5" MPT threads,, they were sort of HUGE,,
One day, I noticed a mud dauber trying to decide if the compressor intake filter cartridge was a nice location to leave a nest,,,
I got one of those hydraulic filters, and plumbed it to the intake of the compressor, with a piece of window screen over the other port of the filter.

I am pretty sure that giant hydraulic filter will act as a great air filter for the duration of my life!!
There must be more than 100 times as much filtration surface, compared to the original filter.
AND, the new filter has WAY smaller passages for air compared to the original cartridge,, (the oil filter is probably typical "10 micron" sized)

I think the poor intake filter is a "planned obsolescence" method of getting people to buy new compressors every so often.

So, change the compressor oil, and look at your air intake filtration,, see if it needs improved.
A large lawn mower filter would be way better than the little cartridge that comes with most compressors.

There are a LOT of old small engines setting around, ready to donate the air intake filtration system,,,

The OTHER big plus is that no potatoes will get sucked into MY compressor,,,

[Sberry]

I filter the incoming, never even dusted it. Every once in a while we see a convoluted scheme try to make them something they aint. The modern 5 hp comp is really the benchmark today for garage if a guy wants to work with air tools. Expensive to buy but pretty much all in one and adequate to do all the work one man can do not including sandblast. But it will run body tools continious and is fast recharge. I use a 3, its a size too small but gain a little back with the extra tank from the dryer and the backup comp which is bigger, gives it some legs and lets it pump slower over longer recharge time.

[Sberry]

Trucker guy I know figured he needed 10 hp cause he got a big truck and gonna come up with all kinds of convoluted schemes to run it on a rural line. 2 comps would be cheaper but its not the amount of wheels, every one is going to take a cycle no matter how big, both off and on and inflation. I say buy a 5 and pipe it 3.4 and see how it goes, can always buy more and single phase always worth something vs some convoluted conversion. Dont take any extra equipment but bet once he gets a 5 he finds it works and is adequate for some sanding.
Be different if this was a truck tire service center, multiple guys with big guns and even for Joe Smalltime the modern battery gun has about shot air in the arse anyway.

[scsmith42]

To answer the OP's question.

1 - turn the power off when the compressor is not in use.
2 - turn the main valve off.
3 - leave the air in the tank
4 - drain the water each time you turn the power back on (or first time each day). Water condenses out of the air as it cools, so draining at the end of the day when the compressor is still hot is not very effective. First thing in the morning thought, when the compressor has cooled overnight, is better.

[Sberry]

I do one out of 4.

[52 Ford]

I filter the incoming, never even dusted it. Every once in a while we see a convoluted scheme try to make them something they aint. The modern 5 hp comp is really the benchmark today for garage if a guy wants to work with air tools. Expensive to buy but pretty much all in one and adequate to do all the work one man can do not including sandblast. But it will run body tools continious and is fast recharge. I use a 3, its a size too small but gain a little back with the extra tank from the dryer and the backup comp which is bigger, gives it some legs and lets it pump slower over longer recharge time.

Yeah a 5HP 2 stage pump is what I'd recommend to anyone wanting to use "real" air tools. Duty cycle also matters.

I don't know how good the new 2 stage 5HP compressors that you see at Lowe's and Home Depot are, though. They're WAY lighter than the older stuff.

https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/pr...pressor-60-gal

My older 3 phase 5HP 2 stage Speedaire with a horizontal 60 gallon tank weighs about 200lbs more than the IR compressor I linked to, puts out 3 more CFM at 175 PSI, and I bet it's quieter, too, since it's running at about 550RPM.

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[Lis2323]

I picked up this 40 HP Quincy to run my sandblast pot









but never got around to it.


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[davec]

To answer the OP's question.

1 - turn the power off when the compressor is not in use.
2 - turn the main valve off.
3 - leave the air in the tank
4 - drain the water each time you turn the power back on (or first time each day). Water condenses out of the air as it cools, so draining at the end of the day when the compressor is still hot is not very effective. First thing in the morning thought, when the compressor has cooled overnight, is better.

That is pretty much precisely what I do. Assuming I don't forget to turn it off, which does happen on occasions.... 80 gal 2stage compressor that pumps up to about 170-175psi. Unless I have been running it hard in the humid part of summer, I never get more than a teaspoon of water from the drain when I do this. Usually less.

[Sberry]

The 40 would have made a nice blast unit, electric would be dandy.

[whtbaron]

I agree with "Change The Oil!!" every so often,, for me, it is probably every two years or so,,.

On the EXACT opposite end of the air compressor,, no one has mentioned the air inlet filtering??
On most air compressors, there is a mini screw in cartridge that filters the inlet air,, probably the only thing it stops is an occasional fly that wanders too close.
Surely it does not stop the welding/plasma cutting/grinding dust in the air in a typical shop,,??

I have three compressors, only one is "mainly" used, #2 is left from when I used a plasma torch for production purposes.
#3 is a little belt driven one, only used to pump up tires in a remote garage.

Well when #2 was used on the plasma torch,, and ran A LOT!,, I was concerned about the poor filter on the intake of the compressor.

Someone had given me several new hydraulic filter assemblies that had 1.5" MPT threads,, they were sort of HUGE,,
One day, I noticed a mud dauber trying to decide if the compressor intake filter cartridge was a nice location to leave a nest,,,
I got one of those hydraulic filters, and plumbed it to the intake of the compressor, with a piece of window screen over the other port of the filter.

I am pretty sure that giant hydraulic filter will act as a great air filter for the duration of my life!!
There must be more than 100 times as much filtration surface, compared to the original filter.
AND, the new filter has WAY smaller passages for air compared to the original cartridge,, (the oil filter is probably typical "10 micron" sized)

I think the poor intake filter is a "planned obsolescence" method of getting people to buy new compressors every so often.

So, change the compressor oil, and look at your air intake filtration,, see if it needs improved.
A large lawn mower filter would be way better than the little cartridge that comes with most compressors.

There are a LOT of old small engines setting around, ready to donate the air intake filtration system,,,

The OTHER big plus is that no potatoes will get sucked into MY compressor,,,

One of the advantages to having the compressor in it's own doghouse is that it isn't eating the dust floating around in the shop, although noise control was the biggest reason I put it out there.

[Lis2323]

One of the advantages to having the compressor in it's own doghouse is that it isn't eating the dust floating around in the shop, although noise control was the biggest reason I put it out there.

Good point about the dust. Mine is in the parts room which is considerably cleaner than the main shop area.


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