advice time

Site Subscriber Joined: 02 Oct 2004 Posts: 1575

right chaps its like this I was thinking about getting a compressor and also a small generator. the compressor is for a small workshop and the generator is for workshop/field work anybody got any sensible ideas as to what is required bearing in mind size has also to be considered.

cheeze Dave

Forum Moderator Joined: 02 Mar 2004 Posts: 19978

what you planning on using?

Compressors are an area where bigger is best.

Using power tools with a small cpompressor means its cutting in and out almost constantly. If your spraying then its never gonna stop.

They sell cheap ones in Aldi etc, they are fine to pump up the tryes but not for constant use.

Another thing, theres no real universal air line adaptor. I don't know how you plan to run it, are you gonna have it fixed and run metal pipes off it?

Inline oilers are great things, you don't have to oil the toosl everyday its done as its used. You don't need to worry about oil or anything being spilt on the work surface.

As for generators, I really don't know anything about them aside fromt he obviuos.

Honda engines are very good. Briggs and Stratton are normally fine but I have a lawnmower with a B&S engine and its been nothing but crap but every barrel has its bad apples.

Mr Quoter-vator Joined: 16 Feb 2004 Posts: 7405

we have a smallish compressor in work...only ever gets used for blasting swarf off machines, so its not in constant use but it runs out of puff quite quickly, so if u were using an air tool a lot like a spray gun or die grinder i think u would find the pressure droppin off too quick...

as chris said, bigger will always be better as u get a much longer and constant flow of pressure...ie a big tank...

we had a beast in the old factory...it lived out in the boiler room as it was so loud...never ever run out of puff...

Forum Moderator Joined: 02 Mar 2004 Posts: 19978

Simon has one at the workshop. its massive, every time it kicks in it costs 8 quid.

he has 3 phase obviosuly.

Thats another thing what sort of fusebox do you have? or are you planning to run it via the generator?

Modern fuse boxes breakers trip when a compressor tries to turn on, you need an old i.e. slow reacting dangerous fuse box so the circuit breakers don't trip during the power up surge.

Site Subscriber Joined: 02 Oct 2004 Posts: 1575

I thought air tools and some spraying, as they seem to cost less than power tools!!!! I've seen in screwfix their compressors but I don't know much about this sort of thing I was hoping to just use flexable hoses . I don't want to make the same mistake as I did with the welder Rolling Eyes

Site Subscriber Joined: 02 Oct 2004 Posts: 1575

There's no fuse box in the garage at the moment, another job to do I will put in a new consumer unit so as I can't electricute myself Laughing

. the generator I was going to use just for normal power stuff drills and things.

Forum Moderator Joined: 02 Mar 2004 Posts: 19978

Yep the air tools are mega cheap. A die grinder, electrical 300quid, air power 25quid.

Flexi hoses and i'm assumign you don't have lots of space mean a wheel small effort.

If you look at the tools they have a rating, 50PSI @20CFM a minute etc, the compressor really has to excede the rating by a good bit, not often you will have an air ratchet going for more than 20 secods, but for sandign and spraying you go dfor a while. There is also leakage etc to take into account.

Remember our talk abotu plastic reels and I mentioned plastic pressure weasher cyl heads? Same thign with air compressors, a brass head compressor will last far longer and will generally be bigger and have a bigger resovoir as well. But it WILL last.

Site Subscriber Joined: 02 Oct 2004 Posts: 1575

yeah don't have a lot of room so yeah something on a wheel. cheers chris thats given me something to think about. I know compressors aren''t cheap and its the normal story you get what you pay for.

Forum Moderator Joined: 02 Mar 2004 Posts: 19978

You got any mates in the building trade? What about your lecturer at the welding course?

Theres loads of auctions selling off liquidised gear from old factories, garages etc

You can get all sorts of gear, wrenches, 4 post lifts, dyno etc etc

A lot of the time the employees of the firm get all the good stuff but often 1 man band efforts go down so you get all the decent gear.

Site Subscriber Joined: 02 Oct 2004 Posts: 1575

ah never thought of that. I am going to speak to my lecturer about I've just started thinking about it.

Site Subscriber Joined: 22 Mar 2004 Posts: 150

im a compressor service engineer, basically like what chris said the bigger you can get the better, i guess you are thinking of a reciprocating compressor (a piston compressor), these are OK but they do not like working very hard, as everything is made out of aluminium and i mean everything even the conrods well on the smaller ones. so if you not gonna use alot of air eg like for spraying, you should be ok.

if you can afford one you wanna try and find a screw comp or a hydrovane, but these are very exspensive

as for a gennie you might again wanna get a big one to run a workshop, if you gonna weld there, its gonna pull alot of amps.

i used to work for a hire company and the customers was always getting smaller gennies for the job, if you think about a kettle will pull something like 3-5kva which is alot, the same for the fridge.

it could be exspensive mate.

Site Subscriber Joined: 02 Oct 2004 Posts: 1575

cheers dave