Best Air Compressor to use for Blasting and Painting?

[Chad300tdt]

I have a sand blaster that I've tried using with my pancake style compressor. I can't keep the air dry enough to utilize the blaster properly.

I have three air driers in line and water still manages to get through and clog the blaster nozzle.

I want to get a larger compressor, but I want to make sure I get something that will work properly for the application. I'd also like to do some painting with the compressor. Dry air is critical for both of these tasks and I think the pancake style works too hard to fill the tank and since the motor is right over the tank, it causes too much condensation buildup.

Any suggestions? I'm also on a limited budget, so I can't spend a whole lot. I'm looking for economical but appropriate.

[Air&Road]

You need a heck of a lot of compresor for painting and sandblasting. You will be best served with a two stage.

I get by with a 60 gal 8HP single stage, but I have an old 5HP, 30 gallon plumbed into the shop air pipe. When I need the extra volume for painting, I turn on both compressors and it keeps up. I have done this occasionally for blasting and even sometimes when heavily using a DA.

A good sized two stage would cost alot of money, but if you are a young guy it would be a great investment. Take care of it and it will serve you the rest of your life. For dry air, run some 3/4" black pipe up from the compressor and along the top of the wall or across the cieling and then run it down near the floor with a ball valve at the bottom to drain the condensation. About neck high on that down pipe tee off, go over a few inches, then up. Put a drier at that point and draw air off of there. The black pipe will cool the air enough to condense the moisture to the low spot where you can drain it off with the ball valve. Works great!

Hope this helps.

[Chad300tdt]

Thanks for the advice Larry! It's appreciated.

[barry12345]

Sandblasting large amounts is tough on the average air compressor. You need at least five horsepower. That is a real five horsepower not the current rating system where a 2-3 horse motor is called a five.

I only use the two stage ones for serious work but have a cheap vertical that cost about 600.00 new as well. That compressor spins too fast and I have to wait for it to recharge even with an old binks 18 spray gun. Todays high volume low pressure spray guns take a lot of air volume.

That compressor again is fairly new and called a five horsepower but really it is not. I take it out on small jobs because it only weighs about two hundred pounds. Basically designed just for light intermittent use.

Best ideal is too keep an eye open for a good used one that is not too old. As mentioned used reasonably they can last a person a lifetime. They sell a lot of basically just toy compressors today. Usually real compressors have two belts on their motor drive. Do not buy a compressor with an aluminium head. Real compressors have decent sized heads as well and do not turn that fast. Places like craiglist and ebay may be worth looking for one. Ex service station compressors can be good buys depending on age and how they were used.

[catmandoo62]

i would suggest a line drier but you said your on a limited budget.i have a commercial one thats hooked up to my compressor and no moisture gets past that baby.but they are not cheap.you will spend more on it then the compressor.

[TheDon]

Harbor freight sells or did at one point, sell a big air dryer that was nothing more than a pipe that you would fill with descant. Worked pretty good for what I was working with. Air always came out nice and dry, even here in FL.

[thorsen]

I have a 30 gallon 110 volt compressor that works well enough but it's not enough for heavy-duty use like sanding or blasting. It's too expensive to upgrade my shop to 220volt so I found a used gas-powered air compressor on CL that does 10CFM for $300. I can gang both compressors together and they easily keep up with my blaster.

[The Clk Man]

Maybe I can help Sir Chadwick, everybody has always told me that I am full of Hot Air.

[Diesel911]

I have not read all of the other Posts. But, I thought that the Sandblasting equipment comes with a Spec Sheet that has how many cubic feet of Air it needs and the pressure.

Use that information and email some of the Air Compressor Companies and ask them which of the Models would work well for that application.

I think the Pressure type Sand Blasters used less Air than the Siphon Type Sand Blasters.
Where I worked we had a Siphon Type Sand Blasting Cabinet that We used mostly on Turbo chargers.
We had a pair of Air Compressors about the size of the larger type you might find in a Home Owners Garage with about 35 Gallon Tanks on each.

The both of them together could not keep up with the Blaster. You got about 5 minutes of good blasting and had to wait about double that for the Air Pressure to build up.

Finally one Compressor burned out.

It was replaced by a large single Cylinder Compressor with a 220 Volt Motor that was about 1.5 feet in diameter and 2 feet long. It was a lot better but it still would not keep up continuous blasting.

Concerning the Water in the lines you need to set up away to cool the Air Down so that the Water Separates from the Air as well as having the Water Separators in the line.

Motor Guard makes an inline Air Filter that has a toilet Paper type Filter Element in it that can be changed.

In our Shop we had Piping so Compress Air went to several Rooms. That allowed the Air to cool down some and only once in a while did Water block up the Blaster Nozzle. We also had to drain the Air Tanks of Water maybe 5 times a day.

Having some extra Air Tanks connected to the same Air Compressor adds to your Blasting Time and helps to cool the Air and separate the Water.

But, they also takes longer to fill back up. However, you can be doing something else while the Tanks are filling.

[layback40]

I picked up a big V twin industrial Atlas Copco unit at a clearing sale very cheap. Its about 120 scfm. Set up a pto drive off a tractor. Found a large pressure tank with a lid. Its no good for light sheet though. It will cut it in half if you hold it too close. Just use sand that has been left out in the sun for summer & sieved through some fly wire. 120 psi stops it from blocking.

[Chad300tdt]

Thanks for all the tips guys!

Here's one I'm considering:
220/240 60 gallon 7hp air compressor

There's several on craigslist like this, but this one is in my neighborhood and would be an easy pickup.

What do you guys think?

[Air&Road]

As I recall, you can get a brand new one like that for $400 at Home Depot. I might be way off, but it seems like that was the price.

That size compressor will be a huge improvement, but it won't keep up with a DA or an HVLP paint gun. I have an old Sharpe that it would keep up with, but it wastes paint as opposed to an HVLP.

[Chad300tdt]

They're a lot more at Home Depot.

Here's one, but it's only 3.7 HP:
Husky 60-Gal. Stationary Electric Air Compressor-C601H at The Home Depot

Here's a 5hp single stage:
Husky 80-Gal. 3 Cylinder Single Stage Electric Air Compressor-C801H at The Home Depot

I guess I can just save up and ask for gift cards at the holidays and buy this one:
Husky 80-Gal. 2 Stage Stationary Electric Air Compressor-C802H at The Home Depot

[Air&Road]

Whoops! Sorry Chad, I thought it was $400. I have a great memory, it's just that it's kinda short.

That 3 cylinder one is the one I bought about 7 or 8 years ago. It's a good machine, but not NEARLY as good as a two stage. There's an Ingersoll Rand two stage model that is an age old design. I don't remember what it is called, but it is probably the best you can get in the size that is really needed for painting and heavy air tool work. I'll try to remember to find out the model.

Okay, I found it. The one I was thinking about is called a Type 30. This design is one of those that has been proven effective, reliable and very long lived. This compressor type can be bought in several variations of motor, compressor and tank size, beginning at about $1,500. If you have many years ahead of you, it would be worth saving up your spare change and investing in one. IMHO, it would be WELL WORTH the extra few hundred dollars above the cost of the 802 model in the links you posted.

[Chad300tdt]

Thanks again Larry!

I just found this one:
FREE SHIPPING — Ingersoll Rand Type-30 Reciprocating Air Compressor — 5 HP, 230 Volt 1 Phase, Model# 2340L5-V | 19 CFM Below| Northern Tool + Equipment

They have several Type 30 models, the linked one above is the low end. The next model up is $200 more, but I don't know what the difference is. The specs don't seem to show a difference that I can see anyway.

EDIT: The next one up is an 80 gal. tank instead of the 60.