Air compressor question

[jayhaitch]

I have an idea, and would like more experienced opinions.

I have a Porter Cable pancake compressor which works fine for my brad and 15 gauge finish nailers. Worked great with my flooring stapler, but I hope to never do that again! Anyway, for my occaisonal home use, I have an impact wrench and air ratchet. I can't use this compressor with them, runs out of air too fast. So.....

Would it help, and is it feasable to use a portable air tank to increase stored air? I want a portable air tank anyway. Could I install a manifold on the air tank, run an air hose from the compressor to the manifold, and the long hose from the manifold to the tool? If I used a 3 hole manifold, I could also run the air chuck hose and leave the manifold on. Princess Auto has an 11 gal portable air tank available, with a half inch threaded hole for the air valve. I added a 2 hole manifold to my compressor to run the flooring stapler and finish nailer together without having to disconnect/connect each time.

Opinions please?

[jayhaitch]

My compressor:

http://www.portercable.com/index.asp?e=547&p=2581
Porter-Cable - Products - Tools - Listing - 150 PSI, 6 Gal. Oil Free Pancake

[MrJimi]

how many CFM does your impact require and how many CFM does your compressor put out at the same PSI?
That will tell you lots
I would say you need a larger air compressor
Jim

[Pooh_Bear]

It won't help you any and may damage the compressor
by exceeding its duty cycle. You need a bigger compressor (more SCFM).

Pooh Bear

[texasjohn]

Agreed, a larger compressor is what you need. There are tables of CFM used by various tools. Check them out, decide how many CFM you need, then get more than that...... and a large tank.... yep, costs money but it's a tool you willuse for a long time if it is right sized for your activities. Wheels are a must on the larger compressors/tanks.

[Bird]

Your idea might make the impact wrench turn another second or two, but the other guys are right; you need a bigger compressor. Your compressor is rated for 2.6 CFM at 90 psi and I would expect your impact wrench to be rated at around 4 CFM at least.

The "duty cycle" has been mentioned, and while I can't say for sure on the Porter-Cable, all the oilless compressors I've known of had warnings in the manual to never run it more than 10 minutes continuously. Otherwise, you'll be rebuilding the compressor frequently.

[herringchoker]

I'll chime in too - you really need to pump more CFM to match the CFM used. You need a bigger compressor.

[patrick_g]

Now moving from the sublime to the ridiculous... If you had an extremely enourmous tank capable of running the tool as long as you want and put your compressor on a timer that let it run 5 min rest 5 min run 5 min rest 5 min (lather rince repeat) till the huge tank were filled, THEN your little compressor could do the job. A tank large enough would cost like a stretch Hummer and be really huge. You don't get something (adequate quantities of compressed air) for nothing (no increase in compressor capability) Compressors have max pressure and max flow rate specs. The max flow and max pressure never happen at the same time. SCFM (Standard CFM) measured as the CFM the compressor will supplly at 90PSI (a good tool pressure) is realistic and is what counts. Ignore the other info as a distraction, SCFM RULES!!! Also be aware that Bird knows more about air tools that the next 100 guys put together! Pat

[SPYDERLK]

I have an idea, and would like more experienced opinions.

I have a Porter Cable pancake compressor which works fine for my brad and 15 gauge finish nailers. Worked great with my flooring stapler, but I hope to never do that again! Anyway, for my occaisonal home use, I have an impact wrench and air ratchet. I can't use this compressor with them, runs out of air too fast. So.....

Would it help, and is it feasable to use a portable air tank to increase stored air? I want a portable air tank anyway. Could I install a manifold on the air tank, run an air hose from the compressor to the manifold, and the long hose from the manifold to the tool? If I used a 3 hole manifold, I could also run the air chuck hose and leave the manifold on. Princess Auto has an 11 gal portable air tank available, with a half inch threaded hole for the air valve. I added a 2 hole manifold to my compressor to run the flooring stapler and finish nailer together without having to disconnect/connect each time.

Opinions please?

Jay, yes it is feasible, but 11 gal will not be enuf. I would say 30G at a minimum and 60G to assure you the ability to use intermittent use tools with little concern for having enuf air. Costs of these size tanks sold separately is usually near what you would pay for a 10CFM compressor with a 20 gal tank. The specs on yourcompressorare attractive - - a 125 to 150psi working range is high for a single stage compressor, and if it will support that range at contiuous duty cycle it is truly a good unit. If you can get assurance thru Porter Cable that it will support a high duty cycle, then you could feel better about increasing storage to the 30G range or more. If not, I would buy a higher capacity oil lubricated/cooled compressor with at least a 20G tank.
Larry

[jayhaitch]

So, as I somewhat feared, my brilliant idea is a bit less shiny than I hoped.

Thanks guys for all your information and experience. I guess towing a gooseneck trailer with a Toyota isn't the smartest idea

I found the specs on my impact wrench. Eeep! 5.1 scfm@90 psi, 20% duty cycle, 25.4!! scfm@90 psi, 100% duty cycle. Now I'm no tire shop, just a guy with too many hobbies. But clearly beating up on a nice little compressor isn't the smartest move. I'll look into more powerful units.

Now how about oil lubed vs oil-less? How much is the life expectancy difference of the two? Princess Auto sell several of the big Porter-Cable Taiwanese units. They also sell their own manufactured-in-Canada units, but they're almost CAN$1000! Why are oil lubed ones quieter? How do they run in an unheated garage?