Help me find an affordable Air Compressor and Spray Gun combination?

May 29, 2007 8:53 PM

What is an affordable air compressor and spray gun combination? I'm not sure about how powerful a compressor I'll need. Also, I'm planning on keeping it down the basement and running the hose up through the floor. Is there a way to turn the compressor on and off without having to venture downstairs? (I'm in an apartment and the basement door is outside) I've seen things that allow you to shut off lights with a remote control. Maybe something similar to that?

The main use will be to quickly and evenly coat canvases for paintings. I would also like to be able to use it to repaint the walls of my studio/gallery when they have become messy as well. Thanks!

posted by austinlee to home & garden (6 comments total)

Here's a place that sells a wide range of air compressors with spray guns, at various prices. Sorry I don't have an answer for the remote on/off part of your question.
posted by amyms at 9:00 PM on May 29, 2007

Most compressors will have a pressure tank attached, and a pressure switch on the tank that stops the compressor when the tank is up to operating pressure. The compressor will only run for a short time after each spray, and because the pressure switches are nice simple mechanical devices, it won't be drawing any power at all when switched off.

If your hoses and spray fittings are leak-free, the compressor should end up running only when you're actually using it.

You'd probably want to turn it off at night, though, just in case it decides that the best time to compensate for a small leak is 2:30am.
posted by flabdablet at 9:10 PM on May 29, 2007

Flabdablet, you certainly should NOT leave your compressor pressurized overnight. It should be emptied of air (and occasionally water from condensation) each day.

What type of point are you spraying (probably acrylic)? Certain consistencies will require different nozzles/air capacities.

You may also consider getting a turbine powered HVLP rig, instead. They're much more convenient for just about everything but spraying a car. Just don't buy the one I linked to, it's a piece of crap. There are much better units that use a decent gun. HF had one that was halfway decent, but it's difficult to locate in their online catalog.
posted by IronLizard at 12:03 AM on May 30, 2007

IronLizard, I am curious, why should a compressor be emptied of air every night? I do believe that condensate should be drained regularly (and more importantly than the air pressure) for quality of air issues and rust issues in the tank, but why should the air pressure be relieved? Quite honestly I can't think of a single reason, but apparently you have some information that I'm not aware of. So yeah, I work with 3000 to 6000 scfm compressors at work so it's not real applicable here, but I do have a small Porter Cable 2 hp/6gal "Pancake" compressor at home, and it's been pressurized at 80 PSI for the last couple of weeks...

To the OP, you'll do fine with an oil-less compressor. They are quite well built these days and long lasting. Added benefit is you don't need to worry about removing oil from your air when you spray and thus avoiding orange peel and other problems. As far as what to get, get the biggest tank you can afford that will run off 120 volts. You might have 220 available at your current abode, but perhaps not your next place. A small touch-up gun will run fine off of my little compressor, but anything more you'll want something bigger. You're going to want to shoot with HVLP, and the cheapest way to go would be a conversion gun as they're called rather than a dedicated turbine gun, plus you have the added advantage of having compressed air for other tools. Go with gravity feed since they're easier to clean and have less moving parts, and from what I've seen seem to work better. As far as what to buy, that is totally personal preference. I know of professionals that use a cheap harbor freight touch-up (or jamb) gun, and those that use expensive Devilbiss or SATA guns. Best thing to do is ask around with people that are shooting the kinds of things that you are planning to. Nice thing about the Harbor Freight is it's cheap to replace when you muck it up, but then the more expensive guns will have replacement parts. Definitely you'll need to figure out what size orifice would work best for what you're shooting. Again, ask people that are doing similar work what they do.

I don't know how you're planning on running the air upstairs, but if I could, I'd hard pipe it with copper. You can sweat the fittings yourself no problem. I'd unplug the rubber hose from any hardpiping, and I see no reason why you shouldn't keep it pressurized. The compressor runs off of pressure switches, so won't run unless you have leaks, which would save you running downstairs to shut it off. If the compressor is cycling when you're not using it, you obviously have leaks, so check for them! Short of running wire I don't know how you'd switch it remotely otherwise. I don't think I'd want to keep any rubber or vinyl hose pressurized any more than I had to, but a good hard piped setup would be no problem.
posted by Eekacat at 2:11 AM on May 30, 2007

IronLizard, I am curious, why should a compressor be emptied of air every night?

Every owner's manual I've ever read tell you to do this. Now, industrial units as you're used to at work might be an exception, but home compressors always have this caveat somewhere in there. I believe they have a tendency to develop leaks when left under pressure for extended periods but, regardless of why, I tend to trust the manual when it comes to maintenance. And oilless compressors are still crap, though you could probably get away with one for this type of light duty. If you get an oiled on, it's a small matter to put a filter and air dryer on the line. You should be doing this anyway since you're painting. Condensation will fisheye a finish with any oil based paint badly.

As far as the gun, I have one of these: 90977
This thing is great and it lets me get away with a far smaller compressor than I should be using (21gal 3hp).
posted by IronLizard at 6:48 AM on May 30, 2007

I believe I already recommended turning it off at night. Are we in heated agreement yet? :-)

My point was that austinlee doesn't need to make any special arrangements to remote-control a basement compressor during the day; it will automatically switch on and off as needed, by design. And it seems to me that a morning trip to the basement to turn it on, and an evening trip to turn it off, is not going to be enough trouble to justify installing extra wiring and switches.
posted by flabdablet at 5:36 PM on May 30, 2007