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Do it your self refrigerator silent air compressor for under $100!!!!!

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  • Member since
    July 2003
  • From: Lower Alabama
Do it your self refrigerator silent air compressor for under $100!!!!!
Posted by saltydog on Saturday, December 20, 2003 8:24 PM
i stole the idea from the "airbrush painting techniques" book published by osprey (modelling manuals 6). i had a campbell and hausfeld compressor with a 2 gallon tank that was supposed to be "quiet" but was totally annoying. my hobby room is in close proximity to the television so my family members get pretty ticked most of the time. i checked the prices for silent compressors and got my feelings hurt. i bought the book mentioned above and followed the fairly generic instructions on how to make your own silent air compressor. i have a friend that is a maintainance man for a government housing project and he donated 2 or 3 refrigerator compressors for this project. i simply removed the noisy compressor that was attached to my campbell hausfeld and wired and plumbed in one of the refrigerator compressors and viola. works like a charm and is as silent as a refrigerator. 1 note is i have an omni 5000 gravity feed and rarely use over 20 pounds of pressure and the compressor can barely keep up with the airbrush. i have a 1/8 hp compressor though. i have two other compressors that i can use incase this one goes out and they are larger and could probably do a little better . i had to buy some electrical wire, various electrical conectors, brass elbows, tees, an air filter, air regulator, and one pressure gauge (optional) and spent some where under $100. i gotta say that im pretty proud of myself if i dont say so myself. good luck fellows. Approve [^]
Chris The Origins of Murphy's Law: "In the begginning there was nothing, and it exploded."!!! _________ chris
  • Member since
    April 2003
  • From: Hayward, CA
Posted by MikeV on Saturday, December 20, 2003 10:15 PM
Just remember that a silent compressor has a duty cycle of 50% maximum and if you exceed that it won't last long.
That means that if the compressor runs for 2 minutes to fill the tank then it needs to sit for 2 minutes before coming back on again. That is a 50% duty cycle in case you weren't aware of that.
A 1/8 hp is a little small but I guess it would be alright if not used a lot, but even if it does quit then you still have the others you mentioned.
The smallest compressors they use on silent compressors like the ones made by Silentaire are 1/5 hp with a .4 gallon tank for the Super Silent 20A model.
My Jun-Air is 1/2 hp and I built a setup myself with a 5 gallon air tank from a 4x4 store. I put a regulator on it as well as a safety pop-off switch, draincock, pressure switch and tank pressure gauge and it is great.
Just keep an eye on the oil level in the motor and you should be fine.
Isn't it nice to be able to fire it up day or night and not have to bother anyone? Big Smile [:D]

Mike

Wisdom is the right use of knowledge. To know is not to be wise. Many men know a great deal, and are all the greater fools for it. There is no fool so great a fool as a knowing fool. But to know how to use knowledge is to have wisdom. " Charles Spurgeon
  • Member since
    November 2005
Posted by Anonymous on Sunday, December 21, 2003 9:13 PM
I've got a home-built too. Got the compressor from a used appliance shop for low $ (can't even remember for sure anymore, but I think it was $10 or $15). Been going strong for about 5 years now. I have an 'air tool oiler' on the air inlet line and it just constantly keeps adding drops of oil to the compressor. You definitely need a moisture trap on the outlet side though. I made sure to put the moisture trap before the air tank so that the tank doesn't get all mucked up. I also have another moisture trap on the outlet from the tank too.

Best thing I ever did. I can spray at any time of day or night now...

Murray
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