Reply to "COMPRESSOR - oil or oil free???"

Not only is an oiless compressor louder, but it will not last as long if you run it hard.

One more thing to look for is the HP rating. Not all compressors are rated in real HP. Some are in Peak HP. To get 5 hp, you need about 22 amps on 220 volts. Many of the so called 5 or 6 hp compressors only draw 15 or so amps and are in reality only 3 hp compressors. Look at the flow and at what pressure. Cheaper compressors also have their flow rated at 40 psi. Better ones are rated at 120 psi or 170 psi depending on a single or double stage.

I have a single stage cast iron 4 cylinder Emglo compressor with a true 5 hp motor. It puts out 19 cfm all day long at 130 psi. It is quite quiet too.

Another thing I did was put an intercooler and water trap between the compressor and the tank. Higher cost compressors have this. The intercooler and water trap prevents water going into the tank and actually does a better job keeping it out of the air when you run someting like a sand blaster. Without the intercooler, the air in the tank heats up when ran hard and will carry the moisture past your air trap and condense in the hose ruining air tools or paint jobs. The intercooler forces the moisture to condense.