psi - What do i need to run air tools

What do i need to run air tools such as grinders and impact guns on a 125 psi air compressor with a 2.5 gallon tank.





Howdy...and Merry Christmas to you.

The air tools you've listed will likely run perfectly well on 90-100 PSI, although it would be best to check their specs to be sure.

There is likely a plate or label on the tools that advises their consumption and recommended PSI.

As a tip...run your air tools at the lowest air pressure that provides satisfactory results. The tools will last longer, and your air consumption will decrease.

In terms of what do you "need", is the question what size or HP of air compressor?

If so, you'll need one with a motor HP that provides the flow those tools use at the PSI that's recommended if you are planning to use them for long periods of time each use. (More than a minute or two).

If your use will be sporadic, you can get away with a smaller HP air compressor and wait for the air pressure in the tank to "catch up" each time the compressed air supply falls below the minimum needed for that tool.

Rule of thumb, for compressors under 10HP in size, bank on getting 2-3 CFM of compressed air flow at 90 PSI for each HP of motor size.

Once you figure out what flow rate your tools need, and how long you are planning to use them at one time, you can do a rough estimate to figure out how much HP your compressor motor will need.

Cheers,

Bill





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psi - What do i need to run air tools

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Feb 22, 2010
 What does 5 scfm@90psi and 6 scfm@40psi
by: jerry

Just bought a compressor 2 horse 8 gall tank,its 115psi it has a tank pressure gauge and a outlet pressure gauge 115 max psi, it says 5 scfm@90psi and 6 scfm@40psi what does this mean , do i set the outlet pressure gauge at 40psi to get 6 scfm, and the outlet pressure gauge to 90psi to get 5scfm.
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Bill says... Hi Jerry.

Why do you want 5 SCFM?

Air works this way. You get a certain volume of air (measured in SCFM) and a certain pressure (measured in PSI). What you need to do, besides reading a lot more pages on this site where all of your questions are answered, is to see what your air tool needs. Then you dial the air pressure to that pressure setting. If at that setting you don't have enough volume of air that the air tool needs, you likely have too small a compressor, or you are only going to be able to run your tool for short periods of time, and then wait for the air to catch up.

B.

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