Air Compressors and Blow Guns

[Tom Wesenberg]

Originally Posted by wmws

Is there any way you can tell how much rust may be in the tank. I don't drain mine as often as I should. When the water comes out it does look rusty but no big particles.

This free air compressor I just got has the heavy duty tank with large threaded plugs in each end, so it would be easy to unscrew them to look inside. I got an air compressor for $15 about 15 years ago because the bottom of the tank had a small leak. I cut a piece out about 1" by 4" and that was the only rust spot in the tank. I welded a 1/4" plate with a drain plug over the hole I cut, and it's working fine.

The top blow gun from Fleet Farm is an excellent blow gun, but the just one from H/F blew so little air that I thought the holes were plugged with metal shavings, or not correctly drilled. I took it apart and nothing was wrong. It's just a poor design.

Here's a picture of how I ran my drain valve yesterday. I went to Menards and bought a 1/4" street el, a 6" pipe, and a ball valve. At first I ran it to the end of the tank, but this was no good because it would hit the ground when I lift the handle to roll the compressor, so I turned it to exit near the back of the wheel, where it's well protected and easy to drain.