# Silent/quiet air compressors



## sen2two (Dec 29, 2011)

I have your typical air compressor that is unusable at night or in the morning because of how loud it is. I have been looking into the silent compressors so I can get up early and work and don't have to quit working when the sun goes down. I live in your typical Florida neighborhood, which means, not much space between the homes and sound travels easily...


I have seen a few DIY write ups on building your own from fridge/freezer motors, but they are far to weak. I use mine for automotive tools which consume lots of air. Are there stronger cost effective motors I could salvage from something else?

My budget is $400 for a silent air compressor wether I buy or build one.


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## bbo (Feb 28, 2010)

first, determine the max air pressure you need and the tank size you desire.

then find out what db you'd like to be under.

I just bought a California air tools pancake model ( for finish nailing, household jobs, etc) my concerns were weight and noise. I didn't need to run high cfm items continuously.

you might want to look into building a sound proof cabinet if your current one is sufficient, just too noisy.


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## mako1 (Jan 7, 2014)

California air tools has a few rated as ultra quiet but they are still 60 db.No experience with them.You may get one and build a box for it with some sound deadening insulation.You would still need to vent it for air flow but would help some.


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## Bondo (Dec 8, 2007)

Ayuh,.... Generally speakin',... a belt driven compressor is quieter than the newer direct drive compressors,...


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## mako1 (Jan 7, 2014)

Very true.I had an old belt drive I bought cheap at an auction once and it was very quiet.


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## SeniorSitizen (Sep 10, 2012)

You could cut concrete in a corner of your shop and drop the compressor below grade to quell the compressor noise. But from my experience with air tools from 1/2 to 1 inch impacts, air ratchets and sanders etc., that require lots of air, that will still be a problem in a close neighborhood.


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## DexterII (Jul 14, 2010)

An air compressor requires about 8 cfm for every 1 cfm it puts out, and the pump requires air flow for cooling, so I would not box it in. A lot of businesses even do this, stick them in a small room someplace, and it takes a toll on them. A lot of the noise can be attributed to vibration and the intake suction, so a couple of things that you might try is a set of korfund type vibration pads under the feet of the tank, and an intake silencer, essentially a muffler between the filter and the head. Graingers should have these items, and in fact one of our local hardware stores carries the pads. If you have any rigid pipe, say from the compressor to the other side of your shop, a metal flex line at the compressor will help prevent vibration from being transferred to the pipe. In some cases, I would guess that those three things can reduce the noise by as much as something like 40%. But you said automotive tools, and, even if you were able to run them from a bottle, there is not much that you can do with the sound of impact wrenches, air ratchets, etc.


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