Air compressor outside?

P man

Keister Bunny
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Time for a new air compressor. I am considering putting it outside and running the air line through the wall. This would save space and noise. I live in a residential area and worry my neighbors will become annoyed with the noise. Anyone else done this with success? Did you build a small "shed" with insulation to house it? I'm open to ideas
 
I've considered doing this exact thing, myself. Will need to make sure it's ventilated, as they sure produce a fair amount of heat (mine does, anyways). And yes, some type of sound deadener/absorption material for the sake of the neighbors. The biggest holdup for me is that the amount of space I'd actually be saving is rather minimal, as mine is tucked into a corner. Not sure there's enough benefit to warrant the extra effort. 🤷‍♂️
 
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I've considered doing this exact thing, myself. Will need to make sure it's ventilated, as they sure produce a fair amount of heat (mine does, anyways). And yes, some type of sound deadener/absorption material for the sake of the neighbors. The biggest holdup for me is that the amount of space I'd actually be saving is rather minimal, as mine is tucked into a corner. Not sure there's enough benefit to warrant the extra effort. 🤷‍♂️

That's another hang up for me..the space saved would be minimal for me as well. I appreciate the Input
 
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That's another hang up for me..the space saved would be minimal for me as well. I appreciate the Input

I recently went through this decision process myself when I bought my "forever compressor" and refrigerated drier for my new shop. I ended up keeping it inside. Outside had too many cons vs. inside for me. The space saved was not minimal for me. Between the two devices, I lost about 20 square feet. You can store a lot of TJ parts in 20 square feet!
 
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I plan on putting my air comp. outside about 10' away from my shop. I'll build an insulated doghouse for it and add a puller fan to draw the hot air out of it.
Our neighbor is 200' away from us so sound won't be a concern. When he lights off his big block drag car, that's music to my ears.
 
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Condensation is the biggest challenge, heat is secondary. I run an old cast iron ingersol from the 70's and a horizontal tank on pallet rack and put stuff under it
 
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The noise isn't going to be a big deal. I wouldn't worry about pissing your neighbors off anymore than you probably do. Realistically I think modern electric tools relegate a high cfm compressors to really specific stuff that allot of people don't need. What do you use the compressor for?
 
The noise isn't going to be a big deal. I wouldn't worry about pissing your neighbors off anymore than you probably do. Realistically I think modern electric tools relegate a high cfm compressors to really specific stuff that allot of people don't need. What do you use the compressor for?

The compressor is mostly used for the air nozzle to clean and the occasional car tire etx. Im not painting or running air tools often.
 
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i'm in a residential area, the neighbors are 15ft apart/away, both sides all the way down the block.
i try to do any "loud tool" work as quickly as i can. if i have to use it for an extended period i'll take it behind the garage and that at least deflects some of the noise from my immediate neighbors. if the compressor is gonna be running multiple cycles i'll shut the garage door down (detached garage) and that'll stifle it some.
 
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I'm about to move my compressor (60 gal vertical) out and into a room I built in my lean-to behind my garage. I have friends with professional body shops who have their compressor setup like this, and have been for years. I'm making the move to open up some space and reduce noise. I have seen plenty of guys around here with compressors outside in a small shed/storage area like below. Personally, I prefer a little more protection for my equipment, but it seems to work.

Pop a few vents into the rubbermaid shed top and bottom for air flow, and it would probably be a decent shelter.
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