Air Compressor an essential? Good Foam Cannon Attachment?

[ahheck01]

Hey guys/gals. I`m moving from an apartment with no garage to a house with a 2.5 stall garage - FINALLY!!



So, while budget conscious due to higher living expenses, I`m looking to invest in some essential tools for detailing beyond the rotary, pads, and compounds. As mentioned in another thread, I`m looking for a cheap but usable paint thickness gauge, and then I`m looking into the following equipment:



1) Air Compressor - Seems to be helpful for everything - drying, blowing out dust and debris from every crevice, great for interiors, etc. What other uses does it have?

2) Foam Cannon Attachment - I`ve seen foam cannons on Power Washers, but I`m not in a position to get both an air compressor and a power washer right now, and the compressor seems to be more multi-functional at this point. Is there a good attachment that can allow the air compressor to make for an excellent foam cannon?

3) Shop Vac with Attachments - I have an old one that belongs to my parents, but I think it would be wise to get my own and get a few attachments to provide a rather essential function.



So, suggestions for the above? I would love the air compressor to be small enough that I can lift it into a truck for the occasional mobile detail, but cost is a bigger issue. Really curious about the foam cannon attachment, and any other functions the air compressor will provide that I should be sure to get attachments for?

[Jpostal]

A compressor is not a must have, but it is one of those tools that once you use it you will never be able to detail again without it. I have a 20 gallon DeVillbis that provides enough CFM but is still small enough to take on a mobile job if you need to. Costco usually has a good deal on a 20 gallon Snap On compressor.

[Accumulator]

I`m looking into the following equipment:



1) Air Compressor - Seems to be helpful for everything - drying, blowing out dust and debris from every crevice, great for interiors, etc. What other uses does it have?



There`s always filling tires ;) Seriously, IMO every automotive shop...homeowner/consumer, pro, mechanical, detailing, *ANY* shop at all...oughta have a compressor. [Shoot], I could argue that every *homeowner* oughta have one! But then I grew up with `em; my father (white-collar as you could get, but did his own homeowner stuff) had one in the garage and a second one in the basement workshop simply because blasting stuff with compressed air is handy. You`ll find the uses for it, I`m pretty confident of that.




2) Foam Cannon Attachment - I`ve seen foam cannons on Power Washers, but I`m not in a position to get both an air compressor and a power washer right now, and the compressor seems to be more multi-functional at this point. Is there a good attachment that can allow the air compressor to make for an excellent foam cannon?



I have a "Vacula" siphon-feed sprayer that connects to my air compressor. Lacking a pressure washer, I use it as a lowbrow pw-substitute, doing my "prewash of the nasty areas" with that. It`s better than nothing but it`s no pw and it`s no foamcannon.



But then, I don`t have/use/want/need a foamcannon either :nixweiss Now a foamgun, that`s something different, wouldn`t wash without one.




3) Shop Vac with Attachments - I have an old one that belongs to my parents, but I think it would be wise to get my own and get a few attachments to provide a rather essential function.



I ended up with four (yeah...*four*...long story :o ) Shop Vacs. IMO you might just get the right hose/attachments and use the one you already have if it has sufficient suction/capacity/etc. OR, buy one used; I bet I couldn`t get $20 for any of mine but there`s sure nothing wrong with `em.



But then I don`t use a Shop Vac for interiors the way many people do either, I use a regular canister vacuum for that. When that one dies (beyond repairing) I`ll demote the oldest household one and buy a new one to replace that.






I would love the air compressor to be small enough that I can lift it into a truck for the occasional mobile detail, but cost is a bigger issue..



I`d rather have a compressor with sufficient power for whatever you might use if for (any airtools in your future?) than have one that`s really portable. But hey, that`s just me.

[moderator]

FYI - thread moved to the Car Detailing sub-section

[ahheck01]

FYI - thread moved to the Car Detailing sub-section Cool, thanks. Didn`t know if tools/accessories fall under products or not.

[Barry Theal]

I would get a air compressor for sure. You will not regret it. As far as the whole foam cannon goes, I must say










Dont listen to Accumulator







He sure is getting senile at his old age. :LOLOL I freaken love mine. Just like an air compressor, wait till you use it, you will never wash with out it again. Trust me when your neighbors see this thing it will drum up business! Shop vacs are essential as well. You`ll use it for a lot more then detailing.



On a side note Im soon ready to foam my house down with the Cannon for its summer cleaning. Should be fun eh?

[ahheck01]

As far as the whole foam cannon goes, I must say Dont listen to Accumulator

He sure is getting senile at his old age. :LOLOL I freaken love mine. Just like an air compressor, wait till you use it, you will never wash with out it again. Trust me when your neighbors see this thing it will drum up business!



Barry, thank you for the advice! I appreciate you dropping in to give your $0.02. What is a cost effective foam cannon solution that you all would recommend?



Many thanks!

[AeroCleanse]

Get an air compressor, make sure it has a high SCFM rating in case you later get a Tornador.



I got a $100 power washer from Lowes, $14 foam gun from Home Depot and a $20 adapter wand to make it all work.

[ahheck01]

Get an air compressor, make sure it has a high SCFM rating in case you later get a Tornador.



I got a $100 power washer from Lowes, $14 foam gun from Home Depot and a $20 adapter wand to make it all work.



What SCFM rating should I be looking for? I think my brother is going to help out with the purchase of the air compressor since he wants to use it for air tools eventually.

[Accumulator]

Barry Theal- Heh heh, it`d been a while since you busted on me, I was starting to feel neglected :chuckle:



I bet that for you pros the foam cannon is a lot more useful that it`d be for me.

[wascallyrabbit]

air tools can really eat up some air. some run around 8-12 scfm at 90psi. you should determine the type of tools you want to run and their air requirements which will give you a good idea of how big a compressor should be looking at.

[SpoolinNoMore]

I bought a foam cannon (for regular garden hose) off of Amazon for ~$35 shipped and it works GREAT! I highly suggest any cannon if not to make the washing pre-soak easier, but if you ever want to do a full wax strip, doing Dawn in a cannon makes the job much much easier. Also if you use a wax & wash car soap to help keep your LSP longevity, its a gem for dispersing that as well.

As for an air compressor, its all been said already... get one!

[AeroCleanse]

What SCFM rating should I be looking for? I think my brother is going to help out with the purchase of the air compressor since he wants to use it for air tools eventually.



I got one from Sears a long time ago. Its 9.1 SCFM at 40 psi and 7.1 SCFM at 90 psi. You can go bigger if you want