Air Compressor for drying !

[Accumulator]

..do you guys .. use your compressors for ..Blowing dust our of vents?

Not me, and I don't use the steamer for that either. That [sctuff] isn't magically dematerializing when blown down into the ductwork. I know, I know, everybody else does it and thinks it works great :nixweiss



Overall, I'm pretty careful about blowing stuff around in the interior, don't want it settling elsewhere where it might be even harder to clean up.

 

[RaskyR1]

What do you guys (Jakerooni and JohnKleven) use your compressors for when doing interiors? Blowing dust our of vents? Blowing crud our of cupholders? What else.



I just recently bought a small air compressor and really haven't been using it much for my interior. I must not be thinking of jobs to use it for because I have seen others talking about using their air compressors when doing interiors.

Tons of things!



Blowing debris out from under the seats, between seats and center console, seat racks, cup holders, ash trays, glove box, center console, seats, back window, trunk....

 

[ABQDetailer]

I got the same one but with the 80gal tank! Great air compressors! :2thumbs:

Love your garage!!!



Are those T12s? :drool:

 

[WAS]

For the second, just leave one window down 1", all other windows closed, and the heater on full blast (pointed at floor and vents) for 30+ minutes or until dry.



Just use the car's heater! If you get browning, it's because you had excessive chemicals in the carpets. Rinse the carpets again, then dry again with the car's heater.

Ummmmmmm, you run the customer's car for 30+ min ? Idling ? There's a couple issues with this...



- Many municipalities have anti-idle bylaws. Even if yours does, what are the chances of getting caught ? Probably miniscule, but none the less, it would be illegal.



- What happens when the customer notices that their fuel level is lower (depending how cold it is outside, or how "untuned" their engine is, it could be a significant amount of gas spent) when they pick up their vehicle ?



- What happens to the excess carbon you build up as a result of letting it idle for 30+ min ?



- Some folks, like me, are very particular with time / usage sensitive maintenance, such as oil changes. Idling the vehicle 30+ min expends oil life, so how do you communicate to the customer that they now need an oil change in 1500 miles instead of 1700 miles ?



- Many people are environmentally conscious these days, how do you explain to them the amount of CO2 gases you just released to dry their interior ?





Sorry if I come off sounding like an ***, but I would be supremely mad if a detail shop idled my car for 30+ min just to dry the interior. As a professional in the industry, I would do this only as a VERY last resort, and I would make sure to let the customer know that it was done and why, and I would also discount the final invoice to account for fuel spent.

 

[David Fermani]

I use our air compressor daily to dry nooks an crannies of a car, but I could not imagine not having one for cleaning interiors. It's a must have.

I really don't know how someone could "detail" an interior w/o one. Like your house, your interior collects dust. Wiping, scrubbing and Q-tipping is great, but totally has it's limitations. I think using an air compressor turns a clean car into a detailed one. I literally use compressed air for atleast 15-20 minutes during an interior detail.

 

[Bert]

I really don't know how someone could "detail" an interior w/o one. Like your house, your interior collects dust. Wiping, scrubbing and Q-tipping is great, but totally has it's limitations. I think using an air compressor turns a clean car into a detailed one. I literally use compressed air for atleast 15-20 minutes during an interior detail.

Tons of things!



Blowing debris out from under the seats, between seats and center console, seat racks, cup holders, ash trays, glove box, center console, seats, back window, trunk....

I figured your vacuums would accomplish many of these tasks.

 

[David Fermani]

2 totally different operations all together. You can't suck or brush out the dirty build up in the body lines(cracks) of a center console or the tight seams in leather seats. Air purges out all the tiny cracks you can't reach manually or with a vac. Headliners that can't be brushed or wiped. Wetness that's trapped within the arm rest of a door panel.

 

[imported_Jakerooni]

I figured your vacuums would accomplish many of these tasks.

Only to an extent. Here's a test. Take a section (say driver's front compartment) and vacuum the dickens out of it until you think it's as clean as it's going to get. Then take the air compressor and blow out the carpet... vacuums only get so much. they are good for getting stuff off the surface. You want a real clean you need to extract and then blow out. I also take a foaming cleaner and foam up the seat tracks then blow them off into a waiting towel. What would take minutes with a standard wipe procedure now just took you a matter of 2 seconds to accomplish and you usually get better results (the air can physically reach more crud than your fingers can) Same with blowing out all the crevices. As long as you blow them into a waiting terry cloth towel they aren't "going all over the place" it's extreamly quick and extreamly effective.

 

[Eliran]

So what do you think guys on that compressor? is it good enough or too much for my tasks?

Also, about the vacuum, does someone already own a craftsman and can tell me the Hz and watts it requires? and how about that electric blower that comes with it?

Sorry guys for all the question but I really need to decide on the equipments and send them with all other bunch of stuff I purchased asap.



Thanks !

 

[Bert]

Also, about the vacuum, does someone already own a craftsman and can tell me the Hz and watts it requires? and how about that electric blower that comes with it?

I am not sure what the Hz and watts requirements are but if you find the model number and do a Google search, you should be able to find it.

 

[Bert]

2 totally different operations all together. You can't suck or brush out the dirty build up in the body lines(cracks) of a center console or the tight seams in leather seats. Air purges out all the tiny cracks you can't reach manually or with a vac. Headliners that can't be brushed or wiped. Wetness that's trapped within the arm rest of a door panel.

I see. Lately I have been just using a small brush that looks like at toothbrush but will longer bristles to get into such body lines or tight seems but I see how air could do the job faster and probably better.

 

[Bert]

Only to an extent. Here's a test. Take a section (say driver's front compartment) and vacuum the dickens out of it until you think it's as clean as it's going to get. Then take the air compressor and blow out the carpet... vacuums only get so much. they are good for getting stuff off the surface. You want a real clean you need to extract and then blow out. I also take a foaming cleaner and foam up the seat tracks then blow them off into a waiting towel. What would take minutes with a standard wipe procedure now just took you a matter of 2 seconds to accomplish and you usually get better results (the air can physically reach more crud than your fingers can) Same with blowing out all the crevices. As long as you blow them into a waiting terry cloth towel they aren't "going all over the place" it's extreamly quick and extreamly effective.

That makes sense.

 

[Setec Astronomy]

So those of you that are blowing out the interiors with compressed air, what pressure are you using? Do you use a higher pressure for carpeting than you do for dash cracks? Different nozzle?

 

[imported_Jakerooni]

I keep mine right around 90 psi and no I don't switch nozzels or anything. I have a nice MAC air gun that suits all my needs.

 

[Accumulator]

This thread is another example of how different the typical situations can be for Pros vs., well....me. 99% of the time the interiors I'm cleaning up simply aren't "dirty" in (what I suspect is) the normal sense.



Those examples of how air can be helpful for interiors reminded me of how I've extensively used steamers on some (very) used vehicles when I was doing the initial post-purchase reconditioning. I can see how the compressed air would be useful for jobs like those. Next time I'm doing a big cleanup of one of the dog-haulers I'll be keeping a more open mind about the idea, might save me some time and effort..and might even give me better results.

 

[RaskyR1]

Love your garage!!!



Are those T12s? :drool:

Thanks!



I think they may be T8's but it's been a few years since I put them up so they may very well be T12's too.

So those of you that are blowing out the interiors with compressed air, what pressure are you using? Do you use a higher pressure for carpeting than you do for dash cracks? Different nozzle?

I have an water/oil filter/regulater inline for painting and I believe it's regulated at 90psi right now. The air trigger attachment I use lets you vary the amount of pressure that comes out based on how far you squeeze it....works great! :bigups

 

[clubwash]

what about using a compressor for detailing the dash and the interior of the cars?

 

[ABQDetailer]

what about using a compressor for detailing the dash and the interior of the cars?

I have been laying down OPP via a HVLP detail gun + compressor with great results. The only problem is I'm using a lot more product than normal. It really lays down an even coat and if you are careful you don't even need to wipe it down. If you want a more matte finish you can wipe it down though.

 

[BobD]

I will mainly use it for blowing and maybe in the future I will use air tools too.

For drying a car what would you consider a good receiver?

Yeah that one you linked to would be horrible for most air tools. Unless you are talking about an air stapler or nailer.

 

[Bert]

Yeah that one you linked to would be horrible for most air tools. Unless you are talking about an air stapler or nailer.

Not enough PSI?