Rotary Screw Compressor Advice
Finishers explain why they like rotary screw compressors: higher capacity and less noise. January 24, 2014
Question (WOODWEB Member) :
I’m tossing around the idea of purchasing an I.R. Rotary Screw Compressor, mostly for spray booth use - HVLP and Dyna Brade Sander. The cabinet shop will use it too for edge banding and a few other pneumatic tools. I’m up for any opinions if you have them, pro or con.
Forum Responses
(Finishing Forum)
From contributor S:
We've had an I.R. screw compressor for years now and it was one of the best pieces of machinery we bought. We had four or five piston compressors before and still had lack of air due to Dynabrades, two spray booths running and etc. Now we have no problems. Just make sure you change the oil and filters as indicated. Maybe keep your old compressor(s) for back up as well.
From the original questioner:
Contributor S - do you have any comment about the heat generated from constant use?
From contributor C:
I’ve been using a Sullair rotary for the past seven years and have never had a problem with it. The best thing is how quiet it is, especially compared to a 15 HP IR piston compressor I used to have. The compressor only runs on demand. It is not running all the time, so heat is not an issue.
From contributor S:
We have the rotary screw, an air drier and one of our backup piston compressors in a walled off room with some sound insulation in the walls and on the ceiling. There is a vent in the wall and on the ceiling for air circulation. Sometimes one of the guys puts a fan in the ceiling vent but it doesn't seem too hot in the room. If you buy a new compressor don't forget about a properly sized air drier. I also forgot to mention, even though the compressor runs all the time and the pump kicks in and out as needed the whole thing is way quieter than the piston compressors it replaced, a whole different kind of sound.
From contributor A:
Rotary screws are great and we couldn’t live without ours. Though we upgraded to a variable speed RS compressor and instead of kicking on and off hard every few seconds, it runs about 90% of the time just at varying percentage of max output. I’m very happy with it.
