Create a (quiet) jet of air blowing without a compressor?

[tyson77]

I'm looking for an alternative to compressed air to blow chips without an air compressor.

Something tells me a desk fan with funnel isn't going to work, not exactly sure why, Google isn't giving me a conclusive answer but I assume that's not feasible.

Would a small radial blower like small electronics board fan do better?

I'm just looking for air velocities like blowing with my lips.

Obviously I'm trying to avoid a noisy compressor for a home garage shop, not drive the neighbors crazy.

If this is a common newbie question, please link other searched threads.

Thanks

Tyson

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[Al_The_Man]

There are the small air brush compressors that are fairly quiet and if you enclose it in a vented padded enclosure you can barely hear it.
Al.

[Jim Dawson]

If volume of air (CFM) remains constant and the nozzle size decreases, then the pressure (and velocity) must go up to push the same CFM through the smaller nozzle. The problem is that a fan is not capable of producing the pressure needed to push high velocity air through a small hole(funnel). Or if it is capable of creating the needed pressure then it gets noisy, think leaf blower.

There are really quiet air compressors available. California Compressor is one option, available at Home Depot. Also a good shop vac might do it.

[tyson77]

If volume of air (CFM) remains constant and the nozzle size decreases, then the pressure (and velocity) must go up to push the same CFM through the smaller nozzle. The problem is that a fan is not capable of producing the pressure needed to push high velocity air through a small hole(funnel). Or if it is capable of creating the needed pressure then it gets noisy, think leaf blower.

There are really quiet air compressors available. California Compressor is one option, available at Home Depot. Also a good shop vac might do it.

Would small 12v squirrel cage get me closer? And just curious why does an axial fan not create enough pressure.

Maybe it was covered in college, but it's been awhile....

I've seen the reviews of a California air compressor. It's much quieter for sure, but still seems overkill for a bit of blown air. And I'd like something even quieter.

[C*H*U*D]

I've been wanting to try this out for awhile. I have no idea how well it works, but I hate buying canned air:

https://www.canlessair.com/

[tyson77]

There are the small air brush compressors that are fairly quiet and if you enclose it in a vented padded enclosure you can barely hear it.
Al.

that sounds like a reasonable alternative. except when i looked at the price of a silair 20a, im no longer interested. sorry.

building an enclosure around a noisy air compressor motor is the baseline i'm trying to avoid having to do.

my current line of thinking is using a 48V electric blower since my power supply is 48V. like this.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/Delta-Elect...EAAOSwm3pZ98hz

anyone gone down this road, and found it not simply work?

[Al_The_Man]

that sounds like a reasonable alternative. except when i looked at the price of a silair 20a, im no longer interested. sorry.

building an enclosure around a noisy air compressor motor is the baseline i'm trying to avoid having to do.

You are looking in the wrong place!!
I picked one up for $40.00 complete with air brushes!
Plus they are not Noisy.!
Once you restrict the flow of a radial or axial fan, the current goes down, but so does the flow, drastically.
Al.

[Jim Dawson]

Would small 12v squirrel cage get me closer? And just curious why does an axial fan not create enough pressure.

Maybe it was covered in college, but it's been awhile....

I've seen the reviews of a California air compressor. It's much quieter for sure, but still seems overkill for a bit of blown air. And I'd like something even quieter.

A squirrel cage fan can be a bit higher pressure than an axial fan, but not by much. The clearances are too loose to be able to build much pressure at the speeds the fan wheel can operate. High pressure can be achieved with a multistage axial fan, like a jet engine. Just keeping things simple, high pressure can be created with a positive displacement pump (air compressor), a turbine wheel, or a multistage system. High pressure, low volume can be achieved at low HP, as can high volume at low pressure. As the pressure AND volume go up, the power requirement goes up as the square of the product. Power = (Vol*PSI)^2 if I remember correctly, and the noise increases accordingly. If you can find a newer Dyson vacuum cleaner to salvage, they have a tiny turbine wheel turning at somewhere around 100K RPM, would be a compact, high pressure system. Probably around 2.5 HP or so.

[tyson77]

so i just tested a 24V blower motor that came out of a 3D printer and the results were satisfactory. i necked the output down with my hand and seems like it will be enough to direct chips out of any pockets. runs noticably loud, but probably not more than the mill itself.

thanks for the suggestions. i think ill just go with that 48v blower.

[robertk925]

I use an aquarium pump (that is similar in noise and air pressure to an airbrush pump).

https://www.amazon.com/Active-Aqua-C.../dp/B002JPPFJ0

[tyson77]

I use an aquarium pump (that is similar in noise and air pressure to an airbrush pump).

https://www.amazon.com/Active-Aqua-C.../dp/B002JPPFJ0

Ah, you know that seems like a much simpler option.

I'll keep it in mind. What size pump do you use or recommend? That exact model? There appears to be several different sizes around the web.

[robertk925]

I use that exact model. I had a smaller one (https://www.amazon.com/EcoPlus-Singl.../dp/B002JLJC0W) but it was a little too weak to clear chips effectively.

[CS900]

I had seen somewhere someone had mounted fan blades directly to the spindle. It seemed to work ok except when the pockets became deep. If you have access to a 3d printer, this could be an easy solution if your spindle runs at higher RPMs

[genixia]

For light duty use a cylinder of co2 would work. Ensure adequate ventilation.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G900A using Tapatalk

[DonKes]

A little compressor and a big tank.

Don

[arizonavideo]

For my little mill PM-25 I use a blower from a yard blow up Santa. For my larger IH mill I use a blower from a bounce house.

Keep the hose short and the smaller blowers from the yard decorations work well. 1.5" hose.

The bounce house blower makes a lot more noise.

[TroyO]

Maybe this is worth looking in to? https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B06Y3...+paint+sprayer

Pull the needle and it would maybe focus an air stream although while it’s quieter than my compressor it’s hardly quiet overall.

[Fastest1]

I had seen somewhere someone had mounted fan blades directly to the spindle. It seemed to work ok except when the pockets became deep. If you have access to a 3d printer, this could be an easy solution if your spindle runs at higher RPMs

That was done by Hoss at my suggestion years ago.
He actually designed and tested 3 different blade designs. All snapped on to Tormach's tool holders.
I still have one around here somewhere.


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[cncuser1]

Some people use the compressor from an old fridge or freezer to feed a tank from the air compressor. They setup is dead silent and delivers the pressure needed to clear chips.

There are professional compressors that use his setup.

[eldata]

I use shorter air bursts where feasible, like here;



Actually prefer vacuum for chip clearing and again that would be where feasible.