Opinions please

[John Mihich]

Another option - heat the garage. I have mine heated and leave it at 45 when not using it. This way I don't have to worry about fluids at all. My furnace heats up the shop quickly.

[RedBob]

I'm not sure how large the compressor is, but perhaps(if it's a relatively small one) you could house it in a small cabinet and run a small light bulb in there. Probably one of the LED bulbs meant for reading lamps would generate enough heat and not consume too much electricity.

Good Luck,
Bob

[Steve N]

Depends on room available, but if you can spare a few inches around the size of the compressor build a plywood box with a hinged top, and mount a single light fixture inside to be on when it is cold. Lo tech, switch it on when needed. Hi tech, put in a thermostat. The warmth of a single bulb inside the box will keep you running fine. Put the box itself on top of a pair of 2x4's laid flat, just to keep the box off the cold floor.

Same system works fine if you have paint, or finishing products that you don't want to freeze, some better made metal paint lockers have the light already inside. Just make sure they have tight fitting lids, fumes inside the box could increase odds of combustion, but same logic for a paint locker.

[TDKPE]

Sparetime said:

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The problem that has come up and I didn't think about before had was I live in a cold state. I don't always heat my garage, and an oil filled compressor will trip when starting too cold. Even stored in the attached garage, it will trip. Something I should have considered before purchasing it, but didn't think of. So it works April to November and leaves me stranded the 4 months I'm using it the most.
<snip>
Or, I sell it and buy another oil free

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What is exactly is tripping? The motor control, or overload 'button' on the motor if it has one, or is the breaker opening?

And how long does it run, or try to run, before that happens?

How is it running when it does trip? Is it coming up to speed, but too slowly? Or is it just moving at a constant but slow speed and tripping?

And lastly, what's the motor hp and voltage?

[Sullivan]

How about a magnetic block heater together with a thermostatically controlled outlet?

Magnetic Heater 200W

Thermostatically Controlled Outlet

[Woodenfish]

Most new air compressors are supplied with synthetic oil and are capable of extreme temperatures. Air compressors are high energy consumers and need a good flow of current to operate efficiently and correctly. Be sure your circuitry is capable of delivering all of the current the start up of the compressor demands to ensure the breaker will not trip. If you have an opportunity to wire this compressor for 220v operation do it. If not, be sure the outlet, the wiring and breaker are capable of delivering 20A @ 125v. If not, update it to prevent harming the motor.

[Sparetime]

I will have to check on synthetic oil. I just used what came with the unit (DeWalt).

I have 20a 120 circuit in the garage and it is plugged directly into an outlet (no extension cord). I'll see if it can be rewired to 220. I have a 30A 220 cuircuit for the table saw anyway

Some great ideas and things I need to check out.

[Pirate]

How about hanging a GoldenRod heater right below the compressor? A 12" one only draws 8 watts. Put it on a timer if wanted.

I mounted a rod heater inside the back of a tool box I built, to help with humidity. They put out a fair amount of heat, at low watts.

[johnnysuede]

You should see if your make and model has a cold start valve available. They run the motor for longer before allowing the pressurization (and heavy motor load) to start. My emglo has run in my unheated basement in the middle of Chicago winters without fail, it runs noticeably longer without actually pressurizing the tank but that's it, adds 30 seconds to the amount of time it takes to use.

[Tapper]

Remote is the way to go if you decide to move the compressor. I have the "Long Ranger" brand and it works great, especially for my dust collector, which is in a different location from my shop.

Good luck,

Doug