# Compressor mufflers?



## Sickie Ickie (Jun 20, 2006)

Does anyone know of air compressor mufflers to reduce the sound quite a bit?

I haven't found any, but I'm thinking a small box (trunk?) that has sound proofing tiles on the inside?


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## Sickie Ickie (Jun 20, 2006)

http://www.extremesoundproofing.com/Products/Sound_Barrier/sound_barrier.htm

That looks good, but have no idea how much it is...


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## slightlymad (May 25, 2006)

That looks expensive. They do make quiet mufflers foe compressors and quiet compressors but what is it that you are traying to do?


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## Revenant (Mar 17, 2007)

If you're talking about muffling the compressor itself and not just the air hiss, enclosing the entire machine is the only way to do it. It's not just the motor; the whole machine vibrates.

At Burning Man tons of people have noisy generators; burying it is not an option (you can't dig holes out there) so the best alternative is "sound towers" or sound chimneys. Make a heavy walled box (with soft lining and even better if you add baffles to cut reverb) about 7 or 8 feet high -- it directs the sound up where there are no ears to hear it. Like a heat sink for noise.


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## krypt (Oct 25, 2005)

dynamat for the vibrations then add a layer of that dynamat hoodliner over dynamat for sound.


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## krypt (Oct 25, 2005)

If your looking for a budget way then dont look into dynamat there prices have gone sky high!..........Try lining the box with 3 layers of carpet padding.


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## Sickie Ickie (Jun 20, 2006)

all good ideas!


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## DarkShadows (Feb 6, 2006)

There's this roof tar stuff they sell at home depot/ lowes thats the same exact stuff as dynamat, I have it all over the trunk of my car. It works good.


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## krypt (Oct 25, 2005)

DarkShadows said:


> There's this roof tar stuff they sell at home depot/ lowes thats the same exact stuff as dynamat, I have it all over the trunk of my car. It works good.


That ice sheild stuff?


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## turtle2778 (Jul 9, 2006)

Ya know the thing i love about this site is the way you all read my mind. I was just talking to my dad about this yesterday since i asked for a compressor for mothers day from my hubby. Thanks SI


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## Sickie Ickie (Jun 20, 2006)

Anytime Turtle.


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## ScareShack (May 26, 2006)

sears sells mufflers for craftsman comp., that screw on, but maily for the larger unit's.


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## gadget-evilusions (Jan 26, 2007)

When building a box to enclose your compressor, make sure you still give it some breathing room. Compressors create heat, and if enclosed and insulated too tightly that heat will build up and eventually your compressor will start shutting off from over heating and after that, start wearing out considerably faster.


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## BuriedAlive (Jun 8, 2006)

Solid point, gadget!


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## Stratusfear02 (Oct 1, 2006)

I looked into this a while ago and found out that a majority of the compressor noise in caused by the intake port. I thought of using a larger air intake filter from a larger compressor. Only thing is make sure it's not bogging down the compressor which will generate more heat. As for the encloure idea it will work but as previously stated heat is a big problem, unless you wire in some cooling fans.


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## Revenant (Mar 17, 2007)

From the Burner posts I read, the sound boxes they made for their generators just used a little vent space at the bottom to let air in and the rising warm air/exhaust did the rest. Of course if you wanted to get really techno-sexy and install a small vent input with a fan it would probably let even less noise escape, but I'm a big fan of the "as few moving parts as possible" approach. You just don't build the box so it's practically form fitted around the machine; as long as it has a little "breathing room" it wont act like insulation on the radiant heat.

Really, the biggest drawback to the sound tower is the sheer size (height) of it. It's the most effective way to deal with the sound, it's just big and hard to hide. Out in the desert in that camping environment the aesthetic isn't so much an issue; in your haunt it would have to either be behind the scenes somewhere or disguised as an obelisk or the tower of London or something. Wait a minute... a Pillar Of Pain! Hell yeah! The faces and texture and stuff would actually assist in the sound dampening! Just thought of that.


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## Sickie Ickie (Jun 20, 2006)

Great idea Rev!


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## Lilly (Jun 13, 2006)

how much space in general should there be between the compressor and box inside?
would using egg cartons help muffle the sound , I hear people use those for sound proofing sometimes?


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## Revenant (Mar 17, 2007)

Egg cartons cut down slightly on treble echo but they're fundamentally worthless. People use them because they _look like_ acoustical insulation, but they have no mass and do absolutely nothing to absorb or prevent the transmission of sound. A mover's blanket would work as well or better.

I posted on the Burner's board but so far no suggestions about actual dimensions. As is usually my luck, the people who utilize these things are not the ones who use the online forum; the only descriptions I've seen were of the "the camp next to us had blah blah...". The consensuses (sp?) were that taller is better and you need mass to absorb sound.

Using a fan was recommended, but gennies need plenty of air for the motor to breathe, as well as for cooling, so for a compressor the little airspace at the bottom is probably sufficient for convection to take care of air circulation. As for spacing, I would think 8" from the hot spots and 4" elsewhere would be plenty.

Efficacy is debated. Some said you're better off just buying a quieter generator. Personal thought; gennies put out heavier bass noise than compressors so maybe they'd work better with compressors? Maybe it's more worth the effort to just keep the damned thing inside and run a longer hose out to your secondary tanks; after all you don't have to worry about fumes. The theory of the tower is sound (so to speak), but I haven't made one myself yet so whether the results are worth the effort and expense I don't know. It's an idea that's out there.


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## Lilly (Jun 13, 2006)

thanks rev...
I want to muffle the sound somewhat, but its not a big deal it will be far enough away so it shouldnt be bad.


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## Richie (Jan 4, 2007)

I assume that you require this muffling system due to your compressor not having a large storage capacity of air which may require it to run more often. Whether that is the case or not, I would simply purchase an additional storage tank or tanks. It's far easier and there won't be any chance of the compressor overheating, which they can easily do since they were not designed to be placed in the type of inclosure required for your haunt. My compressor has a 30 gallon storage capacity and only required one recharge per 24 hour period using one pneumatic prop which was set to trigger even if a car drove by the house. Needless to say, it used very little air. 

I also would charge the compressor by manually turning it on and not allowing it to charge automatically. At times when nobody was around, I'd check the gauge, and if it required charging, I'd turn it on for a few minutes. This way my guests would never have to deal with the noise or have their scares interrupted by the compressor suddenly kicking on.


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## Lilly (Jun 13, 2006)

well maybe I can make a three sider and have it face the field by me then it wont be enclosed
I meant to say I want to use my generator, would same apply


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## the_PROCRASTINATOR (Oct 14, 2006)

I always just put my loud little compressor in the back yard, then I ran the air hose over the roof.


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## Ravenscroft (Jun 7, 2007)

the_PROCRASTINATOR said:


> I always just put my loud little compressor in the back yard, then I ran the air hose over the roof.


OVER the house????? I knew you were insane I just didn't know you were Psychotic. lol

I have a small 12 gallon Craftsman ( I know it's small but that's all I could afford at the time  ) and last year was the first year for me for pneumatics. I heeded the advice of many people and purchased an extra tank and I can say that this year I am switching other to nothing but external tanks for all of my pneumatics. Harbor Freight has 10 Gallon Tanks on sale for $29 until June 15th (maybe the 22nd, have to look into it).


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