4.5 Gal. Portable Electric Quiet Air Compressor

Half way through building a shed my 20 year old Craftsman Compressor died.... I initially bought a Husky and wasn't too thrilled with it, so I returned it and bought the 4.5 gallon ridgid...... i was skeptical about a small tank compressor, but figured I could find something else if I didn't like it...... I am thrilled with it, it's way quieter than my old craftsman and the husky one I bought..... I also have been using it on a 100 foot extension cord and not a single slow start like my craftsman did..... framed up all this with the Ridgid Framing Nailer and the compressor

Great portable compressor.. quiet and powerful.

Amazing compressor makes my framing nailer fire just like a coil nailer. Top of the line ridgid

Has been excellent so far a lot quieter than my other compressors

Runs three framing guns with no problem.like reliefin air when cut off.

Quiet? well, sort of. It's not as loud as a traditional air compressor, but its definitely not 77dB quiet. That's ok though. I can deal with it. I had a flooring nailer and a finishing nailer attached to it and it did cycle on and off. The good thing was that the cycle never lasted very long at all. I did transport this thing all over the house several times a day and it was a decent amount of work, but compared to the alternative bigger compressors with less cfm's, this one worked perfectly. I laid about 700 sqft of hardwood floor and had no problem. My next task is to finish the basement and I plan on using this little guy to do the job. I would recommend highly recommend this product.

A single stage, oil-free compressor, mated with and mounted to two oblong tanks for a total of 4.5 gallons of capacity, this unit is billed as a “low noise”, easily portable unit primarily intended for nail-gun applications, capable of a maximum pressure of 200 psi, with a duty cycle of 5 minutes on/5 minutes off (50%). Overall construction of the made-in-China product appears to be of high quality, although some design features could be cause for concern. The output from the compressor to the tanks is plumbed using rigid metal tubing and the cross connection between tanks is by means of a welded pipe which will (intended or not) end up being used as an auxiliary handle. The output from the tanks to the regulator/output manifold is by means of a flexible hose (with crimped connections at each end). A replaceable, paper element air filter is installed on the compressor inlet (however there was no ordering information/part number for a replacement part in the Operator’s manual), configured slightly differently than shown in the manual. The two quick connect couplers provided are stated to be able to accommodate automotive or industrial type fittings. I only have automotive type and the couplers mated securely with no leakage. The required electrical supply is stated as 14.1 amperes (120 Volts, 60 Hz). I used it while connected to a 20 Amp. Branch circuit, and there was no difficulty; Operation from a 15 Amp. Branch circuit could be problematical, if the specified current requirement is accurate. A small, quarter-turn ball valve (with a thermoplastic “handle” is provided for each of the two tanks, and the user manual cautions to drain after every use. As the valves are not located at the low point of the tanks, one must tilt the unit, first one way…and then the other to properly drain the accumulated condensate. The operator’s manual also cautions regarding the finite useable lifetime of the tanks and they are marked with a label giving the “expiration date” ..in this case September 2027 (about 11 years). In addition to the difficulty in properly draining, due to the location of the drain valves, since this is a portable unit which will be schlepped around in car trunks or the bed of a truck, the lack of physical protection of the valves could lead to damage, which would probably not be covered under the 3 year warranty provided. While provided with a handle, at 60+ pounds this is not a lightweight unit. The “ergonomic” handle, if positioned adjacent to one’s leg, will result in the tanks swinging into the lower leg. If it is grasped from the other side, the center of gravity of the unit is offset some distance from your body, making handling awkward. The sound level is stated as “77 dbA (outdoors). As this will, no doubt, see use inside of structures for finish nailing, I used it in a bedroom, while nailing molding in place. I measured a sound level (see photo) of approximately 83 dbA. Although this meter was not calibrated to a traceable standard, for comparison, I measured the sound level of my shop compressor (2 HP, 2 stage, 20 gallon) with the same meter, at the same distance with a result of 77 dbA. When using a brad nailer, I was able to drive approximately 75-100 nails before the compressor would cycle on and pump up the tank (operating the nailer at 80 psi). For this application, duty cycle and noise issues would probably not be problematical. The specifications rate the unit at 5.1 SCFM at 90 PSI, however, operating a pneumatic sheet metal saw (rated as requiring 4 SCFM at 90 psi) caused the compressor to cycle on after 10 seconds. If operation of the saw was ceased, the unit would pump up and shut down in 20 seconds. If operation of the saw continued, however, the compressor could not “catch up” and, after 90 seconds tank pressure fell below the 90 psi the tool was being operated at. In summary, this is a well made, if somewhat heavy, noisy and awkward to handle unit which will function for applications requiring low air consumption, such as pneumatic nail-guns, but will require some TLC to avoid damage and possible reduction of tank lifetime.

Got this compressor as a replacement for one I previously purchased. Talk about customer satisfaction. Kara Cheetham took very good care of me when she learned about my issue. Got this to me before i realized is was at my front door. Waited for the right project to pull it out and give it the ultimate test on a project we re roofed in a hurry before Christmas. I had 3 Rigid roofing coil nailers and a framing gun operating at all times on a consistent. I have to admit it never stalled, over heated or hesitated to start at any given point. I kept a close eye on it during the progress of the work we performed. I strongly recommend this compressor. Lighter than all of the other I own and it really is quiet. Makes communication alot easier all day to speak from the ground up to someone standing on the roof of a house.

Excellent air compressor

Rating provided by a verified purchaser