Air Compressor for cleaning Equipment?

[lightstand]

I'm looking for recommendations for a good oil-less air compessor with a water trap and a trigger nozzle so I can blow dust off lenses, and camera bodies, etc without having to use canned air. What specifics should I look for and what models are people using for camera equipment?  Any insights or suggestions concerning air compressors would be appreciated. thanks jeff

[Peter Mellis]

I have a small Porter Cable pancake type compressor that I use in my workshop to drive nail guns and clean power tools. This type of machine does not have a water filter (that I know of);I believe that you could attach one to the air hose like an in-line set up for a larger stationary unit. You can buy a trigger controlled nozzle;I have a long one that I use for blowing sawdust off of the inner works of a table saw. That said, I think that an air blast from this compressor (normally set at 100-120psi) is way too strong for use on photographic equipment. I've never tried to run it with less pressure, so I can't comment on how it would work at substantially lower pressure.

You might look at the specs for the smaller compressors that are used with air brushes, to see if they run at lower settings.

[lightstand]

You might look at the specs for the smaller compressors that are used with air brushes, to see if they run at lower settings.

Hi Peter thank you for your response, yes the air brush compressors are what I'm looking at.  Anyone else have specific models I should look at?

thanks, Jeff

[lightstand]

Here's another idea on cleaning equipment using a vacuum for computer equipment

http://www.metrovacworld.com/Shopping/prod...ct_id=DataVNext

although it gets some pretty bad reviews claiming it doesn't have the power and over heats

any other opinions?  thanks jeff

p.s. I'm not talking about the sensor, just the lenses and camera bodies

[Thomas McConnell]

Air blower may help too.

[elf]

Compressed air is probably the worst thing to use around cameras.  All it will do is move the dirt deeper inside the camera.  However, if you insist on using it, a better option would be to use nitrogen gas. You can get a tank from welding supply companies and is not overly expensive. Nitrogen gas doesn't have water or oil in it like compressed air.

[Peter McLennan]

Every camera truck on every film production in all of recorded history  : )  has a bottle of nitrogen for cleaning the gear.  Everything from the  camera's inner workings to muddy tripod feet get a blast from this universal cleaning apparatus.  It's extremely efficient for drying out wet equipment and as a first step for lens and filter cleaning.  Bottles of nitrogen contain no water or oil, are portable and relatively cheap to rent.

[kiefers]

I also thought about using an air compressor to blow dust off lenses. I searched a bit in the internet and found oil-free air compressor rentals and I think I will try this. I can additionally use the air compressor for blowing off dust for example on my keyboard too. So to me it makes sense to rent one and not to buy it. I hope it will work.

[degrub]

Make sure it comes with the equipment to dry the air as well, dewpoint in the -20 to -40 range - otherwise it'll spit all over your gear.    You will need a particle filter as well - .1 micron should be good enough.

why not a small bottle of nitrogen ? just be careful to use it outside of a confined space - less than 19% volume oxygen in air is considered hazardous limit by many.

[jrsforums]

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001J4ZOAW

http://www.lensrentals.com/blog/2011/05/the-lensrentals-lens-cleaning-methods

John

[Dennishh]

I've been using air from a dive shop that has worked great for years now. Most dive shops have used tanks and variable air tip that attaches to the regulator. I can put just the amount of air I want on the camera or sensor or other equipment. The refills are cheap and contain no oil. Some tanks are portable but I only use the larger ones for economic reasons.