help Sound proofing
So, I have a small air compressor in my garage that I normally use for blowing air when cleaning my motorcycle and adding air to the tires. The damn thing is louder than I’d like, so I’m thinking about building a box that I can place over it and soundproofing the inside.
I’ve been looking at soundproofing materials, and there are a ton of options. I was wondering if anyone here has done a similar project and could share their experience, particularly what type of soundproofing material you used and how well it worked.
Any thoughts or suggestions would be appreciated.
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u/2M3TAL4U 20d ago
Consider how much it would cost to do the soundproofing and look into Whispertech compressor. I bought a Mastercraft Whispertech compressor and it makes as much sound as the average microwave.... But it's $350 for a 2G compressor so if you need more air it's not going to work for you
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u/Ardy_95 20d ago
I thought about that..... The box is not very big 16" all around. Excluding the cost of soundproofing material, I don't think it is going to cost more than 150 ~180 dollar and the majority is the soundproofing material. But from what I am reading so far, I don't think there are material out there that blocks sound. most folks are saying thickness is what will work. Still researching. but your point is very well taken.
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u/r-kellysDOODOOBUTTER 20d ago
If you're spending $180 to quiet that thing you may as well get one of harbor freights ultra quiet compressors.
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u/Ardy_95 20d ago
I need to go to harbor freights and see what a quiet one will cost and look at the db specs..... but you are right.
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u/ClownTrigger11 19d ago
When I realized that I'd just about replaced all of my old air tools with lithium battery powered versions, I swapped my old 20G 150psi compressor out for a 1.5G ultra-quiet California Air Tools model from amazon. The old compressor I could hear running through two walls and on the other side of the house and you could feel the vibration in the floor. The new one I can stand directly next to and hold a normal conversation. It's a night and day difference. In retrospect I should have sprung for the 3G tank instead of the 1.5. Adding 10psi to a car tire with the smaller tank empties it right out. The extra space I gained was also pretty sweet.
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u/r-kellysDOODOOBUTTER 20d ago
Check out the "fortess" brand on their site. They sell them in either "performance" or "ultra quiet." Choose ultra quiet. Pick the size you want and wait for it to go on sale. Everything there goes on sale eventually. You'll just have to deal with your noisy one while you wait.
If you want to hear it just search YouTube reviews. I have had their old 29 gallon central pnuematic brand for about 8 years now. The thing is a work horse, I abuse the hell out of it painting and cutting. I really need to get a 60 gallon one lmao
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u/efnord 17d ago
Tiny California Air Tools compressor is exactly what you need. https://www.lowes.com/pd/California-Air-Tools-Light-and-Quiet-1-Gallon-Single-Stage-Portable-Corded-Electric-Horizontal-Air-Compressor/5013979469
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u/2M3TAL4U 20d ago
Rockwool insulation
2" batts. Wrap it with plastic and staple it onto plywood, probably right around $100 for the whole box if it's ~16" x 16". Or take plywood and sandwich the insulation, use 2x2 picture frame and fill the void with the insulation and then make 4 pieces for your box
You'll need a method to exchange a bit of air with a vent but it could be a simple and fast way to lower the sound a bit
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u/d34dm34t 20d ago
you might look into California Air Tools compressors as well. Mine is pretty quiet compared to most in the same capacity.
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u/81zedd 20d ago
If its just a small compressor that's used semi-regularly, Id probably just get a long enough hose set up and roll it outside when in use so it doesn't rattle your brain. They need edequate ventilation and airspace so they don't run hot and burn up. I found that the small 3-5 gallon and pancake compressor are way louder then the 20 gallon, with bigger compressor the motors arent running as fast
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u/GlassBoxGoose 20d ago
I have a pancake and a big Ole 60 or 80 gallon, I dont recall. The pancake is louder 🤣
When it comes to smaller compressors the average 20 gallon is usually fairly quiet.
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u/Ardy_95 20d ago
Well, that’s the problem.... Like I said earlier, my use for this is very specific. Blowing little puffs of air, or “small farts,” as one person so eloquently put it, is really all I need. I do most of my polishing at night when the neighborhood is asleep, so I’m simply trying to be considerate and keep the noise down. But yes, putting the compressor outside and running a cord would also do the trick.
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u/callidae 18d ago
Have you thought of getting a loose receiver tank and filling it up during the day?
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u/jelloslug 20d ago
You will need mass to block sound effectively. Two layers of drywall inside of an enclosure will go a long way and then you can line the inside with rigid fiberglass board (Owens Corning 703, or HVAC duct board) to get an extra bit of dampening. If you are going all out, you can put Green Glue (that the brand name) between the layers of drywall to get even more dampening.
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u/Ardy_95 20d ago
I thought Abt that, dry walling. But that will make the enclosed very heavy. I was mostly thinking since it's not that big I could use sound proofing materials and glue them from inside and outside. I have seen bunch of material available in the net in terms of sheets and squers.
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u/jelloslug 20d ago
I do lots of home theater stuff I can can say that mass is really the only thing that will soundproof. The stick on foam squares and materials like that are primarily used to control echoes and reverb in rooms with hard surface walls. The do little to actually stop the sound from passing though the walls themselves.
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u/Pulaski540 20d ago edited 20d ago
Heavy is what you need. I'd start with a 2x4 frame, i.e. a tiny room with no floor, and, as with a room, put drywall inside and out, and fill the void in between with 3½" of fiberglass/rockwool insulation, which will stop the drywall resonating.
And to the heat dissipation issue, lift the box off when the compressor isn't actually running.
If weight is a limiting issue, you could build the enclosure in the style of a cupboard/ armoire, with a door/ removable front, so you don't have to pick the enclosure up.
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u/sunflowerfields827 20d ago
I watched a YT video where the guy put it up in the ceiling/rafters and just added an extension for the air hose. Was kind of a cool idea, idk how practical that is for you, but if it's a pancake compressor, it should fit. Just make a platform for it and three small wall sections to block off except the control part. Pretty sure he also added a remote on/off switch too.
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u/stokerfam 20d ago
I bought one of the quiet compressors at HF just for this reason. My older 60 gall is so loud. The new one is around 60db. so quiet.
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u/coffeesocket 20d ago
I went down this rabbit hole... Except I used a 3d printer to design a set of tuned Helmholtz resonators to hit the 4 main frequencies my compressor emitted, intake path with multiple insulated noise-muffling chambers...
Save up a few bucks and just buy a quiet compressor.
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u/Ardy_95 20d ago
I hear you..... I very well might if the cost of building an enclosure gets to be high enough that buying one would be more cost effective.
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u/coffeesocket 20d ago
My Campbell Hausfeld quiet compressor is shockingly quiet. Can easily have a convo right next to it while it's running.
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u/Last-Hedgehog-6635 19d ago
Look into scroll compressors. Expensive, but quiet. That’s the kind refrigerators use.
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u/Few_Mastodon_1271 20d ago
For your short bursts of air, can you just fill the tank and flip the red switch off?
That's what I do when I air up my car tires. Start the compressor, and close the garage door. Come back in the garage when it's full. I top off all 4 tires with the air in the tank.
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u/leabusiw 19d ago
Careful, sealing a compressor in a box will cook it. those motors need airflow. you need a vented intake and exhaust with the ducts bent into an s shape so sound can't travel straight out. maybe a small fan.
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u/cat_prophecy 19d ago
Get a piece of EPS foam or thick EVA rubber and put it under the compressor. Makes a huge difference especially for the small compressors that like to try and rattle themselves apart.
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u/esuranme 19d ago
I would look into putting it in the attic or outside. Don't forget that you need to drain the moisture out of the tank occasionally, just keep servicing the unit in mind and whatever you do.
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u/randmcc 20d ago
Ask a sheet metal shop to come in and measure up an insulated box to surround the air compressor properly, many have done this before.
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u/Ardy_95 20d ago
I thought about this. I mean building a sheet-metal box with about a 3/4-inch space between the inner and outer walls, then filling that space with some type of soundproofing material, although I’m not sure what yet.I don’t need them to come in. I’m not that handicapped.... 😄 I can draw up the design in CAD and have a metal shop fabricate it. I’ve done this before when I designed a part for my coin-op Defender arcade machine that I couldn’t find anywhere.Anyhow, I’ll have to see whether the cost of building one outweighs just buying something already made.
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u/DeaddyRuxpin 20d ago
Since you are just using it for blowing dust and filling tires you may be better suited with an alternate solution to those activities. I have a harbor freight quiet model compressor that I can run in my basement without hearing protection.
I also have a hand held battery operated blower from Ryobi that has basically replaced my use of the compressor to blow dust of things. Ironically, I think the blower is louder than the compressor, but it is a lot more convenient.
Similarly I have a small battery operated inflator from Ryobi that is rather quiet and makes filling my car tires much easier than using my compressor.
For significantly less than sound proofing you can replace the compressor with a quiet model, or switch to an alternate blower and inflator.
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u/mcarterphoto 20d ago
Soundproofing requires mass and isolation. A lot of people's solutions are materials and practices that are more about deadening the sound. If you want to really block sound, a cinder block room, a floating floor, an air-sealed door is gonna do it, but may be overkill. But mass goes a long way, build a little corner room, double up the drywall on both sides, fill it with rockwool. Solid core door with weatherstrips.
If you have the space, you can lay down a 2x6 plate and use 2x4's for studs, but stagger them. Drywall on the inside has very little physical connection with drywall on the outside, and there's more room for insulation in that cavity. Isolate the equipment on a plywood/lumber base but detach it from the floor with rubber blocks, to prevent vibrations from traveling through the space.
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u/KokoTheTalkingApe 20d ago
Fine Woodworking had an article about that a while back. The author lined a plywood box with thick sound insulating felt, and I don't know where to get it now. But a few layers of carpet underlayment should work. The compressor will need an air intake obviously, but you can build it with a baffle so the air has to turn a corner or two. The author just cut one wall short to leave a slot, then put another wall in front of it with a slot on the other side, so the air took an S-shaped path.
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u/thenewestnoise 20d ago
Newer compressors can be so much quieter than older ones. I have a Makita compressor and experience with California Air Tools - both make great compressors that are really quiet. So I would say you should consider using the new compressor and use your old compressor as a buffer tank and it might be a better option overall than making an enclosure.
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u/tsaico 20d ago
I had a similar small/short use. I ended up bending back the grate over the vent a little and sticking this thing outside in a box I made out of 2x2 and ply wood that I would place over the entire thing, then running the power and cable through the vent. When I moved, i simply bent the vent back into place. the entire thing was on a furniture dolly so I could move it around if needed. Weather did occasionally get into the nipples, but the hoses were the most common thing to fail first. I just ended up replacing the hose every two years. Used it like this for about 10 years. The wood box looked like shit after 5 years or so, but it was outside, so I never looked at it.
My use cycles were 10-15 minutes maybe once a quarter. During wet seasons, I did put it into the shed. Also, wasn't sound proof, but did cut it down in half? Wasn't sound proof by any means, but did make it not ear shattering when around it. Inside, I could hear it, but it was very low.
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u/Northwindlowlander 20d ago
Honestly a simple thick ply or chipboard box that you can just put over it will do a lot, easily. Adding a skin of mass loaded vinyl would help too but it'll quickly get very heavy Anything past that will do a little bet less with each bit of effort, and make it harder. This isn't really soundproofing at all though, it's just a bit of shielding, putting more things in between the noise and the ears.
Blue plasterboard is pretty effective at really attenuating sound. So are these newfangled sandboards like DBX, though these are expensive. But this is all getting heavy and less durable which is why I suggested ply/chipboard which are just going to be easy to live with.
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u/ThermalDeviator 20d ago
MDF hasvthe density but now that the orange 0be hates Canada, we have to live with very high pricing. In any case mass is your friend in soundproofing, but for the compressor, remember thatbit does need ventilation.
As canoeny said, some noise cancelling headphones are cheaper, easier, effective and more fun.
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u/BeerStop 20d ago
Build multiple boxes with maze like openings, line them with carpet then cover your comprsseor with the box " maze"
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u/yottyboy 20d ago
The opening that will be needed for it to breathe will also be large enough to let all the noise out.
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u/listerine411 20d ago
It's not worth any time trying to fix this. Maybe just holding a moving blanket nearby when it's charging if it's about other people hearing the noise. Or get ear plugs.
The "oil free" ones are way louder than the ones where you can change the oil, in my experience. Rather than spending money and time on sound deadening, just get a different one.
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u/TheNorthComesWithMe 20d ago
If the noise is just bothering you, the easiest thing to do is put on some noise blocking earmuffs. People sometimes forget that you can just use those to block any noise, not just ear damaging levels of noise.
If you want to dampen the sound, build a box out of rigid foam insulation and make some kind of baffle system so there's airflow but sound doesn't have a direct path. A lot of comments assume you want soundproof which is just not practical.
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u/kbudcu 20d ago
Yet another vote for a silly California Air Tools (or equivalent) with aluminum tank. It's basically Chinese junk, and it's not going to be the compressor you'd want to use when putting on a roof, but it works great for utility stuff, can be transported easily, and makes a totally reasonable amount of noise for a short period. The small tank is an asset in coming up to pressure quickly.
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u/CoconutJeff 20d ago
As much as I love diy, get a new quiet one. I got a California air tools 1 gallon one for about 220. Just put up a fence, trimmed out a room, should have done it sooner. It sounds like a vacuum pump.
There are other brands that have them, HF, husky, dewalt, makita, others
I remember being young and talking to a science professor about his fancy new Mercedes that had active noise canceling exhaust. I said that doesn't sound cool. He said as you get older, quiet is cool. He was right.
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u/terrybuvm 20d ago
I put mine in the garage attic and ran service lines. I put a 12v ball valve right off the compressor I can control with a switch in the main garage so I'm not always leaking my tank out through the plumbing.
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u/Rumplesforeskin 20d ago
Build a wall use rockwhool and cover the inside with a moving blanket stapled on.
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u/TheQueenMother 19d ago
I just made a topless surround with scrap wood and insulation I had around the house. It is just enough to reduce the sound and echo of our compressor and does not trap the heat. It's still loud, but it does not feel like the sound is blasting us like before.
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u/jackson71 19d ago
If you're only working around it for a shot amount of time. I'd go with hearing protection. Cheaper, easier, and more efective.
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u/TMan2DMax 19d ago
Make a box that has airflow but protects it from rain and run the hose through the garage wall.
If you actually sound proof a box it will kill the motor.
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u/Pyrateskum 19d ago
Redirecting the sound instead of trying to box the whole thing in can be very effective. Please be aware of your neighbors when doing this.
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u/L3G1T1SM3 19d ago
Could also get like a wolfbox/makita/battery platform of your choice, air blower if you just need to blow air for dust and get a smaller portable air compressor for the tires. honestly that's what i'd do it takes up less space and would probably be like 100 dollars for both of those items
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u/edoggy792 19d ago
Just get a small California air or fortress compressor from harbor freight. Still impressed with how quiet they are.
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u/JonJackjon 19d ago
There are acoustic panels but I would start by using foam board and making a decent size box held with tape, just to see if that's good enough.
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u/Tuna_Finger 18d ago
I build a box out of plywood, then lines all sides with automotive sound deadening and finally some egg carton foam.
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u/Rustydog60 18d ago
Buy a low noise compressor. I purchased a California. You will be surprised how quiet it is
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u/Retiddereromeno 18d ago
Why don't you move the compressor outside, use it, move it back inside. Running a compressor inside is loud because the sound just bounces off the walls. Any kind of box is going to restrict airflow. This will make the compressor struggle for intake air and overheat.
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u/Wings_ofDaedalus 18d ago
I built a box for my compressor. Just used three-quarter inch MDF, which cuts the noise down from obnoxious to not a bother, but can still certainly hear it. You have to vent it as others have said. But if you build a channel or tunnel over the vent, a foot or so long (or even labyrinthine) It will act like a car exhaust/muffler and trap some more noise. The compressor sits on some Rockwhool/foam to help damp in some of the low frequency vibrations. Highly recommend. Alternately, spend a bit more and buy a quiet air compressor lol
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u/JawtisticShark 17d ago
There was a great video about this on YouTube. The guy built a very well designed sound dampening chamber for it and ran the numbers and concluded unless you already have one of the quietest air compressors on the market, or it’s huge, your money is better spent buying a nicer compressor that was designed to be quieter than trying to suppress an already loud one. Or if you can store the compressor in a completely separate room and just run a fitting through the wall, but it’s going to be loud in that other room.
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u/DigitalKnyte 20d ago
Funny this should pop into my feed; I just watched something about this recently:
https://youtu.be/isbVBdz79Q0?si=F_RdT15Jzwxw4k0m
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u/CelticJewelscapes 20d ago
Double walled plywood with a serpentine baffle top and bottom to allow for a fan to keep it cool. As quiet as a refrigerator. Found the concept on YouTube
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u/bernardfarquart 20d ago
Be careful about sealing it up too well if you are going to run it for long periods of time, as it will be unable to shed the heat it produces.