How are you using your Air Compressor for Detailing

[chefwong]

I never got into the Tornador thing and am pretty simple when it comes to air.
I'll use my Prevost detail nozzle just to blow out all the cracks, cupholders, window sweeps, etc before doing the vac.

In my -mind-, I rather vacumn (suck) than blow debris.
Similar to carpets, I don't do the Drill Brush, etc....

I'm I'm doing carpets, it's vac. tic treat and I'm using the extractor on them.

Be curious to see what the replies are and someone may shed some light on me not using the compressor to my advantage...

[luckydawg]

I only use it "detailing wise to blow out cracks, under hood, vents etc.. things like that. I never blow my pads out with air

[DanaDetailingPros]

Speeds things up for jams. I us them in the instrument panel and vents 100% and the stitching on seats where all the sand and crap are when you separate/spread and its loaded! Also good for seat tracks. Do all this first before vac. I never use it on carpet. Way more problems than benefit. It can even cause permanent lines. As far as cleaning pads 100% it literally cleans them back to new minus moisture. But no residue whatsoever left. On foam that is. I should add I love my Tornador Max! Works great on interior that is in fair shape. And the Velocity Vac attachment has really been the true game changer for carpet and upholstery since I haven't made the jump to an extractor quite yet. I bought a Vapor Chief first since it does more. I want the Rolair 2-HP 3-Gallon since it runs on 12 Amps. Quiet and 4.5 CFM. Will run the Tornador fine. I use a Porter Cable Pancake 2.6 CFM now it works OK but runs consonantly and you need to sometimes wait if you get ahead of it.

[DFB]

I arrived late to compressed air when it came to detailing. I had a good compressor sitting in the corner of the garage that I only used to pump up tires with. When I started to do more customer cars, I discovered how useful it can be, especially in terms of saving time.

Late last year, I decided to invest some money into my setup to make it more convenient to use, the big addition was a wall mounted air reel with a soft, pliable rubber hose.






I have this plumbed back to my compressor with an inline moisture filter. On the outlet of the hose, I added a Prevost double-action connector, which also required fitting new Euro high flow fittings to all my tools.






So, where am I using compressed air?

The main usage for me is for engine bay detailing. My water-less method for cleaning an engine bay involves using APC or ONR to emulsify the dirt, agitating with a brush if required, then using compressed air to drive the cleaner and dirt out of confined places like intake tubes, air filter covers, hoses ect. Holding a towel close to the outlet of the gun helps prevent splatter. In this case, I will mostly use the Tornador but a regular gun can offer more control.






I then use the compressed air to distribute a dressing into all those tricky areas too. Again, I use either the Tornador or a regular gun.






The Tornador is a super useful tool for cleaning carpet mats, the extra grunt over a regular gun certainly helps speed up the process. This can also help on really stubborn cheap carpets, often with the vacuum in the opposite hand to suck up the debris as you dislodge it from the carpet.






Also on the interior, having the gun in one hand and a towel in the other, this can help drive out cleaning liquids from around panel gaps and switches which is then caught by the towel.




The Tornador also comes in handy for blowing out pads.




And my lates addition is something that's probably unnecessary but super cool, a Rupes LHR75 pneumatic, which will be getting some use within the next week.



Having the hose reel means I can easily reach for compressed air when needed, rather than dragging out and untangling the hose before use, followed by the frustration of coiling it back up again.

[Honda Fan]

I have a very small compressor that is only used on the exterior after my leaf blower. Once the car looks good I walk around the car and hit all the gaps while wiping them down as the present themselves. It is fantastic for getting that last bit of moisture out of all the cracks and crevices. There's nothing worse than spending half a day cleaning your car and then taking it to the store and seeing all these little drips all over the place. I never us it on the interior.

[Eldorado2k]

As far as cleaning pads 100% it literally cleans them back to new minus moisture. But no residue whatsoever left. On foam that is.

It works great on foam pads, and even better on microfiber pads. When Meguiars 1st released their microfiber pad system, they recommended cleaning those pads with compressed air if possible.

It helps having a 5 gallon bucket dedicated to catching the debris that blows out of pads when cleaning.

[Wknd Dtlr]

As far as cleaning pads 100% it literally cleans them back to new minus moisture. But no residue whatsoever left. On foam that is.

Just so I understand, are you saying you can clean your foam pads w/o any water, apc or cleaning solution? just compressed air and it completely cleans them?

[Paul A.]

I'll let Dana throw in but i do what he does however not for final cleaning of pads. I use my compressed air after every section while I'm working the entire vehicle.

I find it removes spent polish and paint very well and extends my use of that pad onto the next section.

Final cleaning of pads when i'm done using them is with soap and water.