Knowing how to use an air compressor and nail gun opens up a lot of possibilities for you around the house, as a do-it-yourself enthusiast. You can install or replace your moldings and wainscoting or even frame up something way faster.
Having an air powered nail gun will also greatly speed up just about any woodworking project you do that involves nails – anything from building picture frames to entire cabinet systems will benefit from having this type of setup around.
An air nail gun does a near a perfect job of driving nails even into hard-to-reach areas like the back of cabinets and up in the corners of your ceiling. They also allow you to safely drive nails and fasteners that would be impossible to install with a hammer, such as staples or the some of the smaller sized finishing nails.
But the combo of air compressor and nail gun really shows its true colors on the job site. As a portable solution for framers, floor installers and roofing specialists, the air powered nail gun is still one of the most efficient, affordable, and indispensable tools to have in their collection.
Another great thing about using air powered nail guns is that you don’t even need a powerful air compressor to run them. Even a portable pancake compressor, with their smaller capacity tanks that will struggle to power something like a paint sprayer, but will be able to keep up even with a framing nailer, as long as it packs enough PSI (pounds per square inch) of pressure to do the job, which they usually do.
1. Choose the Right Air Nail Gun For Your Project.
First, you have to get the right air powered nail gun for your project. The size of your nail gun will determine what types of nails that you can drive with your tool and that in turn will dictate what type of jobs you can do with your nail gun and air compressor setup.
The good thing about picking up a nail gun for home use is that they are affordable and durable tools, and you can find that you can save quite a bit on your tool budget by choosing to go with an air compressor and nail gun combo compared to, say, picking up a battery powered nail gun.
For most nailing task, you can hardly go wrong with the versatility you get from a finish nail gun. Finish nailers are flexible tools that can do a lot around the house, from installing crown molding, baseboards and chair rails to handling heavy duty jobs including cabinet assembly, hardwood flooring, and millwork.
They can drive 15 or 16 gauge nails, which are sturdy and long enough to hold together pieces that need to bear some weight, like shelves and cabinets. At the same time, the nails are still small enough that you can easily conceal them with a bit of putty as you are doing the final finish on your project.
Brad nail guns are just about the only way you can drive the smaller 18-gauge brad nails – those will break most of the time if you ever attempt to use a hammer to drive them in. They are useful for projects where splitting is a concern, like installing smaller trim or building a slim picture frame.
Framing nail guns, on the other hand, are your go-to tools for your larger projects. They are useful not just for quickly putting together lumber framing, but also for installing roof sheathing and subflooring.
If you go for the larger gauge nails, you can use them to quickly put together things like decks and fencing, as well. They are also useful for working near and around plaster, where there is a risk that your hand hammer can crack nearby plaster pieces.
2. Find the Right Size Air Compressor for Your Nail Gun
Now that you have a general idea of which air nail guns you might want to get for your projects, it’s time to consider the right size of air compressor to power them.
Nail guns, as a general rule, don’t need a lot in the way of air volume or CFM (cubic feet per minute), and even smaller portable air compressors can get by with their smaller tanks as long as it’s just one nail gun. That’s why most people can afford to pick the smaller, lighter, portable air compressors that they can easily take anywhere.
A portable air compressor that can do 2 CFM while being powered by a modest 1 HP motor is already capable of running even the largest finish nailer at a clip of around 15 nail drives per minute, which will suffice for nail gun users who are just starting out.
If you will be using your nail gun regularly, though, it will be worth it to invest in an air compressor with a motor rated for at least 2 hp, which can keep up with your nailing speed as you gain experience. Nail gun-using pros who can operate their tools at a much faster rate will choose a more powerful air compressor, of course.
For running a finish nailer and smaller, 2 CFM compressor with a 1 to 8 gallon tank will be a decent choice, and these portable compressor units are still easy to carry at 30 pounds or so. For running a framing or roofing nailer, you may be better served by a unit that can put out 4 CFM, with larger storage tanks to match – expect these units to weigh around 50 pounds.
Different manufacturers will require different PSI ratings (90 psi, on average) for their nail gun, but you can expect most DIY models to require under 120 PSI. As always, it’s best to refer to your nail gun user’s manual to confirm that your air compressor matches your tool.
3. Prepare Your Air Compressor
If you just bought your compressor (brand new), then you will need to do some prep work in order to have it ready for use with your nail guns.
To ensure a tight, secure fit for your air hose that will not leak or come loose, it’s a good idea to wrap some Teflon tape around the air outlet threads before you attach your couplers. The Teflon tape will add extra grip to the air outlet while also ensuring a more airtight fit.
Most air hoses nowadays will come ready to go out of the package with the fittings already attached but some may not.
If you need to attach the fittings to your air hoses, then take your air hose and attach two couplers at each end. You will need two female couplers for this – on one end, screw in place the universal coupler.
To completely screw the two couplers together, you may tighten them using two wrenches. On the other end of the hose, screw in an NPT female plug. This end will go into your air compressor.
4. Turn on Your Air Compressor
Connect your air compressor to an outlet and turn it on. Let the air compressor build up air pressure in its storage tank, and check that the outlet pressure gauge is at 0 PSI.
Attach the NPT female plug to the air compressor coupler. At the other end, attach the universal coupler to your nail gun. Once you have a secure fit for both ends of your air hose, you can now turn the pressure regulator knob on your air compressor to start sending air to the outlet.
Turn the regulator knob until the outlet pressure gauge reaches the recommended PSI for your nail gun. It’s always a good idea to check with your user’s manual if you are still unfamiliar with the proper PSI settings for your tool.
5. Operate Your Nail Gun
Before reaching for your nail gun, make sure you put on some personal protection. Eye protection is a must not just for nail guns, but also for any power tools you operate. Always remember to keep the nose of the tool pointed away from you or any person or animal nearby.
Follow your tool manufacturer’s instructions on how to feed a strip of nails into your nail gun magazine. Nails should be placed with the points oriented downwards, and at the right angle – loading your nails at the wrong angle can cause your nail gun to misfire, drive nails partway, or even jam up.
For many nail gun models, you can increase or decrease the outlet pressure to control how deep the nail gun drives the nails. You can use a higher PSI to countersink your nails or use the minimum PSI required for your nail gun and nails to get a flush finish.
6. Properly Depressurize Your Air Compressor After Use
Once you are finished using your nail gun, power off your air compressor. It’s always a good idea to release any remaining pressurized air in the tank – leaving the tank pressurized can cause moisture to build up, which can make its way into your air tools and lead to rust.
To empty your air compressor, open the drain valve until the storage tanks are fully depressurized. Store your air compressor and nail gun in a safe location.
