How Much Do You Know About Air Compressors?

 

Whether you're on a construction site or in a manufacturing plant, chances are you use an air compressor to power devices - from nail guns to paint sprayers to sandblasters. But are you up to date on using air compressors, calculating airflow, managing air quality and condensate, sizing safety valves, and starting up and shutting down compressors? 

Test Your Air Compressor Knowledge

Take our pop quiz to test your knowledge on air compressor use, sizing, and safety.

TAKE THE QUIZ NOW

Question 1

Air compressors typically compress how many cubic feet (CF) of ambient air to produce 1 CF of compressed air?

1
8
4
16

Question 2

To determine approximate cubic feet per minute (CFM) of airflow for an electric compressor, multiply the horsepower by what number?

2
6
4
12

Question 3

When sizing an air compressor, you should add the CFM (found on the serial tag) for each of the tools you plan to use and multiply the total by what safety factor?

1.5
1
2
No safety factor is needed.

Question 4

To use compressors together, which of the following should be true:

The pounds per square inch (PSI) must be the same on all compressors.
Each compressor must have a check valve.
Compressors should never be used together.
Both of the above.

Question 5

The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) quality classes for compressed air are based on the following:

Solids concentration
Moisture dew point
Oil in liquid and gas forms
All of the above

Question 6

When does OSHA not require a safety check valve (also known as an OSHA valve or air fuse) for an air compressor?

When hose lengths are less than 6 feet.
When the device uses less than 20 CFM of airflow.
When a single device uses 100% of the airflow.
None of these answers.

Question 7

The calculation for the size of whip check or choker you should use on hose connections includes the following:

Hose diameter, working pressure, conversion factor
Hose length, working pressure, safety factor
Hose diameter, working pressure, safety factor
Hose length, working pressure, conversion factor 

Question 8

At startup, how can you prevent oil from being sucked out of the oil separator and sent downstream?

Bring the compressor up to design pressure quickly.
Start with the ball valve closed and pressurize the system slowly.
Start with the ball valve open.
Test all connections to ensure nothing is leaking.