I'm new to this forum so I hope I am posting this to the right place. I have a Porter Cable 6 gallon air compressor for the usual small air tools. I had it for about 3 years now. It developed a leak. I could hear air coming from under the plastic housing, so I took the housing off and found the leak coming from the compressor head. There is a depression cast into the head about 1 inch deep. At the bottom of that depression there is a metal bottom about 3/16 diameter. In that metal bottom, I found a small pinhole. I could cover the hole with the tip of a fine pencil lead (.5mm) and the leak stopped, so I'm sure I found the source of the leak.

What is that hole and metal bottom for? I assume it is the air intake for the compressor, or maybe it is a relief valve of some sort. Do I need to take this thing into a "certified repair center" or can I fix it myself? The head assembly doesn't look all that complicated to work on, but I don't know what will happen when I start removing screws...I hate when I hear "boing" and have to spend the rest of the day looking for springs and other parts. The compressor still works, for now, but I don't think it will fix itself and will only get worse over time. Eventually it won't hold air at all.

Any help from out there would be appreciated.