plumbing air tanks

[jlaird]

I'm trying to figure out how to plumb two 8 port 5gal tanks. I've been refering to the two diagrams I posted. They look like they are plumbed differently. Can someone explain the differences to me and explain if there is a right or wrong (or better) way to do it?

[bagged_and_bodydrop]

if your running compressors i wouldnt run a relay just run the compressors but buy one so it does void your warrenty and if u birn one up just tellem you used it. I have had hell with relays with them goin bad, and being some where and draggin it home which isnt fun. For a switch I just ran a hot wire from the batt. to the compressor and put a switch rught under my colum so its hidden. I wired 2 tanks the other day in a 98 chevy what I did it I took the valves and put them where I want them to be 1st which was front under the hood, and the back attached to the c notch, then I wired them to the switches, thats the hardest parts of it all. Then I mounted the tanks and ran my line for my dump I just put a 1/2 inch T for it, then finished it up by wiring the compressors and ran one to each tank and just put a line goin to each tank. I have seen alot of people just using one tank for the front, and one for the back which is even simplier. I would take the tank preasure gauge from the one with your lines coming out of it. Thats the only gauge I have.

[XXL]

Originally Posted by bagged_and_bodydrop

if your running compressors i wouldnt run a relay...

<-- didn't use relay

[MP4/8]

The differences I see are that the first one is only tieing the two tanks together with one line and the second drawing is using 3 lines. I normally use two lines. and on the second drawign they are using to psi switches, where as the first drawing is just using one with a relay for each compressor. also how I do it. And in the third drawing it looks like they are showing a schrader valve at each bag for emergency fill. I just put one in the tank. I expect the valves to keep working. It's the compressor/ relay/ pressure switch that I expect to go bad.

[Slammed67]

if your running compressors i wouldnt run a relay just run the compressors but buy one so it does void your warrenty and if u birn one up just tellem you used it. I have had hell with relays with them goin bad, and being some where and draggin it home which isnt fun.

I'd bet that the relays themselves weren't the problem.


As for your 8-port tank question.......

Just because your tanks have 8 ports, that doesn't mean that you have to use them all. The extra ports are just there to allow for various plumbing configurations. If you are running two compressors, I'd run one to each tank. Then run one line between the tanks to connect them together. I'd then put the pressure switch on one of the ports of one of the tanks (doesn't matter which since they are tied together and therefore will share the same air pressure). If there are ports on the bottom of the tank, I'd put a small drain valve on each tank. You could use a small ball valve or a petcock (like what is used for older car radiator drains or like what you'd see on the bottom of an air compressor that you'd have in your garage). If you have a tank pressure gauge, connect it to one of the remaining ports on either tank (again, doesn't matter which one since they are tied together). As for plumbing the valves, you have many options. You could run an air line from one tank to your front valves and another line from the other tank to the rear valves. Or you could run seperate lines for each valve. Or you could run one line from one tank and branch off of that line to each valve. It all depends on what you want to do. For the "fastest" set up, you'd probably want to run seperate lines to each valve, but I personally think that'd be overkill. I have one line that goes from my tank to a manifold. From there, I have one line going to each valve. I also have my pressure switch mounted to that manifold, so as you can see, there are many ways it can be done. You're goal is to get air from the compressor to the tanks, from the tanks to the valves, and from the valves to the bags. How you get there is up to you. Unless you are planning on hopping the truck and need an ultra-fast system, I'd plumb it using the least amount of air line. Keep it simple. If you have leftover ports, just plug them.

Hope that helped.

Jason

[lofly'a]

i agree with slammed67 that the relays are very necessary and probably not the problem. running a switch direct off the battery for a current draw that high can cause undue stress on the switch (overheating/shorts). anyone use ball valves at the tank outlets in order to service a component without draining the system, or to isolate a severe leak in order to get to a place to fix it.

[jlaird]

Thanks everybody for the replies! I think I've got it.