20 gallons with 2 compressors - a solution?

[n2ocharged]

@danh

The amount of space and noise level of the XD3000 is pretty much the same as 2 400c’s. The cost of filling a nitrogen bottle over time would be about the same as paying for an XD3000 on a credit card. The compressor draws about the same current as your starter. It may run 10 to 20 seconds to top off a tank. Some customers haven’t needed to upgrade their electrical systems and some have. Most of those that did just had to get a good deep cycle battery.

You are obviously a smart person, as are most of you on this forum, but there seems to be this mental block about Oasis compressors.

Dan, please don’t take this as an attack at you or Oasis MFG, you make a wonderful product and I look forward to doing some business with you in the future. I don’t think it is a mental block about this compressor, I believe what everyone here is concerned with is the cost of this compressor. versus the cost of 2 smaller viair compressors that will do the exact same job, just do it a lot slower. For those of us that want the best, we buy the best… I want the best, just can’t afford it… I am an Active Duty man with a wife, 4 kids, and a single income, my family comes first. I have to make sure my obligations have been met before I can even consider a new expensive compressor, hell I ride my motorcycle when it is 35 degrees out just to save gas in my truck. That being said I can’t just throw one of these compressors on my credit card. I would absolutely love to have one, but I can’t justify it right now. When my motorcycle and truck are paid for and I am not making $800+ a month for the 2 payments plus $300 a month for the insurance for all of our vehicles, then i will consider purchasing one… along with a bigger air tank. Until that happens however, my priorities are set in stone.

I’m sure if these things were $600 - $800 just about everyone here would have one, I would probably have 2 of them… I can’t have anyone filling a tank faster than me (j/j)… everyone that has the capabilities with their electrical system that is…

I’ve thought about doing a payment plan with HB, but even if I could send out $100/month for this thing it would take me (estimating) $1450ish… about 14 - 15 months… maybe… that doesn’t include Christmas time where you don’t have any extra money to spend on yourself because you have kids, Birthdays, holiday vacation, ect… Not to mention the economy right now… layoffs, stuff like that. I don’t have that problem thankfully but I’m sure there are probably some that have to worry if they will be canned next…

I’m sure my electrical system would handle this massive piece of sexyness… just not right now. I know this was more than everyone here needed to know, I’m just trying to paint a picture for you to see.

[wileecoyote]

@danh

The amount of space and noise level of the XD3000 is pretty much the same as 2 400c’s. The cost of filling a nitrogen bottle over time would be about the same as paying for an XD3000 on a credit card. The compressor draws about the same current as your starter. It may run 10 to 20 seconds to top off a tank. Some customers haven’t needed to upgrade their electrical systems and some have. Most of those that did just had to get a good deep cycle battery.

You are obviously a smart person, as are most of you on this forum, but there seems to be this mental block about Oasis compressors.

Interesting tidbit on the space and noise level being the same. I would never expect the noise of a massive 180-amp unit to be the same as two 30-amp units but I will take your word for it since you must have used both at one time or another.

Obviously the cost of filling nitrogen tanks would add up over time, and eventually it would add up to cost the same or more than any item you care to name if you just count long enough. But I would imagine that $1,500 worth of nitrogen tank refills would last me a very long time, probably at least 4 years, and I wouldn’t have to pay upfront or pay any interest on those. And the convenience of having a silent setup with no down time would be awesome. Depending on the life span of the compressor the gas bottles might even last longer.

As for the amp draw - I have one of the biggest most powerful trucks on the market. I paid extra for an upgrade package which includes a bigger battery and alternator. It works great but I can still notice the impact of the Viair units running on only 60-amps so there is no way I would hook up a 180-amp unit without at least a second battery and upgraded alternator. And that is just not worth the time or hassle to me, and it would add to the cost of the install, plus I prefer to keep my vehicles stock with only mods that are easily hidden or removed.

I appreciate most of your comments but “mental block” on the Oasis? Hardly. You are selling a $1,500 solution in a thread where I asked about a $50-$100 modification to my air system which uses $250 worth of compressors. I stated upfront that I did not want to upgrade the compressors but you interjected with a plug for your product anyway. Some people would surely benefit from an XD-3000 or even some larger, better solutions but many people on this forum wouldn’t even think about spending $1,500 to power horns that cost them $100-$300. And it isn’t always about what is affordable. I can afford to spend quite a bit without using credit of any kind but this doesn’t mean I should always buy the most expensive items. Personally I would view it as wasteful to invest more than a few hundred dollars in this hobby when there are so many other more valuable things that I would prefer to spend my money on: 401K, family, church, charities, collections which I can pass down or resell many years later, etc.

I am sure there is a niche market for very expensive DC compressors but there are probably only a small number of those people on this forum. Perhaps you should use other forums which cater to the other crowd instead of griping about the lack of enthusiasm for your product here.

[08FX4SuperDuty]

I can see the point of selling the Oasis compressors. I definitely think that they serve a purpose. I just don’t see that purpose being air horns. While I would love to have one, I can’t justify the expense just to fill a tank for horns that I have already spent about $1000 too much for. I probably have $1500 into my horns, compressors, tank, and accessories. The cost of an Oasis would double that. The ability to run pneumatic tools, on the other hand, would add value to my air system, thereby deferring some of the cost of the air horn by giving me another use for it.

@wileecoyote

I have one of the biggest most powerful trucks on the market.

I am sure that most Powerstroke, Cummins, and Duramax owners would disagree with you, not to mention the new Dodge Ram 5.7 Hemi that produces 390 horsepower and 407 lb-ft of torque and the new Ford F150 6.2L that produces 400 horsepower and 400 lb-ft of torque.

[wileecoyote]

@08FX4SuperDuty

I am sure that most Powerstroke, Cummins, and Duramax owners would disagree with you, not to mention the new Dodge Ram 5.7 Hemi that produces 390 horsepower and 407 lb-ft of torque and the new Ford F150 6.2L that produces 400 horsepower and 400 lb-ft of torque.

First I must say that I am NOT a “big bad truck guy”. Some people like big trucks, lifted suspensions, monster tires, etc. and there is nothing wrong with that, but I just got my truck to haul and tow stuff occasionally with most use being passenger driving on the highway. So I am not a gear head with a masters degree in monster trucks. With that said, I do stand by my statement. The 2007 and newer Toyota Tundras are some of the largest, most powerful trucks in their class. I have the largest, most expensive Tundra available with 5.7L V8 4x4 with 381 HP and the largest towing capacity in it’s class.

I didn’t see the need to state the obvious - that there are certainly larger, more powerful trucks in different classes including diesels, duallies, tractor trailers, competition rigs, etc. Heck, if you want to be literal about it then we might as well include military hummers, cranes, tanks, and let’s not forget the truck that carries the space shuttle to the launch pad. :eek:

My main point was that my truck has a larger battery and alternator than most other trucks in it’s class and I am not willing to spend hundreds of dollars and modify the truck to upgrade to larger or multiple batteries and a new alternator. I might consider that if I was driving a small truck or car with a whimpy battery but what I have now should be plenty to support my horn hobby.

[danh]

You all raise very good points which confirms what I said about you guys being smart.

The thread may have started about Viair compressors but the title of thread raises the old question about their warranty issue. That’s like saying “Hey Dan bring up Oasis again”…lol

[LanceM]

12 & 24-volt compressor use for the automotive aftermarket (air suspension/off-road/air horn/etc. is a niche industry. When there are less expensive but high quality options available, you’re always going to have a hard sell to get others to commit to a much more expensive unit that draws high amperage, and still requires occasional service.

FYI - All VIAIR compressors carry a One Year Manufacturer Defect Warranty. Complete details can be found here: http://viaircorp.com/warranty

[wildhorn]

@wileecoyote

I have read all about the various compressor models, ratings, manufacturer guidelines, and warranty limits. For my dual Viair 400C units this means I need to limit my tank to no more than 10 gallons (5 gallons per compressor unit). The trouble is that I want to go up to a 20-gallon tank without buying new compressors. At first glance it looks impossible without voiding the warranty but I just thought of a fairly simple solution and I am wondering if anyone has done it.

The answer is a simple controller circuit with an additional solenoid valve to do the following: Basically I connect one 10-gallon tank to my current setup and let the dual Viair compressors fill it to 150 psi like they do normally. This only takes about 2.5 minutes total run time, so then I need the compressors to shut off for 5 minutes rest per the 33% duty cycle. Then the controller circuit can switch the solenoid valve to the second tank and turn the compressors back on and fill the second 10-gallon tank to 150 psi. So the compressors never fill more than their rated capacity at any one time and they always get the required rest between uses, but I end up with 20 gallons of air at 150 psi.

The only drawback is that if I drain all 20 gallons at once then it will take 10 minutes before they are both full again, however this would be rare and I would have one of the tanks full in just 2.5 minutes like always so no real functionality lost. Of course I need to buy another tank, solenoid valve, and build the controller circuit but I can do that easy enough and it will be much cheaper than buying new compressors.

Thoughts?

I think your math on the fill times is a little off.
You have to add your rest period. lol. You said it would have to rest after the first tank, so then it would actually take you 15 minutes to fill both. But the good side is, you dont use all 20 gallons. I mean you would have to blow for at least half a minute to use it all. So I dont think your compressors will work THAT hard. I run 200psi and my compressors only run for 1 minute mostly, doing the 165-200 refill I never run it down to zero.

Although, I dont know how you figure a solenoid valve would switch tanks for you. Could you explain?

@Farmer69

Or you could just run them the way you want, and replace them when they wear out. Wanna play you gotta pay. I run 2 8.5 gallon tanks, 2 480’s. I run them hard all the time. When they puke I will just buy new ones. Stuff wears out, I dont expect them to replace it. They build quality compressors, I highly doubt you will be able to kill them anytime soon.

Wanna be safe mount fans on top of the compressors.

I would just use 3 comp. for this case. Be sure your electrical system can handle it though.

You need to remember how often are you gonna drain the tank right down. If its a habitual thing you need to really consider another compressor.

Three compressors is more efficient. I run two with a 5 gal. Sounds silly but I always have air.

@n2ocharged

Why not run 2 lines to the 2nd tank, one line with a check valve, and the other line with an electric valve? This way when you run the horns off of the main tank it will pull what it needs from the second tank, but when you are filling the tanks, it will only fill the 1st tank, then you open the valve and now you have both tanks full… you would have to do it in increments because you will have to “Level” out the 2 tanks…Just make sure you get it before the pressure switch kicks in…

This actually sounds like a great idea.

@wileecoyote

First I must say that I am NOT a “big bad truck guy”. Some people like big trucks, lifted suspensions, monster tires, etc. and there is nothing wrong with that, but I just got my truck to haul and tow stuff occasionally with most use being passenger driving on the highway. So I am not a gear head with a masters degree in monster trucks. With that said, I do stand by my statement. The 2007 and newer Toyota Tundras are some of the largest, most powerful trucks in their class. I have the largest, most expensive Tundra available with 5.7L V8 4x4 with 381 HP and the largest towing capacity in it’s class.

I didn’t see the need to state the obvious - that there are certainly larger, more powerful trucks in different classes including diesels, duallies, tractor trailers, competition rigs, etc. Heck, if you want to be literal about it then we might as well include military hummers, cranes, tanks, and let’s not forget the truck that carries the space shuttle to the launch pad. :eek:

My main point was that my truck has a larger battery and alternator than most other trucks in it’s class and I am not willing to spend hundreds of dollars and modify the truck to upgrade to larger or multiple batteries and a new alternator. I might consider that if I was driving a small truck or car with a whimpy battery but what I have now should be plenty to support my horn hobby.

Haha. I feel you.