Air compressors

babock wrote:

FIRE UP wrote:


We have a company here in Lake Havasu City called Praxair. They handle any and all types of gas, bottles, hydrotesting, and all that. Any welding supply will have capabilities of filling CO2. I really like it 'cause you don't have to sit there and listen to those darn little 12V compressors labor to top off or fill a tire.

I also modified the valve in the cylinder so the bottle can be used in a horizontal position. It's stored that way in our Jeep. So, when it comes time to air the tires back up from a day on the trails, I just pull out the hose, turn on the valve and, air things up. I go from 10 psi trail pressure to right at 30 psi street pressure in 3 minutes total, for all four tires, DONE! There isn't a 12V compressor that can keep up with that.
Scott

Not sure if automotive/RV tires are the same as bicycles but when I fill up a tire with CO2, it's flat the next morning. My understanding is that a lot of rubber is very permeable to CO2. I don't have first hand knowledge other than bicycles but just putting it out there.

babock,
Well Sir, so far, I've been using that CO2 system for over a year and have filled my Jeep tires from a trail pressure of 10 psi to a street pressure of right at 30 psi and have not encountered any sort of low pressure tires the next morning. My TPMS in the Jeep warns me of low pressure, below 30 psi and, so far, it's only happened one time after I've filled the tires with the C02 system and that was because, I'd managed to loosen one of the valve cores during the process of lowering the pressure or, raising it. But, i'd only lost right at two pounds between the time I'd filled them and about 24 hours later. I retightened the core and, so far, it's been great with no other instances of low pressure after a refill.


Yes, that CO2 does come out cold out of the tank and regulator but, CO2 also expands quite a bit with temp rise so, it sort of equals out. I'm very happy with it so far. It's seriously faster and also seriously quieter than any compressor system on the market. It's only pitfall is it's limited in the amount of times it will fill all four tires on our Jeep, after a days runs on the trails. The tires I run are 315 70 17s which are equal to a 35x12:50 x 17 tire. That's quite a bit of tire to fill, after each trail run.

But, I get between 4 and 5, complete 4-tire fillups before that tank is depleted. For that, I carry a spare tank in the motorhome and just change it out when we get back to camp. So, all in all, I've got between 8 and 10 complete refills or all four tires before I have to get those tanks filled. And as of right now, it's about $16 each to have them filled. Not bad, considering the benefits I think are of value.
Scott