Hi everyone this is going to be my first thread so bear with me

I had been recently thinking that i would like an on board air setup for my truck for airing up tires, air horns, etc. However i am rather young with not a large supply of funds so i devised what i believe to be a nice and cheap alternative to some of the the more expensive (although nicer) viair systems. Here is what i came up with.


I started with a 3 gallon air compressor from harbor freight. I chose this compressor because it already comes with many of the fittings i would need.


I then stripped all of the unnecessary components off until i was left with the gauge, air regulator, quick connect fitting, pressure sensor, and drain. I plugged the old drain and moved it to the top of the tank and then reorganized the rest of the fittings to my liking.


Because of the ease of installation i decided to just bolt it to the bottom side of the bed using the pre-existing feet on the air tank.


With the air tank completed i started on the compressor. I decided to use a 12 volt air compressor from harbor freight. I realize that harbor freight is not the best quality but i was trying to keep costs down as much as possible.


I stripped the unnecessary pieces of plastic off of the compressor and bolted it to the frame of my truck using the plate that came with the compressor and pre-exsiting holes in the frame. I also added a splash guard to keep the compressor somewhat protected. I am in Arizona so I do not have to worry about too much water. I ran 1/4 inch copper line from the compressor to the tank.


I ran the wire for everything on the inside of the frame rail up to a relay under the hood and then to a toggle switch on my dash.


And to finish off my install i hooked up a homemade pvc air horn. it is not very loud but i built it my self and i am working on making it a little louder as a fun side project. I hooked up the horn with 1/4 inch poly line to the quick connect fitting on the air tank so if i need the tank to fill up tires i can just quickly disconnect it. To activate the horn i have a 12 volt solenoid which i routed to a button on my dash.


Overall i am very happy with the outcome of my system, everything works nicely and i did everything myself which gives me that warm fuzzy feeling

I hope you guys enjoyed and feel free to ask questions if you want

 

Also this is the truck it went on. It is a 1999 f250 v10 4x4 with 180000 miles.

 

I have a few of those tanks as well as the pump you used....so it was interesting to see someone take this to the finish line.

any reason why you just didnt use the pump that came with the tank....move the switch...etc?

 

I thought that i would need a 12 volt compressor since the other compressor that came with the tank was designed to plug into a household 120 volt system. As regard to the switch i did not particularly like the one that came with the compressor and i had the other switch lying around witch i liked better.

 

I like it but have a suggestion if you have an issue and future readers. I've have several 12V compressors from harbor freight and am much happier with these 12V 100 PSI High Volume Air Compressor then the one you picked up. I realize they are smaller and spec out at less performance but the one I have like yours and that one side by side are on par performance wise when I tested them and the smaller one is half the price(or less) and more compact, so get two or four.

 

Thanks BruteFord, i contemplated using the 100psi one you suggested but i thought the 150psi one that i got would be a bit better, but now i know which one to get next time if anything ever happens to the one i have now

 

What would it take to run the gauges into the cab? I would be afraid they would get damaged being exposed under the truck like that.

 

It would not take much just a 1/4 inch air line running from the tank to a gauge in the cab. The tank is pretty well tucked underneath though so i hope i do not have any problems.

 

You made your own air horn completely from scratch (well, PVC)?

And you had the foresight to install it under the truck, not in your bed?

That deserves some reps right there.

 

I would be concerned with the duty cycle of the air compressor. I dont know what it is rated at, but Harbor Freight being what it is, I would guess it would burn out pretty quick airing up tires. That air horn should be no problem though.

-1 point for hob job
+10 points for initiative

I like the DIY attitude haha

 

Thanks for all of the responses and comments guys! I'm always open to suggestions

 

show us how you built the air horn, i love that idea! great work.

 

+100 for your thrift and innovation, and not capitulating to ViAir marketing.

However, how do you drain your tank, and how often?

Water will collect in there and corrode the thin Chinese pot metal steel of that non asme code welded pressure vessel, and you've got a bomb on your hands.

I understand the sound of even a small tank suddenly turning itself inside out will make that big air horn of yours seem about as loud grass growing by comparison.



















I think you get the idea.

I had a harbor freight compressor. I drained it regularly. It started leaking air. I tightened all the fittings. It still leaked air, and more of it.

I soaped it down, and found bubbles blowing out of a tank weld.

I took it out of service immediately and bought an Ingersoll Rand with a USA made Manchester tank.

Of course, that defeats your whole goal of getting something done within budgetary constraints...

When dealing with pressure vessels, the cost of one letting go is far more memorable than any money saved by not minding the physics of condensation, corrosion, tank shell thickness, and weld penetration.

So what is your draining procedure?

And what is that black solenoid... a remote pressure switch? How did you set the the on/off pressure thresholds? Was it pre set in the switch?

 

Thanks!
I based my horn off of this guys thread over in a jeep forum
http://www.jeepforum.com/forum/f8/pv...build-1328178/
There are a few videos on youtube of pvc air horns. There is one gentlemen in particular who goes buy the name dozerboymiller who actually sells plans for building them on ebay. He has a few videos comparing them to real nathan train horns and they actually sound pretty comparable! I don't know how exactly he builds them and makes them sound so good because i didn't buy his plans, but mine is no where near as loud. The stock horn on my truck is actually louder haha. But i still enjoyed building it and look forward to tinkering with and hopefully improving it

 

I moved the original drain on the tank to the tee that the gauges are hooked up to. So it is now at the lowest possible point to drain built up moisture. I plan to drain it twice a week and if i plan to let it sit for more than 2 days.



Yes that is the pressure switch that came with the tank it is pre set and not adjustable. It turns on at 85psi and shuts off at 100psi