55.2-59 air ride compressor question

[slammed57]

Iam looking for locations to mount my compressors . I am thinking about running the under the truck on the out side rails.... my concerns will be while driving in the rain at times the compressors filters getting saturated with water and causing issues with the compressors or pulling moisture into the tank.... for those of you that have compressors under the truck do you have any issues with doing so or any other advise i would really appreciated it

[Black_Sheep]

My philosophy stems from 40 years of working on air brake systems of semi trucks and trailers, air tanks should have a drain and they should be drained regularly. Moisture from the air will condense and accumulate in an air tank causing corrosion. There are some inexpensive truck air system parts that can be adapted to make it more convenient to manually drain the tank or some higher priced options that will do it automatically.

[youngrodder]

I have (2) compressors and (2) tanks mounted under my raised bed floor. I have been running this set up for 6 + years without issue.

Marc

[slammed57]

Originally Posted by youngrodder

I have (2) compressors and (2) tanks mounted under my raised bed floor. I have been running this set up for 6 + years without issue.

Marc

Thanks marc, I looked at your build page and saw how you mounted yours just behind the cab. I may go that route or towards the rear next to the gas tank, either way i go I will have to mount the compressors on the outside rails for i have no choice but to put it on the outside rails. If i mount in the rear, my bed floor will be 6" higher from stock so I may put the compressors just above the gas tank as well for 3rd option if i had to. But its good to know you have had no issues, it gives me more assurance before i start commit and start welding or drilling screw holes. but thank you BOTH of you for your advise . you guys always chime in when I need help and cant thank you enough for your help

[slammed57]

Originally Posted by Black_Sheep

My philosophy stems from 40 years of working on air brake systems of semi trucks and trailers, air tanks should have a drain and they should be drained regularly. Moisture from the air will condense and accumulate in an air tank causing corrosion. There are some inexpensive truck air system parts that can be adapted to make it more convenient to manually drain the tank or some higher priced options that will do it automatically.

thanks mark , I knew that there are different types of drains attachment you can add on the tank to drain it . I was just curious of the filters on the compressor getting saturated while driving in the rain and if I need to relocate the filters with an extension of some sort (even if it exist). I know air ride manifolds are sensitive to water and was tryin to find ways to prevent any issues. even with the driers added on some water still gets past it

[joedoh]

I have mounted them under the beds for years, no problems. even the old thomas compressors that didnt have an intake filter.

Originally Posted by Black_Sheep

My philosophy stems from 40 years of working on air brake systems of semi trucks and trailers, air tanks should have a drain and they should be drained regularly. Moisture from the air will condense and accumulate in an air tank causing corrosion. There are some inexpensive truck air system parts that can be adapted to make it more convenient to manually drain the tank or some higher priced options that will do it automatically.

this is right. the proper place to install driers/water separators is between the tanks and the valves. I see a lot of guys use them between the compressors and the tanks and that is the wrong spot, the compressed air expands in the tank volume and the water in the air (humidity) condenses.


I bought a bagged truck once and the guy said the compressors were shutting off, I asked if he ever drained the tanks. he said he drained the water sperators all the time, they were installed between the compressor and tank. I took the tank fittings off and there was, no kidding, about a gallon of water in the tanks. it was backing up the leader hoses and messing with the check valves. the compressors worked perfectly and I bought the truck.

[slammed57]

thanks joedoh I appreciate it

[gigamanx]

Following...

I've been trying to see if I can mount my compressor in that spacer right behind the cab that fills the space between the floor boards and the bed. I have the same concern of getting water in there. Maybe just build a splash guard in front of the compressor?



The plan is to have the air tank behind the seat in the cab.

[gigamanx]

Pretty happy with the fitment. Slides right in there and if I bolt it to a mount, it should be right on the scrub line under the fender so I can lay it out on the running boards

[slammed57]

perfect spot for it

[dsraven]

if you are worried about getting splash spray into the compressor intake filter just remote mount the filter or box the filter in and run the box with a inlet tube to a clean air location.
run some sort of auto drain on the tank and a seperator (with a drain) inline before the valve manifold, especially in high humidity areas. some of those compressor filters simply have pipe threads on them so it wouldbe fairly easy to plumb something in. use larger pipe than the original if going for a longer run so as not to restrict the flow rate.
the compressor gets hot when running and the air temp rises as the air is compressed, thats perfect conditions for the air to hold moisture. when it cools off down the line it can't hold the moisture anymore and it drops out. same as the weather, warm air holds moisture and when it cools off the system rains because it can't hold the water anymore. it's why commercial air compressors use a refrigerated dryer to get dry air, cool the air and the moisture drops out.
that looks like the factory left the spot open just for the air compressor, lol.