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Onboard air compressor vs. CO2 tanks?


Salarios

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Hi everyone, so as all the off-roaders know, an air compressor is an essential tool when going off-roading since you have to deflate and inflate for each session. I have three questions: 

1. Has anyone used the on-board ARB system? What are your thoughts? Since it's mounted in the engine bay and pre-wired to the battery, it seems convenient. Also they are apparently much quicker than the conventional compressors found at ACE and Dragon Mart. But I'm reading a lot of negative reviews about it breaking down after 8-10 months of use. 

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2. Has anyone installed and pre-wired the conventional air compressors like this one? It doesn't seem like a difficult task, and would make the process more convenient and less time consuming. They are much cheaper than the ARB system, and the time difference to full inflation is minimal. 

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3. Anyone have any experience with CO2 air tanks? The disadvantage is that they need to be refilled; but the advantage is that apparently they are much less prone to failure (since they have less moving parts), and also they are much quicker than air compressors. 

 

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Any thoughts? 

Thank you! 

 

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@Javier M @Xaf @Shamil you guys all have the compressors built in or am I wrong ?

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"Go as far as you can see; once you get there, you'll be able to see further."

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I have the ARB twin compressor. It should not be mounted in the engine bay area or else it will not last long. It should be mounted inside the car. I've been using it for over a year now and it's working as expected, they are really fast and the guys here can testify I always finish inflating first than everyone else. 

The only thing quicker than the ARB is the CO2 tanks but you need to choose wisely because the valves like the smity built will eventually give up. The other issue is that you need to refill it every time and that comes with a cost. 

The other compressors are okay but is a gamble you don't know how long they will last and when will they overheat. 

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Thank you @Javier M 

Where did you have yours mounted in the car? And may I ask which shop did it for you, how much you paid and if you were happy with the work they did. 
Thank you!  

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I used to know a guy who used scuba cylinders he had a Patrol with big Cooper STTs and one fill would last him 3 to 4 drives and literally took seconds to inflate a tyre. 

She he regularly went diving he would get a refill at one of the scuba hear shops for like 30-40dhs.

Gaurav might remember him from dubai4x4 days. Aboud. 

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7 hours ago, Salarios said:

Thank you @Javier M 

Where did you have yours mounted in the car? And may I ask which shop did it for you, how much you paid and if you were happy with the work they did. 
Thank you!  

I got mine done in Offroad Zone I recommend them of you have a jeep as they specialize in Jeeps, I do my maintenance there. If you have a different car you may want to check with Titan, Ramy or Icon. I can't remember what I paid. But the price you are showing there is not bad actually. I'm assuming that's from Ramy. There are plenty of shops you can pick.

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I have a built in compressor by “Toyota”, it is actually from NSV. The airflow is low, nearly does the job for my 4 tires (gets very hot). My compressor is built in the sidewall of the trunk.

As Javier mentioned, it should be in the car to avoid to be exposed to heat. Just be sure that it has enough space to breath.

If I would invest, I would invest in the ARB double compressor. Reliable, warranty, high airflow.

A gas bottle is interesting, my only concerns are; refil, maintenance, storing, mounting, costs.

 

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If you need speed why not install a normal air compressor with a small tank, like one of the little 10 litre ones and run it off an inverter? You can keep the tank full all the time and top it up as needed by flicking a switch. 

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32 minutes ago, Barry said:

If you need speed why not install a normal air compressor with a small tank, like one of the little 10 litre ones and run it off an inverter? You can keep the tank full all the time and top it up as needed by flicking a switch. 

These househould 220V/ 2HP air compressors are around 170l/min which is the same flow rate as the Dragon Mart double cylinder model.

The 220V compressor would probably cost around 350 AED and then another 150AED for a 1500Watts inverter. On top of that some cabling work to do, so you'll be near 600AED. For that money i can buy 3 of those Dragon Mart compressors.

If you have a big car then it's not a bad option, but for smaller 4x4's this is definitely not possible.

 

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"Go as far as you can see; once you get there, you'll be able to see further."

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OK seems like all options have been well discussed now.

Let me start with my experience with my reasoning's.

  • I had on board compressor with air tank in my Nissan patrol SWB. It worked great but took lot of space and due to space constraint when things started stuffing around the compressor and tank with offroad beating things started to fail: Valve, switch, joiners, pipe and almost every week I use to get something or the other sorted.
     
  • Then I removed the air tank and decided to live with on-board compressor alone, time difference was 4 minutes extra for all 4 tires inflation. But it was still a headache to store long hose pipes, joiner under seat in my dinky Patrol.
     
  • When I sold that Patrol, I bought bushranger compressor that cost me now 1.5-2 min / tire. All tires within 10 min max. It wraps up in small bag and sit on one corner and take all the offroad abuse as everything is dismantled. Costed 700 (I think) and still working after 10 years now.

If my existing bushranger dies (whenever), I will upgrade to more heavy duty bushranger, ARB, smitybilt compressor due to speed, ease of use, less space, less maintenance, less parts for to fail.

Every option comes with their own pros and cons for different mindset so you pick yours and see which one makes you happy.

  • All inflation under 2 min + expensive + space + maintenance
  • All inflation under 5-6 min + space
  • All inflation under 10 min
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Let's root for each other & watch each other grow.

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