Air compressor buying choices

[Mario Cornejo]

Guys - I've got an ARB twin piston installed onboard my car, it was working great until recently it started blowing fuses, the ARB provided fuses are 30A which I replaced by two 70A and were blown today whilst I was inflating, luckily I had 4 spares and could finish inflating.

Anyway, would you know of or could anyone recommend a good car electrician to have a look at it?  I searched in Internet and there are quite a few, but instead of picking up one blindly or just by reading reviews, I am more inclined to go by a recommendation.

As to the topic of this discussion, and based on this recent experience with the fuses, I would also suggest to keep a back up compressor, perhaps a cheaper (but capable) one.

Thanks in advance!

Cheers

[Frederic]

13 minutes ago, Mario Cornejo said:

Guys - I've got an ARB twin piston installed onboard my car, it was working great until recently it started blowing fuses, the ARB provided fuses are 30A which I replaced by two 70A and were blown today whilst I was inflating, luckily I had 4 spares and could finish inflating.

Anyway, would you know of or could anyone recommend a good car electrician to have a look at it?  I searched in Internet and there are quite a few, but instead of picking up one blindly or just by reading reviews, I am more inclined to go by a recommendation.

As to the topic of this discussion, and based on this recent experience with the fuses, I would also suggest to keep a back up compressor, perhaps a cheaper (but capable) one.

Thanks in advance!

Cheers

Hi @Mario Cornejo If the ARB twin piston is installed in your vehicle, I wouldnt be surprised that the power cable they used is far too small, resulting in overheating cable, resulting in higher cable resistance, and as a result higher amps.

Can you share some photos of the power cable that is connected to the battery ? It should be 10-16mm2 at least.

[Mario Cornejo]

18 minutes ago, Frederic said:

Hi @Mario Cornejo If the ARB twin piston is installed in your vehicle, I wouldnt be surprised that the power cable they used is far too small, resulting in overheating cable, resulting in higher cable resistance, and as a result higher amps.

Can you share some photos of the power cable that is connected to the battery ? It should be 10-16mm2 at least.

Hi @Frederic here are the photos.

[Frederic]

18 minutes ago, Mario Cornejo said:

Hi @Frederic here are the photos.

So this is the ARB wiring loom set, so wire thickness is not the issue. 

- Are you running the engine while using the compressor ? (you should as it needs 13.8 Volts)

- Do you see anything molten or loose insulation on the wiring ?

- If ARB provide two fuses of each 30 amps, replacing them with 70 amps might have damaged the compressor. According to the spec sheet the unit draws 50 amps under load (2 x 25 A). 

- Are both fuses blowing ? Maybe try once with new 30 amps fuses and put one at a time to test each side.

[Mario Cornejo]

48 minutes ago, Frederic said:

Are you running the engine while using the compressor ? (you should as it needs 13.8 Volts)

- Do you see anything molten or loose insulation on the wiring ?

- If ARB provide two fuses of each 30 amps, replacing them with 70 amps might have damaged the compressor. According to the spec sheet the unit draws 50 amps under load (2 x 25 A). 

- Are both fuses blowing ? Maybe try once with new 30 amps fuses and put one at a time to test each side.

Hi Frederic - yes I operate the compressor with engine running and A/C on.  The compressor is still working.  I will try once again with 30A fuses, thanks for the advice!

[Roger K]

Hello.  I am getting out of the desert driving scene and have a 1 year old, 2 cylinder, dragon mart compressor that I want to sell.  Used about a dozen times.  It does inflate tires quickly.   Have had zero issues with it.    If anyone is interested they can contact me WhatsApp 58 586 6597.  Also have a flag and suction mount.   Hopefully I am not violating some Carnity rule by posting this… 

[Cha]

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Edited May 19, 2022 by Zixuan Huang - Charlie

[Gary F]

Some advice once you get the bug for off roading, always stretch your budget more then you think if you are going to be in the desert almost every week, I believe myself and Ben went through 4 stages of compressor envy. With this years ADihex show we upgraded to the ARB twins, self installed, including a self fabbed bracket for the rear of the gladiator.  

Next outstanding task is to source 10 gauge wire and wire it up.

[Mark B]

Totally agree mate! As a wise man once said. 
Cheap things are expensive….as you end up buying them twice 😂

[Frederic]

1 hour ago, Gary F said:

Some advice once you get the bug for off roading, always stretch your budget more then you think if you are going to be in the desert almost every week, I believe myself and Ben went through 4 stages of compressor envy. With this years ADihex show we upgraded to the ARB twins, self installed, including a self fabbed bracket for the rear of the gladiator.  

Next outstanding task is to source 10 gauge wire and wire it up.

Have a look at below chart. Considering the distance from your battery to the compressor located in the back of the open bed, you’ll need to go for 8AWG or 6AWG. 
I think the twin compressor draw close to 50Amps.