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Default Would adding a 5 or 10 gallon portable tank to my compressor be helpful?

I have a $99 (on-sale) Harbor Freight 10 gallon compressor that I have
been really satisfied with for my home-hobbyist use -- it has more than
paid for itself many times over.

I was wondering though whether I could effectively increase its capacity
(at least for short intervals) by attaching one or more 5 or 10 gallon
portable tanks to it.
Would this give it the *effective* capacity of a larger tank allowing me
to have a longer burst capacity? (though filling the combined tanks
would obviously take longer)

Any issues with doing so?
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"blueman" wrote in message
...
I have a $99 (on-sale) Harbor Freight 10 gallon compressor that I have
been really satisfied with for my home-hobbyist use -- it has more than
paid for itself many times over.

I was wondering though whether I could effectively increase its capacity
(at least for short intervals) by attaching one or more 5 or 10 gallon
portable tanks to it.
Would this give it the *effective* capacity of a larger tank allowing me
to have a longer burst capacity? (though filling the combined tanks
would obviously take longer)

Any issues with doing so?


No issues at all in doing it. It will give you greater capacity, but your
compressor will take longer refilling the tanks, as you noted. If you're
doing low volume stuff it will be no real problem. You'll go longer between
cycles, but the cycles will be longer. It really depends on what you're
using your compressor for. If you're driving some brads here and there,
there really won't be any great value after the trade off is considered. It
won't get you into higher delivery rates though.

--

-Mike-



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Default Would adding a 5 or 10 gallon portable tank to my compressor be helpful?



"Mike Marlow" wrote in message
No issues at all in doing it. It will give you greater capacity, but your
compressor will take longer refilling the tanks, as you noted. If you're
doing low volume stuff it will be no real problem. You'll go longer
between cycles, but the cycles will be longer. It really depends on what
you're using your compressor for. If you're driving some brads here and
there, there really won't be any great value after the trade off is
considered. It won't get you into higher delivery rates though.


Perfect answer, Mike
I think you'd tire of the long fill time rather quickly, especially if you
only use that added short burst capacity once in a great while. I imagine
you could even get in trouble trying to spray paint and have to wait for
pressure again, and again. Engine or compressors, there is no substitute
for cubic inches.

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Default Would adding a 5 or 10 gallon portable tank to my compressor be helpful?

On Sun, 14 Feb 2010 03:52:11 -0500, blueman wrote:

I have a $99 (on-sale) Harbor Freight 10 gallon compressor that I have
been really satisfied with for my home-hobbyist use -- it has more than
paid for itself many times over.

I was wondering though whether I could effectively increase its capacity
(at least for short intervals) by attaching one or more 5 or 10 gallon
portable tanks to it.
Would this give it the *effective* capacity of a larger tank allowing me
to have a longer burst capacity? (though filling the combined tanks
would obviously take longer)

Any issues with doing so?



If your compressor have a 10 gallon tank, you could fill a 100 gallon
tank to the same pressure and have a larger capacity. "Burst
capacity" can be increased by using a shorter/fatter hose. I have a
30-gallon tank w/ 5HP, and so far (20 years) it has done a good job
for all my needs. The 5-gallon portable tanks are great for filling
tires, basketballs, etc. but rather limited for a nailer gun.
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Default Would adding a 5 or 10 gallon portable tank to my compressorbe helpful?

Done all the times.
Just be sure the tanks can handle the pressure and you have plenty of hose
size for air flow.

Adds capacity. If pumped (takes longer) to a higher value than needed (normal)
a larger capacity will last longer before it drops below the low set level.

You can find tanks in yard sales for this purpose.

Martin

blueman wrote:
I have a $99 (on-sale) Harbor Freight 10 gallon compressor that I have
been really satisfied with for my home-hobbyist use -- it has more than
paid for itself many times over.

I was wondering though whether I could effectively increase its capacity
(at least for short intervals) by attaching one or more 5 or 10 gallon
portable tanks to it.
Would this give it the *effective* capacity of a larger tank allowing me
to have a longer burst capacity? (though filling the combined tanks
would obviously take longer)

Any issues with doing so?



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Default Would adding a 5 or 10 gallon portable tank to my compressor be helpful?

"Martin H. Eastburn" wrote in
:

Done all the times.
Just be sure the tanks can handle the pressure and you have plenty of
hose size for air flow.

Adds capacity. If pumped (takes longer) to a higher value than needed
(normal) a larger capacity will last longer before it drops below the
low set level.

You can find tanks in yard sales for this purpose.

Martin


I can confirm this. I've got a 5 or 10 gallon tank that I use for my
model air brush. At 40 psi, it ran out of pressure rather quickly. At
90 psi with a HF regulator set for 40 psi, it runs out of air quite a bit
slower.

Puckdropper
--
Never teach your apprentice everything you know.
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Default Would adding a 5 or 10 gallon portable tank to my compressor be helpful?


"Puckdropper" puckdropper(at)yahoo(dot)com wrote in message
...
"Martin H. Eastburn" wrote in
:

Done all the times.
Just be sure the tanks can handle the pressure and you have plenty of
hose size for air flow.

Adds capacity. If pumped (takes longer) to a higher value than needed
(normal) a larger capacity will last longer before it drops below the
low set level.

You can find tanks in yard sales for this purpose.

Martin


I can confirm this. I've got a 5 or 10 gallon tank that I use for my
model air brush. At 40 psi, it ran out of pressure rather quickly. At
90 psi with a HF regulator set for 40 psi, it runs out of air quite a bit
slower.


Well - not quite Puckdropper, but close. In your case you only partially
charged your tank, so you observed a reduced run time. What the OP was
referring to was adding capacity, assuming a fully charged system. In the
end, there's not a lot of difference, but your case was due to simple
undercharging of your tank. Put in half as much air as you're suppose to -
you'll run out of air twice as fast.

--

-Mike-



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Default Would adding a 5 or 10 gallon portable tank to my compressor be helpful?

On Sun, 14 Feb 2010 08:03:45 -0500, "Ed Pawlowski" wrote:



"Mike Marlow" wrote in message
No issues at all in doing it. It will give you greater capacity, but your
compressor will take longer refilling the tanks, as you noted. If you're
doing low volume stuff it will be no real problem. You'll go longer
between cycles, but the cycles will be longer. It really depends on what
you're using your compressor for. If you're driving some brads here and
there, there really won't be any great value after the trade off is
considered. It won't get you into higher delivery rates though.


Perfect answer, Mike
I think you'd tire of the long fill time rather quickly, especially if you
only use that added short burst capacity once in a great while. I imagine
you could even get in trouble trying to spray paint and have to wait for
pressure again, and again. Engine or compressors, there is no substitute
for cubic inches.


"There is no replacement for displacement"


mac

Please remove splinters before emailing
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Default Would adding a 5 or 10 gallon portable tank to my compressor behelpful?

On Feb 14, 3:52*am, blueman wrote:
I have a $99 (on-sale) Harbor Freight 10 gallon compressor that I have


I would suggest adding storage in parallel rather than in a serial
fashion. The cycle up time will be longer the first time it loads up
- by a factor related to the capacity added.

Once the pressure reaches the cut-off point, the recycle times should
be about equivalent in that,the machine is programmed to come back on
when the pressure drops below a predetermined value.

If you put your pressure regulator at teh end of the tanks, before the
connector for the "work" hose as it is now, the pressure "out" will
not change. If the fittings are not enlarged and the hose diameter
stays the same,the volume will not change at a given PSI setting.

What will change, is the total volume of captured air that can be
dispensed, albeit at a diminishing pressure as the pump attempts to
maintain the pressure and volume in the 'tank' (now three)

As one writer put it, the volume of air "out" is a function of the
size of the pump and the HP applied to it. {Pressure is significantly
increased using a two-stage pump as opposed to a single-stage pump)

Having said all this, I suspect there are smarter folks than I would
have been paid to determine the optimum ratio if pump to tank and have
shared these calculations the world over. And, I suspect, the Chinese
have long since translated and adopted them to produce an efficient
pump/tank combination for HFT and the like.

But, having said all this, I too must admit being intrigued by the
idea that adding tank capacity to my little Porter Cble Pancaker might
offer some benefit worth the thirty-odd dollar expense.

Carefully record and report back with your results!

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Default Would adding a 5 or 10 gallon portable tank to my compressor behelpful?

On Feb 14, 11:10*pm, "Mike Marlow"
wrote:

*Put in half as much air as you're suppose to - you'll run out of air twice as fast.


Good point. The increased pressure noted is the direct result of
"compressing" more air into that finite space.

Using the OP as an example, adding a second tank that would double the
volume of "tank capacity" at 40PSI (say) or doubling the pressure
(80PSI) to the existing tank, would have the same result vis a vis the
volume of air in the tank(s)

And, at an output PSI setting of 40psi, for instance, one would expect
twice the discharge rate or "run/use time" from the latter than the
former.


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Default Would adding a 5 or 10 gallon portable tank to my compressor be helpful?


"Hoosierpopi" wrote in message
...
On Feb 14, 3:52 am, blueman wrote:
I have a $99 (on-sale) Harbor Freight 10 gallon compressor that
I have



When I couldn't get the air impact wrench to break loose the lugs
on an elderly pickup, I added a HF air cylinder in series, right
before the gun. The problem I had was the long run of 3/8" hose
and the volume of air thus made available to the impact wrench.
On one end of the tank, I put a ball valve and male adapter that
connected to the shop/garage/house air hoses. On the other end
was a Tee fitting with 1/2" female chuck and a 3/8" female chuck.
(Both had integral stops to prevent leakage, so no ball valve was
needed). I replaced the 3/8" fitting on the impact wrench with a
1/2" one and added a short 1/2" commercial-type hose to connect
the wrench with the storage tank.

What the tank did was give me the rapid "burst" of air needed by
the gun to break loose an encrusted nut or bolt. It didn't last
very long, but the burst was enough to get the job done and the
balance of the time, the impact wrench ran just as it had with the
smaller line.

FWIW, the tank was also very handy for little jobs like blowing
out the lawn irrigation system, where I'd have needed to lug a
long hose to the fittings. Later on, I simply added an air
fitting and connection to the incoming water, isolating the
take-off for the irrigation system with valves so the house didn't
get air in the lines, but that was later on.




--
Nonny

ELOQUIDIOT (n) A highly educated, sophisticated,
and articulate person who has absolutely no clue
concerning what they are talking about.
The person is typically a media commentator or politician.


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Default Would adding a 5 or 10 gallon portable tank to my compressor behelpful?

On Feb 14, 2:52*am, blueman wrote:
I have a $99 (on-sale) Harbor Freight 10 gallon compressor that I have
been really satisfied with for my home-hobbyist use -- it has more than
paid for itself many times over.

I was wondering though whether I could effectively increase its capacity
(at least for short intervals) by attaching one or more 5 or 10 gallon
portable tanks to it.
Would this give it the *effective* capacity of a larger tank allowing me
to have a longer burst capacity? (though filling the combined tanks
would obviously take longer)

Any issues with doing so?


You might also consider "duty cycle" for your system -- it relates to
resting time for the pump or electric motor allowing them to cool. If
you exceed the duty cycle you could overheat the motor and burn the
insulation or overheat the compressor pump and oxidize the oil, etc.
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