[Skillie]

Hi All

Just before my Botswana trip I mentioned that I had build my air compressor into the space for the spare battery in the engine compartment. Someone asked for photos, so here they are...

The photos below is for a general idea where in the engine compartment the compressor was placed.

The standard compressor (exactly the same as the ones sold at 4x4 shops was bought at Midas as a Xmas present to myself for 40% less than the 4x4 shops sell them for) was put into a frame.
The frame is attached to the body with three bolts so that it can easily be removed when I can afford a dual battery system.
The compressor shifts into the frame and is held in place on the one side by a bracket which the compressor's standard feet plate fits into and on the other side by one makeshift bolt, also for easy removal. I was sceptical about the strenght of the makeshift bolt holding the compressor in place but during my Bostwana trip I used the compressor several times without any hasstle or dissapointment.

Below is some photos of the brackets.

Bracket 2

Any questions welcome.
Please dont tell me my engine is dirty, I know...

Regards,

[Scubadude]

Nice job Skillie!

[Fielies]

What did the compressor cost you? Did you make any "easy" connection at the wheel for your hose to connect to?

[LowRange]

Unfortunately I have my second battery in that spot, but I will definately check out those compressors at MIDAS. My 7 year old little Volcano gave up the ghost in Bots and I urgently need a replacement.

Which compressors do you guys recommend/use? There seems to be quite a variety on the market!

[CATS]

I have gone through a couple of cheapies and the last time decided to get an ARB unit which has performed faultlesly now for a couple of years. It is not the fastest unit out there, but I would rather prefer reliability than speed.

This is where I mounted my unit. It is a tight fit but works well with the ARB unit. The new ARB units are even smaller so should be easy to mount in the same spot. This is in front of the driver side just behind the airfilter and just before the brake fluid unit. Made a frame of aluminium with a few bends and use existing bolts to fasten inside engine bay. The pipe stays in there as well. If I recall correctly I had to move the small black fuse/solenoid box situated there slightly by bending the mounting plate, but can't recall 100%



CATS

[Fielies]

I also saw a toyota bakkie with one fitted the other day. How much do they go for?

[Greg_SA]

The ARB compressors go for arounf R3k.

They anre't very fast, but are reliable and last long.

[GertM]

Doesn't the heat in the engine bay has a negative effect on the compressor and/or the piping?

[CATS]

Doesn't the heat in the engine bay has a negative effect on the compressor and/or the piping?

GJM

The pump itself gets extremely warm when used, so I doubt that the engine heat will affect it much. The pipe is a different story. I decided to leave mine there as it is not equiped with a quick release like some other models. So far it has shown no sign of any damage, but it is also very far back in the corner in my installation. Mine has been living in there for about 4 years now I would say?

What the heat in the engine bay does do however is make the air less dense due to the air particles being further away from each other(if I recall my school science here? ), due to the heat generated by the engine. This effectivlely means that the pump will need to work more to get the same amount of pressure in a tyre than a pump that was say standing outside on a cool place with good ventilation. This is a trade off that I have decided to live with due to the fact that it is nice unobtrusive place to put the pump and always have ready and on hand when needed. My reasoning was that the time lost due to the 'thinner' air is made up by the time to take the pump out the boot, plug it in etc, had it been a loose item. Plus I spare the packing space !

I spray a small amount of Q20 into the pump inlet once a year or so to help keep it well lubricated. This advice was given to me some years ago after the pump stopped working due to rust forming inside. The rust forms due to the moisture trapped in the air and then condensing inside the pump unit when cooling down. So far this seemed to have assisted in keeping the pump in tip top shape.

CATS

[koevoet]

Hi All,
I did exactly the same build with my compressor, but found that the heat effected it, when I dissembled it, I found that the ring around the piston has melted as it was from some polymer and not metal. Does anybody know of a compressor with metal rings in the piston?
Thanks
Koevoet