Phase 1 Compressor Mods ( Air Filter & Electric Auto and Manual Drain ) Done

[Submariner1]

Finally completed the auto/easy access drain and the regulator/air filter.
So easy to drain off and filtered output, maintaining portability.

Just waiting for last joint sealant to set.

Just need to push on outlet hoses.

Phase 2 will be replacing with bigger wheels and thickening the front pads using hockey pucks.
To give me more than the 13mm clearance of the drain Elbow, that replaces the std. straight unthreaded drain cock.

No more lying down, reaching to the back under the tank to turn the drain cock, that due to Sods law pointed on the other side.

 

[Domeo_jones]

Finally completed the auto/easy access drain and the regulator/air filter.
So easy to drain off and filtered output, maintaining portability.

Just waiting for last joint sealant to set.

View attachment 280139
Just need to push on outlet hoses.

Phase 2 will be replacing with bigger wheels and thickening the front pads using hockey pucks.
To give me more than the 13mm clearance of the drain Elbow, that replaces the std. straight unthreaded drain cock.

No more lying down, reaching to the back under the tank to turn the drain cock, that due to Sods law pointed on the other side.

Where has that been all my life... that is amazing....
Please tell me that the auto drain thing is not to expensive and easy to fit...

 

[Submariner1]

Where has that been all my life... that is amazing....
Please tell me that the auto drain thing is not to expensive and easy to fit...

Sorry just saw your post.
For me it was Cheap. £25 off eBay for electric auto drain incl. Long brass cut off.
A few stainless steel fittings circa £40 or £50 and a short section of hose. £4

Maybe £75 total, for total convenience, so so much easier. note all rustproofed, even effectively lining the bore of the drain spigot etc.

Note could have been done cheaper using a 3/8 to 1/4” reducing elbow and no manual ball cock. Maybe £30 or use galvanised ... a lot cheaper.
Easy:
Could be extremely simple. In my case straight forward as long as you overthink it.
e.g. Due to low ground clearance I wanted the elbow solution, as the elbow is fully supported by the spigot ( so if it grounded, then its like one extended piece, and has an extra long SS nipple 40mm right up into the spigot and right through the elbow, so can take a whack with 80kgs of the machine behind it).
pre think things like all the joints lock up in the right direction, order of gluing ( i.e. fit hose before gluing so not forcing a hose on a semi cured joint).
Stainless steel shims are a godsend, 0.3, 0.5 and 1.0mm allow you to use parallel nipple and lockup mechanically at the perfect angle. Cheap on eBay.
I used a 8mm bore 14mm od PCL rubber alloy hose £4 .. thick, strong, durable?? and avoids long pipework hanging there! Note my goal was to preserve the portability of the machine, if needed.
Assemble dry to make sure ear hose clips dont point down and reduce ground clearance.
I also had the “manual drain cock“ shielded by the frame to protect all the pipework.
This addition means I can just use the eletric drain when in use, say every 0-40 mins for a duration 0 secs to 60 secs ... you decide. But I can also at the end of the day, do a manual fast dump, so any rusty crude/ water gets expelled without contaminating the electronic valve.
Actually found zero water comes out at the end of the day, when set for 3 secs dump every 15 mins - means there is no water. But this way, if say the electronic drain unit failed or leaked, I could still use the machine by shutting the brass drain cock and still empty by the little stainless ballcock. Also its right at the front so no crawling under the tank to use the std. drain cock.
a total blessing ... and utterly zero leaks with Loctite 577 . Brilliant stuff except takes 72 hours for a complete cure. Apparrently its totally fine after 24 hours but hey why risk it.
The biggest issue was solved by shims.

Perhaps purist would say using a rubber hose is not a good idea.? But for me using a 900mm length of stainless pipe would be expensive, potentially easy to damage, and good luck getting the exact length and angles right; so that all the joints threads mechanically lock up, and it then fits! ; so the drain platform (home built bit of stainless angle iron) bolt goes straight in the predrilled hole in the frame!

Elbow Sealed at correct direction, clips set to angle for maximise ground clearance. Note fitted dry, clamped loosely, removed to fully clamp then refitted with sealant

 

[Gazz292]

I fitted one of those auto drain valve jobbies, when it blows off with the tank full it didn't half make me jump,

So i fitted an air muffler to it's outlet https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/274586668230?hash=item3feea40cc6:g:4VAAAOSwT5ZftynE&var=574807203864

was amazed how much this quietened the blast down.

As my compressor stays in one place now... in a 'dog house' behind my workshop, i fitted a length of air hose to the auto drain valve outlet (i use 12mm nylon airline and fittings, same stuff trucks use for their brakes),
I dug a little pit in the soil at the end of my workshop about a foot square, chucked some pea gravel in the bottom, then put the air hose with the muffler on the end in the hole and backfilled it with more pea gravel.

Now it's practically silent when the valve operates.

 

[Submariner1]

I fitted one of those auto drain valve jobbies, when it blows off with the tank full it didn't half make me jump,

So i fitted an air muffler to it's outlet https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/274586668230?hash=item3feea40cc6:g:4VAAAOSwT5ZftynE&var=574807203864

was amazed how much this quietened the blast down.

As my compressor stays in one place now... in a 'dog house' behind my workshop, i fitted a length of air hose to the auto drain valve outlet (i use 12mm nylon airline and fittings, same stuff trucks use for their brakes),
I dug a little pit in the soil at the end of my workshop about a foot square, chucked some pea gravel in the bottom, then put the air hose with the muffler on the end in the hole and backfilled it with more pea gravel.

Now it's practically silent when the valve operates.

Brilliant idea.
And yes boy does it make you jump. I was air cleaning one of my very excruciatingly expensive (for me) Amplifiers, when it went off. Made me jump I nearly stabbed the circuit board with the pointy bit.
i just ordered one of their 3/8” silencers!

will also put one on the manual drain end just in case working late.