i bet the air tank filled up quick and compressor ran all the time u were using ityou now you dont drain your compressor enough when you get a full bucket of water out of it.
if it was full of water it wouldnt have rotted at the bottom and the water wouldnt have exploded it would have just been like a hydraulic testHe's lucky it hasn't rotted through the bottom of the compressor and exploded in use!