On Board Air: Installation Help?

[BrianW]

I recently picked up a used Kleinn air compressor (150psi and 50% duty cycle) and 1.5 gallon tank. It's marketed for air horns, but I'm just looking for something to VERY rarely air up my stock 2011 E250 245-16 tires and also to use when supporting youth mountain bike races (to seat tires, etc.). So I'm sure it will be fine for that. I plan to just run one outlet to be able to plug in an air chuck. It was only $90 so I figured why not.

I have just the bare tank and the compressor, as shown below. I need to buy the relevant drain plug, pressure relief valve, pressure switch, line(s), and an quick-release outlet. It's this system, just without any of the accessory pieces: https://kleinn.com/product/model-627...si-air-system/

I'm totally new to all of this so any help with the questions below would be most welcome:

1. Where to mount the compressor and tank on my E250 SMB? I have the normal propane and black water tanks underneath. Is it better to mount the compressor under the hood somewhere to have it kinda protected? Or since it gets so hot (compressor) is that a bad idea? The unit is sealed so technically it can be mounted on the frame, etc., I guess. I assume the tank can be mounted pretty much anywhere.

2. I have OEM Ford Upfitter Switches, but with nothing hooked up to them. If possible I'd like to use one of these. BUT, would I be better off running the compressor off my house battery bank (three 100ah AGMs)? I know I'd need another switch plus a relay if I go that route. If running off the chassis battery I'd likely run the engine if needed.

3. About the Upfitter Switches: all the info I find online is about F-series switches, not vans. Any links and/or advice to how to actually set up and use the switches in my 2011 E250 would be great.

Any other advice would be great. I don't know enough to know what I don't know! ;-)

[86Scotty]

Hey Brian, I would definitely recommend using one of your upfitter switches for your trigger (on/off) switch but all of these I've installed use a bigger guage wire, usually at least 10gauge/30 amp and I'm actually thinking 8ga/40amp which I would definitely recommend running to your house bank to supply the main power. If you use the relay below it is all clearly marked and you'll only have to run one wire from the dash and the rest can be towards the rear of the van where you'll likely mount the compressor and where your house batteries probably already are.

The most difficult part of OBA installations is the tank mounting. You'll need to fab/weld up some sort of rack somethere to put the tank. I am not a great welder and have always cobbled together angle steel for the job.

As for the hardware Amazon has all of the Viair components at unbeatable prices. They make it very simple. I've linked below the exact kit I went with on a recent small OBA system for my wife's Jeep.

Congrats on the score. I know you guys are cyclists and otherwise active. There is nothing better than OBA for occasional (vehicle) tire duty but I use mine much more often for bikes, inflatable boats, air mattresses, etc. and more than anything for cleanup/dust off duties.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

[motovan_mn]

Regarding the OEM upfitter switches, I found this page in the Electrical Wiring section of the BBAS for my model year. You might try visiting the ford BBAS site to see if they have a similar diagram for your model year, or maybe they haven't changed at all.

[BrianW]

@Eric, thanks. The Viair pressure switch you linked gets some bad reviews for premature failure due to water. Have you had any issues?


@Motovan, thanks also. Are the switch wires under the dash somewhere? I'm literally clueless with what to look for and where (although I am competent with wiring generally).

[86Scotty]

Sorry Brian, been busy. I have never had one fail and I've hung a couple of them underneath vans right on the tank. Most of the failures I have heard about have been on vehicles which regularly get submerged (Jeeps/crawlers). I tend to not do that with vans.

The most recent OBA system I have done was on a newer Jeep and I put the compressor (very similar to yours) in the trunk of the Jeep. I T'd the line right off the compressor and put this switch there where it will always be out of the weather. Not sure if that helps or is an option for you.

[bolty]

I just replaced my extreme outback compressor. I have an RB50 build and the compressor was mounted underneath next to the propane tank. Extreme outback has their tips and instructions on line so that is a nice source to check what they recommend. (www.extremeoutback.com) They also sell parts that might help you. I ran the wires (red and black) straight to the starting battery as Extreme recommended. One of the upfitter switches controls the on-off and I always run the engine while using the compressor.

[Twoxentrix]

Originally Posted by bolty

I ran the wires (red and black) straight to the starting battery as Extreme recommended. One of the upfitter switches controls the on-off and I always run the engine while using the compressor.

Wires shouldn't actually go straight to the starting battery - hopefully you have it wired as pic shows below (at least with a circuit breaker between the two)

[bolty]

Correct. The one change I made, on the advice of Extreme Air, was to run the black directly to the starting battery. It had been grounded on a short pigtail to the frame and Extreme Air prefers the ground be run back to the battery.