Bump my 11 gallon air compressor to 22 gallon?

[Doug Hobkirk]

I have an 11 gallon air compressor. Can I plumb an 11 gallon portable air tank into the compressor output using a T fitting and effectively double the tank size? Mount the new air tank so the single fitting is at the bottom, allowing moisture to drip down into the compressor tank after the system is shut off?

[Myk Rian]

Depends on the compressor.
You might wind up overtaxing it, and burning it up.

[Scott T Smith]

I have an 11 gallon air compressor. Can I plumb an 11 gallon portable air tank into the compressor output using a T fitting and effectively double the tank size? Mount the new air tank so the single fitting is at the bottom, allowing moisture to drip down into the compressor tank after the system is shut off?


Doug, I've been ganging additional storage onto compressors for over twenty-five years. Unless you have a compressor with an extremely low duty cycle, it works great.

I find that it works best if you do two things. First, use an additional storage tank that already has a provision for a water drain. Second, plumb the auxiliary tank into the "tank" side of the regulator on your compressor - not on the output side of the regulator.

I have two different ones right now set up this way. One utilizes a "Rol-air" add on tank (that's made for this purpose), and the other uses an air tank (like you use for filling up flat tires) that I welded a bung onto the bottom of for the water drain.

In order to make transportation easier, I added a T fitting to the manifold where the tank air guage goes, and screwed the guage into one side and a standard air coupler into the other. This allows me to use either the compressor as a standalone or to add the extra tank.

[John Ricci]

Can I plumb an 11 gallon portable air tank into the compressor output using a T fitting and effectively double the tank size?

I made up this bit here to do the same thing for my smaller compressor and it works great...

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v102/LPBlue/Workshop/pigadapter.jpg

This fitting will put your secondary tank @ whatever pressure the regulator is set for. If you want full pressure in the second tank then you have to add a hose connect in the line from the primary tank before the regulator like I eventually modded the small compressor...

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v102/LPBlue/Workshop/PICT000333.jpg

The outlet on the left is @ primary tank pressure and the one on the right is @ regulator pressure. With this setup I can increase the capacity of the system using a short hose with two male ends and simply connecting the two tanks together.

J.R.