Running more than one compressor

[TonyJ]

Question for you air compressor gurus out there. I have two compressors which both work great and both are old. One is a Quincy 230 rc28 that is mounted to a 80gal tank. I also have a Ingersol Rand type 30 242 D3 which is mounted to a 30gal tank. Quincy specs is 100psi and I’m currently running it @ 150psi and the IR specs is 230psi but tank max is only 200 so I have it setting at 195psi.

95 % of the work I do the Quincy handles it just fine but the other 5% I’m having to wait for the air to build back up and then I allot of times still have to break out the IR for the higher psi.

Would it be just all around smarter for me to just connect the two tanks and put a valve between them and just let the IR build up the psi in both tanks for those needed times and just use the Quincy at a lower psi for the 95% of the time the higher psi isn’t needed ? Hooking the two together would greatly increase the storage of 195psi air when needed and would be lowered back to normal in the 80 when it isn’t needed is the idea I have

 

[lis2323]

Do your machines or tools require 195 PSI?


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[TonyJ]

Do your machines or tools require 195 PSI?


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No nothing requires that high of psi but when using 3/4 or 1” impacts they make quick work at higher psi than at lower. I only said 195psi because that is what I have the IR set at and that pump is capable of going to 230psi so I just set it there to make the most I can without going over the 200psi tank rating.

 

[lis2323]

No nothing requires that high of psi but when using 3/4 or 1” impacts they make quick work at higher psi than at lower. I only said 195psi because that is what I have the IR set at and that pump is capable of going to 230psi so I just set it there to make the most I can without going over the 200psi tank rating.

Thought I would mention it as the compressor needs to run harder and longer to attain those higher PSIs.

My two stage Atlas Copco is capable of higher pressures but I keep the max at 140 PSI. it runs my impacts fine although my biggest is only 3/4”. I bought it new for the farm back in the late 1970’s and it’s still going strong.

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[908Jim]

The higher pressure is probably not worth it and is likely going to shorten the lives of your tools. If you have a demand issue, you basically have two options:

1) You could plumb them together and set your pressure switches slightly offset from each other. For example, set your main Quincy to a 150psi shut off and a 120psi kick on, and set the IR to a 150 shut off with a 110psi kick on. This would increase your total storage volume and the offset pressure setting would mean your main compressor is doing the bulk of the work and the second pump turns on when demand reduces tank pressure below the set point of the IR pressure switch.

2) Run both "as is" and plumb together with a regulator to drop the IR tank pressure down to the Quincy tank pressure so you don't send 195psi air to the lower pressure Quincy tank.

Either way, I can't recommend running 195psi line pressure to your tools. That's unnecessary and borderline dangerous.

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[sparky 1971]

My set up may or may not be right. I have a newer 60 gallon Masterforce and a 21 year old Craftsman 30 gallon. I have a T on the wall both compressors are hooked to. 95% of the time, the Craftsman is turned off while being nothing more than a storage tank that I don't need.
There may be a time when the MF can't keep up. For this I made a fitting to go on the Crapsman compressor. It is a 1/2 check valve with reducers to take it down to 1/4 air fittings. Male on one end and female on the other. I just put it between the supply hose and the compressor. This way, the larger compressor can't fill the small one and both compressors are supplying air to the tool. Of course, the 30 gallon compressor is turned on and the two of them running together make enough noise to wake the dead.

I forgot to mention that the Masterforce compressor has a 1" check valve on it, but it is permanent.

 

[TonyJ]

My set up may or may not be right. I have a newer 60 gallon Masterforce and a 21 year old Craftsman 30 gallon. I have a T on the wall both compressors are hooked to. 95% of the time, the Craftsman is turned off while being nothing more than a storage tank that I don't need.

There may be a time when the MF can't keep up. For this I made a fitting to go on the Crapsman compressor. It is a 1/2 check valve with reducers to take it down to 1/4 air fittings. Male on one end and female on the other. I just put it between the supply hose and the compressor. This way, the larger compressor can't fill the small one and both compressors are supplying air to the tool. Of course, the 30 gallon compressor is turned on and the two of them running together make enough noise to wake the dead.



I forgot to mention that the Masterforce compressor has a 1" check valve on it, but it is permanent.

That’s kind of what I was thinking of doing because both of my tanks are capable of handling the extra psi and hooking one to the other and only running the higher psi one when the extra boost is needed and then turn it off and the lower psi one would then return back to normal lower psi after using it. I was just figuring that the extra storage of higher psi would be handy while using it and then just the 80 at lower psi would be back to main usage. 95% Quincy 5 % Ingersol and when the IR was running the Quincy wouldn’t come on at all. The IR was built for the US military back in 1953 according to IR and has a max psi of 230 and runs with 3hp at 1000rpm so it has no problem keeping up with a 80gal tank


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[Caribou_Precision]

A big industrial building I used to work in had probably big piston type compressors on the top floor tied into the same system, running 120-150psi tank pressures and regulated down to 90-100PSI