Question about amp draws on air compressors

[hitek79]

How do I go about figuring out if my rig will be able to handle the high amp draws from a higher end air compressor like the ExtremeAire Magnum?

 

[Ducky's Dad]

Look up your alternator output at idle and if that is greater than the compressor draw, you should be fine as long as the engine is running. That assumes that you are not running a lot of other electrical stuff while running the compressor, and that your compressor has adequate wiring to the battery. Bigger is better for the wires, and use an inline fuse if the compressor does not already have one. If you need more output from the alternator, get a high idle kit or put a rock on the gas pedal to keep RPMs up. A quality battery is a good idea.

 

[trailnewt]

This wire size calculator is handy for figuring what size wire you need to run from your battery to your compressor.
http://www.solar-wind.co.uk/cable-sizing-DC-cables.html

 

[WSS]

My extremaire is fused with a 15 amp circuit breaker. Never popped yet. I am running a 110amp late delco alt. and have a thumb throttle on the gear shift. when filling tires or running air tools, I will set the rpms around 1k and works great. The extremaire is 100% duty cycle. I have air lockers as well as an airhorn so my air is turned onas soon as I get in. It runs and fills a 4gl tank in about a minute.