air compressor lugs and won't build pressure properly

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air compressor lugs and won't build pressure properly

by aaron white
(milford, oh)

i have a campbell hausfeld 18 gallon compressor that i just bought. i plugged it in and it filled flawlessly. i use it for a few seconds and when it goes to "top off" it lugs very, very slowly and the lights in my garage begin to dim and flicker. i have a full size refrigerator in my garage and some fluorescent lights overhead. i bought it from a popular refurbisher in my area. he has an excellent reputation and i trust the quality of the product i bought. i have read something about an unloader valve and was wondering if i might need to adjust this. and if that's the case, how do i go about doing that? thanks so much for your time. regards, aaron white
cpl/ usmc

Bill answers...

Hey Aaron, very nice to hear from you. Thanks for visiting my website.

If the power dims when it goes to start, that means that your compressor is drawing more than the usual number of amps.

It may do this because the compressor requires more amps than normal. That being the case, you need to read up on unloader valves and what their malfunction can mean to your compressors restart.

Cheers,

Bill

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air compressor lugs and won't build pressure properly

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Jan 22, 2010

stalling compressor
by: Anonymous

if it stalls on topping up, sounds like the check valve to stop air from the tank coming back to the compressor is leaking back,causing the compressor to start on load. follow the compressor discharge pipe to the tank it's normally the last part as it goes into the tank, it may look like a large nipple but check it.

Oct 25, 2009

i will see
by: aaron

i will look around today and see what i can come up with. thanks!

Oct 25, 2009

Check the ground
by: MEP1

I thought of this after posting: check the building ground. The easiest way is to look at other things on the opposite electrical pole. Your household current is usually 240V, with each leg being an opposing 120V AC. Each leg is used separately with a common wire to get 120V, and if the common lug or building ground is weak, the devices on one side will try to ground through the other 12V leg. (120 V ?) If this happens, lights on the opposite leg will actually get brighter when the compressor is trying to start.

Bill says... thanks MEPI. Your comments are very welcome.

Oct 25, 2009

Try a solenoid
by: MEP1

You have other options to help with weal electric. You can add a solenoid to the unloader valve that stays open for a few seconds so the compressor can spin up with no load. The valve is meant to allow it to begin starting with no pressure, but it does begin to build pressure immediately. There's almost no load with no pressure on the system (which explains why it starts fine the first time) and has to push against tank pressure later on startup.

You can also piggyback another capacitor onto the motor, but that requires a little more advanced electrical knowledge.

Sep 18, 2009

Not the unloader valve
by: aaron

i have already had it checked and the unloader valve is working properly. i dont know if the old house i am renting just can't power it or what. when i took it back in to the gentleman i bought it from, it worked just fine for him. any other thoughts?
______________________

Aaron, if the compressor works fine back at the shop where you bought it, then I think you have a problem with the amount of electricity in your overall circuit.

If the compressor is trying to start, and other electrically driven devices are trying to start at the same time, that would reduce the amps available, and your compressor would lug.

Also, if you are using an extension cord, make sure it's rated for the amps that your compressor draws.

Can you find a circuit in your house that hasn't got too many things on it (if so, can you turn them all off) and then dump the air from your compressor, and let it cycle to see what happens?

Cheers,

Bill

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air compressor lugs and won't build pressure properly

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air compressor lugs and won't build pressure properly