20 months on an evolving Altaros booster system

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Roachcreek

Roachcreek

Member
Mar 18, 2017
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Orego\'n, United States
I have been using a Altaros booster now for 20 months, maybe 12 to 15 hours a month.

I started with one drive shop compressor, a CaliforniaAirTools 2 hp 110volt, to which I strapped a 12 inch cooling fan to the top. Soon I added a 2nd Cat compressor and a few months back a third Cat.

Those 3 Cat compressors pump through 4 dessicant filters and empty into a 10 gallon Cat storage tank, before feeding to the Altaros.

Recently I have had a switch on the first Cat shutting off after around an hour on duty, on a 70/30 work ratio. Shutting the switch off for a few minutes and restarting gets it going again, but I do need to call the Cat techs and find out what I need to replace. I set up and run the system in my kitchen where I have access to 3 seoerate 110volt lines and pump into my garage where the Altaros booster lives.
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I went to top off 30 and 60 minute tanks yesterday and for about 30 minutes the system was failing to build pressure on a empty line and gauge on a closed valve fireman’s tank. I spent several minutes checking for leaks, but found none so I released around 2000 psi into the system and immediately started building pressure. Later in the day, after taking a break I restarted the system on the 2nd tank and experienced no problems.

I think a rebuild is in my future. Watching the video on seal replacement seems easier than the countless Shoebox rebuilds I have done. Rebuilds are a maintainence chore and not a reliability issue.

The set up looks like a mad scientist project but I love the system and it’s durability.

Regards,

Roachcreek
 
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Actually she helps set it up, I have trouble getting the 110 plugs in. It takes about 10 minutes to set up or disassemble.

I met her 45 minutes south of Manila by a airliner. She also ports my rifles and reassembles them for me. She also filmed my 615 yard coin can video’s. Marrying her was the best thing I ever did for myself.


Regards,
]Riachcreek

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Roachcreek said:
Actually she helps set it up, I have trouble getting the 110 plugs in. It takes about 10 minutes to set up or disassemble.

I met her 45 minutes south of Manila by a airliner. She also ports my rifles and reassembles them for me. She also filmed my 615 yard coin can video’s. Marrying her was the best thing I ever did for myself.


Regards,
]Riachcreek

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Sweet. It does work out for some for sure.
 
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I have one of those CAT compressors and used it with my Altaros Booster before selling the booster. Maybe it was just the room I was using it in but I struggled with a lot water being generated by the CAT and the design of the output tended to push a lot of it to the output rather than letting it sink to the bottom of the 10 gal tank.

You can see this in the design with the circled areas below that the feed into the tank and the output to the distribution board should not have been placed on the same connection.

For me, with the high flow rate of the Altaros I saw a lot of water in the line.
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I'm not knocking the OPs setup in any way as I used this very successfully for over a year with just one 10 Gal CAT. But, I think the overall cost of this setup should be considered. Around $450 for each CAT, $900 for the Altaros and say another $100 for all the low pressure air lines, connectors and fans. You're already at $2350. Literally only $1K away from an Alkin.
 
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This is what I use for the water. Nothing gets by these filters.
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My last Cat, I got off Amazon for $350. The compressors are oil-free so have a limited life, but not that expensive to R&R.

Yeah it is an expensive hobby. My nightmares I have about the large dive compressors is having to ship them to get them fixed if needed.

Thing is running the Altaris booster with one 2 hp Cat does not give you enough air. Your single compressor will get hot and turn into a nice little grey fountain. 2 Cats work far better, 3 cats are getting close to max. My third I purchased as a spare, it was on sale and I knew somewhere down the line I would need it. But I could not let it sit in the box, so I reached out to Altaros about the possibility of running three and was given the green light to do it. Those three cats runn far cooler than two did.

Thing is compressing air creates heat and water, it is how you deal with it that matters. With the filter system shown water just does not nake it to the Altaros inner filter and it never needs changing. I do check and change the dessicant media with each use.

This last filling seccion I ran the system in what is high humidity here, 56%. I live in the high desert which is in an acute 1200 year drought cycle, so humity is often in the teens.

Bernie7, I have 8 entrance stamps on my passport and we own a building lot there. They love Americans there.

Regards,

Roachcreek
 
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It is very quiet, 71 decibels. If I step outside onto the front entry way I can’t hear it. The Cat compressors are very quiet, the Altaros sounds like Darth Vader doing push-ups.

The set up would be easier to deal with if I put the money out for 3 dedictedc110v lines in my garage and did not need to set it up 3 or more times.a month, but it takes less than 20 minutes to set up and then tear down.

Another reason I chose the Cat compressors besides the advertised 71 decibel sound, is they are oil free. Oil free means I don’t have to smell the oil when I fill and when I shoot, which is extremely important to me, I don’t want my house smelling like a 1950’s Shell station. If one cat goes dead, and they will eventually, I am a week away and under 400 bucks to replace and I don’t have to ship them. Plus I can run on two compressors if needed.

Originally, I ordered a different brand of compressor, it arrived damaged. I chose the Cats because I live on the west coast so they are not too far away and the big fact they are enclosed in a roll bar. If it can be damaged our give a phque shippers are up to the task;

RC
 
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