I just bagged the back of my chevy a few weeks ago, Everything was workin good till I noticed that one side was slower than the other on inflate and deflate, got worse till it didnt inflate or deflate at all. I replaced the 2 valves on that side and it worked fine, now I got the same problem again. I hooked the valve up to a battery outside the car and see that the plungers in the valves are slow and sticking. Does this mean that moisture got past the water trap into the tank and valves? I have the water trap inline right after the compressor before the tank. How can I fix this, cuz new valves are burning my pockets. Any help is appreciated
what kind of valves you got? most that have 4 bolts holding the halves together can be taken apart and serviced.
Ah you poor guy. Those are crap. When that company (AFC) first started making air valves, I got some demos from them, and they sucked. And more and more revisions came, and they always sucked. I have four of revision # 8 still sitting in a box in my shop. You can take them apart, and see if any crap is in them. After you remove the coil from the top, remove the stem. There are only a couple parts inside, so they aren't complex. But I bet you will find the valve are just junk.
I run 1/2" SMC Valves on my daily. 8-Gal tank, Viair 450C, no water trap, never any problems, even when it was icing over and people's valves were sticking mine worked great. I bleed the system weekly though. Planning to run some high pressure Parker 1" valves in the future.
i second that motion,most newer valves are a fluid valve(by design) as well as air so moisture aint a problem. alex
What about Air Ride brand? I am about to put in my system. It is Air Ride brand everything (I purchased it used from some guy that had it in an S10). Its a 2 way system, and I wanna do a 4 way, so I gotta get more valves anyway. The one set I have is their Big Red series, which is much faster than I want ( I want smooth and easy). So Im gonna sell the Big Red 2 way that I have, and was going to buy 2 sets of 2 way Air Ride Ride Tech series valves, which are their slow ones. They are expensive. If there is a valave thats just as good or better for less money, Im all ears. How much do Parker or SMC valves run? Oh, and sorry for hijacking the thread!
4-way (FBSS) is junk IMHO. 2-way is easy and is all you need. Not only is it cheaper, but it's less hassle and headache. My current setup is an Airlift (Viair 450C) Compressor, 8.5-Gallon tank with eight 1/2" ports, SMC 1/2" Valves, All plumbing is 1/2" Copper line from the tank to the bags with the exception of the SS Braided Leader Hose from the compressor, and a 8" piece of 1/2" DOT Tubing as a "blowout" section. 2600lb Firestones on all 4. I've also got a 35' section of the yellow 1/4" coiled hose to the tank incase I need air in the tire, or the compressor fails I can add air to the tank. I'll be running an Engine Driven Compressor soon, because they can fill my tank in 30 seconds at idle compared to 8 minutes) and the Viair will only be used as a backup.
Make like a big rigger and go to truck stop get some brake line anti freeze put some in your air tank make sure the prssure is O when you open the tank then put a bleeder wit remoute access lok at airtanks on trucks and bleed them every so often
The air ride tech valves are the only valves that are spedifically made for air suspension use. They are excellent valves. The reason most don't like them, is cost and they are slow. A 3/8" smc is a lot quicker than the big reds. Which are a lot quicker than the ride pros. One of the nice things about air ride tech's kits are that they come with wiring harnesses that plug everything together, making it easy to install. If wiring doesn't bother you, go for some 3/8" smc valves ( 8 of them cost about what one air ride ride pro does ), and size the line according to how fast you want it.
The air ride tech valves are the only valves that are spedifically made for air suspension use. They are excellent valves. The reason most don't like them, is cost and they are slow. A 3/8" smc is a lot quicker than the big reds. Which are a lot quicker than the ride pros. One of the nice things about air ride tech's kits are that they come with wiring harnesses that plug everything together, making it easy to install. If wiring doesn't bother you, go for some 3/8" smc valves ( 8 of them cost about what one air ride ride pro does ), and size the line according to how fast you want it. I would never own a car or truck with FB control only. But then again, I wouldn't own a two link either. FBSS is the best way to go.
I had a plastic manual paddle valve for a long time that went to a T then to my bag over leafs in the back. This winter I replaced the paddle valve with the SMC 3/8 electric operated valves. Even with the same 1/4" line and a T, the air up time dropped from 3 seconds down to less than 1 sec. I didn't realize how small the orifice in the manual paddle valve was. It wasn't a very expensive experiment, two SMC valves (one in, one to dump), a couple of fittings, a toggle switch and that was it. I was pretty impressed on the difference it made. The wiring is pretty simple, black wires to ground, red wires to + that opens the valve. Make sure you plumb your air flow according to the "IN" marks on the valve. Don't ask me how I know that.
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