Free air?

[RedNeckRacin]

Sheetz here in PA has free air at all of their locations! They are expanding to MD, OH, NC and FL? I believe

 

[grsthegreat]

Yeah, I didn't know about that law the first time I stopped in Oregon and I started putting gas in my truck and an obviously mentally handicapped young man then came outside and bawled me out for it. Probably the only time in his life that he got to feel superior to someone, so I just ignored it. And of course I intended to fill it up, but he stopped a good 5 gallons short of filling it.

And of course he never mentioned doing any other service, and I didn't either.

The politicians claim the purpose of requiring an attendant to pump the gas is to keep the ladies from getting their hands dirty. But the real reason of course is to provide employment for otherwise unemployable people.

i never could figure out why. i just told the guy that people in Idaho were smart enough to know how to pump gas...didnt need instructions. then i left

 

[smstonypoint]

i made the mistake of trying to pump my own gas while passing thru oregon one time years ago....i got yelled at. I was so pissed off, i left without buying any gas. i got it in Wash state instead. The lefties of Oregon figure people are too stupid to pump their own gas i guess..... what other reason exists for this.

You surely have days when you wonder why Oregon and New Jersey don't allow self-service gas stations. Invariably, you come back to the same old realization: "I need the advice of an economist. An economist would know how to answer my question."

In this economist's opinion, this is an example of the Baptists and Bootleggers concept of regulation at work. The Baptists (advocacy groups for safety, the disabled, etc.) assume the "moral" high ground in arguing to keep the ban on self-service and the Bootleggers (the full-service owners who want to limit competition) lobby politicians to keep the ban.

Here's the view of another economist: The Oregon Economics Blog: Econ 101: Myth-Busting Self-Service Gas

Steve

 

[Diamondpilot]

Getting next to impossible to find air in my area. Truck stop had hose at all the truck pumps until recently. Put in vending machine air which is slow and expensive if you need air in more than one tire. I find these machines at some of the fuel stations, but most don't work or are stuck in a corner as an afterthought where you have no shot of getting close with a truck and trailer. Most fuel stops have nothing. I have a 12v compressor that works, but takes forever. I have a large compressor at home, but I am not always near home when I need air. I have gone to the tire store and shot a guy a couple $$ for the use of his air hose. This only works 9-5.After hours, you are on your own. How do you guys handle this?

Not to be smart but I have not had to add air away from home in 20 years. I am a stickler to tire maintenance. I guess this comes from working on trailers, most of which comes to me as junk.

I have tire pressure monitors in all my stuff and I physically check all my tires twice a month. Just did them today.

Chris

 

[deerseeker001]

Its getting harder to find stations that have air available.the ones that do have it do repairs on vehicles.

 

[jaotguy]

the reason most places around here don't have free air is because some of the local youth used to jab a stick in the air chuck to make it run all night , or cut the hose if they couldn't find a stick... after replacing a few compressors, the stations switched to the "pay for air" units and the problem goes away ....

 

[3930dave]

Not to be smart but I have not had to add air away from home in 20 years. I am a stickler to tire maintenance. I guess this comes from working on trailers, most of which comes to me as junk.

I have tire pressure monitors in all my stuff and I physically check all my tires twice a month. Just did them today.

Chris

Hey Chris - I'm going to get you to buy me some lottery tickets ! (I know you take good care of your stuff, just saying there is some luck involved too).

Best Personal Use of my 12v compressor:

Had to make an overnight drive suddenly, to deal with a family issue. Part way through that trip, picked up a big (industrial) staple in one tire. Noticed the tire low, and topped it up with the 12v comp. so I could get to a lighted gas station. I could have changed the spare at the side of a narrow rural highway in the middle of the night if I had to, but much preferred doing it off the road, in a well lit area.

Best Helping Somebody Else Use of my 12v comp.

Neighbour got married. Service was in a little rural church near here. Wedding party comes out to go to an arbouretum for pics. As the Best Man is heading to his CRV, I pointed out that his front tire is just about on the rim, then told him I had a compressor with me. Nearest commercial compressor is at least a 15 minute drive away in the wrong direction.

People often say things like this and not mean it - but I knew the Best Man wasn't blowing smoke when he said "First thing tomorrow, I'm going out and buying one of those".

Back when I started carrying a 12v compressor in my car, there still were some full service shops around. Even back then, I liked the convenience/security of having my own air source wherever I was - makes filling up air mattresses a lot less of a hassle too. With our climate here, outdoor commercial air lines can freeze up solid in the Winter - so even if you find one (not easy at times today), you can't be sure it's going to work. A basic 12v compressor is not that expensive, and the dual piston one I described earlier does a decent job even filling an LT tire. I've used 12v compressors enough that I've eventually worn out the chuck, but I've never had one freeze up on me.

Pretty well anywhere you jog or bicycle, you'll see tons of junk and scrap metal on roads. That's w/o even talking about construction sites - even LT tires get beat up there. Modern tires are pretty good, but once you consider all the garbage on the roads, it's a miracle that we don't get more flats than we do.....

(Knock wood... I'm tempting fate, as I'm heading out the door just now.....)

Rgds, D.

 

[Midniteoyl]

The politicians claim the purpose of requiring an attendant to pump the gas is to keep the ladies from getting their hands dirty. But the real reason of course is to provide employment for otherwise unemployable people.

:thumbsup:

 

[Bird]

Not to be smart but I have not had to add air away from home in 20 years. I am a stickler to tire maintenance. I guess this comes from working on trailers, most of which comes to me as junk.

I have tire pressure monitors in all my stuff and I physically check all my tires twice a month. Just did them today.

Chris

I'm not nearly as meticulous as you, but we sure have one thing in common. I do usually check my tires at home when the weather turns cold, and again when it turns hot; a few times a year anyway, and I can't even remember the last time I might have added air away from home.

I received one of the 12 volt compressors as a gift back about 1989 and used it one time only. A cousin had a flat on his pickup and we sat in the shade and drank 2 beers each while it aired up that tire. From what I've read, some of the newer ones are vastly improved.:laughing:

 

[diesel lover]

I have to add this as it such an endless use tool! This is a gladhand attached to a air chuck. On a semi truck you attach the glad hand to the truck and release the trailer side only. You now have a air compressor!! It has a cutoff pressure of 110 to 135 psi. The truck has decent sized air tanks and a decent sized air compressor that is oiled by the engines oil.

Attach the glad hand to the trailer emergency brake side, attach any air tool you want through either a 1/4 or 3/8 air fitting. Easy to air up tires, use a die grinder or small air sander, air hammer or 3/8 impact. At idle I used this set up with 20 feet of air hose and my 3/8 impact wrench to change a flat tire on an SUV. It was limited air supply but really not bad compared a small portable air compressor. The lugnuts were torqued to 100 foot pounds.

So using a trucks air supply which is already produced while a truck is idling you can easily air up tires, or complete any small task.

I know some of you may not be familiar with large trucks but I knew you would find this interesting.

This is indeed one of the FREE air supply's out there as a truck's air compressor is producing air as needed while the engine idles.

 

[2458n]

Our small service station just last week shut off the outside air. The gas pumps have been gone for a long time. It has only been a week but I miss it badly. Stopped by to air up trailer tires when I find a new piece of junk to drag home. Have both gas and electric compressor at the house,but enjoyed the ease of use. I really feel badly but kind of feel like it is my fault for the owner shutting it off. 32 years of air that I know of- and it certainly was not free to the man that does car repairs and owns the place.

 

[creekbend]

Many stations quit supplying free air because of vandalism. I carry an air tank.

 

[timswi]

The air isn't really free. Someone has to pay to run and maintain the compressor. Just surprised by how many here don't even have a small home AC...Shocked really. I have always had a 60gal upright 220v. I always saw it as an absolute necessity.

 

[diesel lover]

The air isn't really free. Someone has to pay to run and maintain the compressor. Just surprised by how many here don't even have a small home AC...Shocked really. I have always had a 60gal upright 220v. I always saw it as an absolute necessity.

I'm looking to buy a house but don't own one currently. I grew up with a smaller compressor but it still did great for airing up car and tractor tires.

I was looking to buy a portable air tank but my friend sold me the 2 gallon CH compressor for 45$. Perfect for me! This is great until I have a place to put a 26 gallon or even 60 gallon compressor. Till then it is worth saving up the money for a larger compressor. There is no reason for me to buy anything smaller than 26 gallon for constant air tool use age!

My 2 gallon compressor is 120 volt, 2 amp or 240 watt. It could easily be powered off a 500 watt power inverter for airing up a tire in the middle of nowhere ! Just another reason I bought it.

I do have a friends house with an air compressor I can use anytime for vehicle repairs. I simply bring over my air tools and repair anything as needed.

 

[grsthegreat]

i have the 60 gallon compressor in the shop and a wall mounted small 120 v unit in the garage. The garage unit is great for airing up mower tires, etc. would take a long time to air up the truck tires. Thats what the shop unit is for.

 

[redprospector]

There may be free air, but there's no such thing as free compressed air.
I own 6 air compressors, and I've always got my eyes peeled looking for the next one. :laughing:
I bought one of these several years ago. Puma Twin Tank 12 Volt 2 Gallon Oil Less Air Compressor | eBay
They were cheaper when I bought mine, but if I lost mine I'd buy another. I don't go far without it. I've aired up log skidder tires with it, ran an impact on it, and it is indispensable at an auction (have you ever bought anything at an auction that had the tires inflated all the way? :laughing It's not your ordinary pain in the butt 12v compressor.

 

[diesel lover]

There may be free air, but there's no such thing as free compressed air. I own 6 air compressors, and I've always got my eyes peeled looking for the next one. :laughing: I bought one of these several years ago. Puma Twin Tank 12 Volt 2 Gallon Oil Less Air Compressor | eBay They were cheaper when I bought mine, but if I lost mine I'd buy another. I don't go far without it. I've aired up log skidder tires with it, ran an impact on it, and it is indispensable at an auction (have you ever bought anything at an auction that had the tires inflated all the way? :laughing It's not your ordinary pain in the butt 12v compressor.

Wow my 120 volt AC compressor is only 1/3 horse power and max psi is at 110. The price is right for me at 45$ used only once as I wouldn't ever have paid 100$ for this thing new.

I'm very familiar with log skidders and they have very large tires!! My friend ran a timber jack with a 4-53 Detroit 2 stroke.

I must know at this point if it can inflate tires that large and run air impacts what Is the max psi??
2 gallons of volume, 1 horsepower of build up but I would like to know the max psi! Didn't know this compressor can do so much but it sounds like such a great option for portable unexpected repairs

 

[redprospector]

150 psi. max with 135 psi working pressure. It has small air capacity (2 gal.) so it has to run some while using an impact, but it beats a ratchet real bad.
Here's the spec's.

SPECS:

*MODEL: PD1021

*DEMENSIONS: HEIGHT- 15" LENGTH- 14" WIDTH- 16"

*HORSE-POWER: 1 HP PEAK - 3/4 HP RUNNING

*150 PSI MAX / 135 PSI WORKING PRESSURE

*2 GALLON TANK

* 1 YEAR WARRANTY *

* 12 VOLT DC POWER SUPPLY

* OIL-LESS

*AMP DRAW: 30 AMPS

***ONLY WEIGHS 38 LBS***

 

[Dallas_Lilly]

I have found that many of the drive through car washes have air hoses for use on the outside. Must use the air for something in the car wash?